Angelique Kerber falls in Dubai, but Petra Kvitova and Simona Halep safely through
Fifth seed Angelique Kerber was the latest top-ranked player to get knocked out of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships while Petra Kvitova and Simona Halep scored contrasting wins.
Just a day after world No 1 Naomi Osaka was stunned by Kristina Mladenovic in the first round, Kerber followed her out of the tournament as she was upset by unseeded Hsieh Su-wei.
The German collapsed completely in the deciding set as the 31-year-old Su-wei, who beat then world No 1 Halep at Wimbledon last year, won 5-7, 6-4, 6-0.
Hsieh Su-Wei earns her fourth Top 10 win at @DDFTennis
Upsets Kerber 5-7, 6-4, 6-0! pic.twitter.com/n6vUO9xSLn
— WTA (@WTA) February 20, 2019
Next up for the Taiwanese player is fourth seed Karolina Pliskova after the Czech came through two tie-breakers against American Alison Riske, winning 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-5).
World No 2 Kvitova needed three sets to book her place in the quarter-final as she beat Jennifer Brady from the United States 7-5, 1-6, 6-3.
“I’m still breathing heavily!”
We’re not surprised, @Petra_Kvitova, after that match!
— WTA (@WTA) February 20, 2019
But reigning French Open champion Halep had an easier time as she beat Lesia Tsurenko 6-3, 7-5 and she will meet Belinda Bencic next after the resurgent Swiss stunned seventh seed Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (9-7).
And this is how she did it!
6-3, 7-5 for @simona_halep against a tenacious Tsurenko!@DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/ynOKmqasSH
— WTA (@WTA) February 20, 2019
Defending Dubai champion and sixth seed Elina Svitolina looked quite comfortable as she dropped only three games en route to beating two-time Grand Slam winner Garbine Muguruza 6-1, 6-3.
Next up for the Ukrainian is Carla Suarez Navarro, who beat Osaka’s conqueror Mladenovic 7-5, 7-5.
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