Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka saw her 13-0 undefeated start to the season come to an end as she squandered a 6-0, 3-1 lead in a Dubai quarterfinal defeat to Barbora Krejcikova.
Sabalenka had not lost a match in 2023 coming into the clash, winning two titles in Australia in January, including a maiden Grand Slam trophy.
But that streak was snapped as Krejcikova scooped a 0-6, 7-6(7/2), 6-1 victory to set up a semifinal clash with American No 3 seed Jessica Pegula.
The 24-year-old Belarusian will now fly home to Miami before heading to Indian Wells, where she hopes to recapture her title-winning form.
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“Probably there will be less attention (now that the streak is over). It doesn’t matter, I lost it,” Sabalenka told AFP after her defeat.
“Barbora deserved it, she played great tennis and I will just keep working and keep getting better; make sure that Indian Wells will be a better result.”
Many were predicting a Dubai final between the world’s top two, Iga Swiatek and Sabalenka, who has openly declared her ambition to dethrone the top-ranked Pole.
“I really would like to see that happening (playing finals against Swiatek) but first of all I have to work hard and I have to focus on myself,” said Sabalenka.
“You cannot predict anything in tennis, especially women’s tennis, but I really want to see that I’ll work really hard to make sure that this is going to happen.”
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