High-ranked Aryna Sabalenka escapes with a nail-biting win whereas within the ATP draw, Felix Auger-Aliassime downs ex-champ Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Printed On 17 Aug 2026
World primary Aryna Sabalenka wanted six match factors to subdue Talia Gibson and be a part of reigning Grand Slam champions Elena Rybakina and Mirra Andreeva within the third spherical of the Cincinnati Masters.
Australia’s Gibson saved 5 match factors within the twelfth recreation of Sunday’s second set earlier than Sabalenka got here via within the tiebreaker, managing a closing winner to get the job performed 6-2, 7-6 (7/2) in slightly below two hours on a windswept Grandstand Courtroom within the US state of Ohio.
Advisable Tales
checklist of 4 gadgetsfinish of checklist
“I’m tremendous drained. That is loopy climate,” Sabalenka stated. “Talia performed nice tennis and was extra aggressive within the second set.
“She put extra strain on my service video games. I’m glad I stayed calm and pulled it out in straight units.”
Sabalenka gained Cincinnati in 2024 and is hoping for a deep run to hold her into the US Open, the place she’ll be in search of her first Grand Slam title of the yr.
The Belarusian has gained three titles in 2026 however none since Miami in March.
She superior together with Australian Open winner Rybakina and Roland Garros champion Andreeva, who powered on in convincing type.
US hope Coco Gauff, seeded fourth, needed to work more durable for a 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Forty third-ranked Russian Liudmila Samsonova, and fellow American Ben Shelton – as much as sixth on the earth rankings after his Montreal Masters triumph final week – was despatched packing by 79th- ranked Jaime Faria of Portugal.
World quantity two Rybakina, coming off a runner-up end to Iga Swiatek in Toronto and inching nearer to Sabalenka within the rankings, defeated Taylor Townsend 6-3, 6-4.
Andreeva crushed Oleksandra Oliynykova with the lack of only one recreation, breaking 5 instances and saving all seven break factors she confronted in a 6-1, 6-0 rout.
Rybakina stated she is concentrating on restoration after a tricky Toronto run and was glad to get off to a low-stress begin in Cincinnati.
“At present I’m proud of the serve,” she stated. “Positively it helped me so much. Final week in Toronto was very troublesome. A variety of three- set matches.”
Seventh-seeded Swiatek, the defending champion, who bagged her first title of a rocky season in Toronto, hammered Emiliana Arango of Colombia 6-3, 6-0.
Gauff and Shelton headlined a night session that proved tough as blustery situations gave method to transient rain that halted each matches for slightly below half an hour.
Gauff pulled out a victory with a storming end, profitable the final 5 video games.
‘Very emotional second’
Shelton fell sufferer to the identical type of surge from Faria, who rallied from 4-1 down within the second set to submit his first top-10 win with a 6-4, 6-4 conquer the American within the ATP draw.
“These moments, you bought to take all of it in and simply take pleasure in it,” Faria stated. “It’s a really emotional second for me and my group, to do it right here in entrance of a tremendous crowd and towards the house participant at evening at a tremendous venue simply makes it just a little extra particular.”
The lads’s second seed, Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, was aiming to kick-start his US Open preparations after pulling out of his house Masters with again ache.
Auger-Aliassime, enjoying for the primary time since a five-set quarterfinal loss to Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon, defeated 2022 Cincinnati finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-5.
The Canadian seemed totally recovered as he throttled Tsitsipas in 88 minutes, breaking his Forty ninth-ranked opponent thrice within the second set and firing his seventh ace on match level.
Auger-Aliassime stated a late break of his serve could possibly be blamed partly on the windy situations.
“It was a difficult ending, however fortunately, I used to be capable of get the break again,” he stated. “I’m pleased to be again with a win like this.”
Fourth-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev opened his marketing campaign with a businesslike 6-4, 7-5 defeat of Argentinian Marco Trungelliti.
US sixth seed Taylor Fritz smashed a racquet in anger simply 5 minutes into his match with compatriot Alex Michelsen however recovered his poise within the swirling winds to earn a 6-3, 6-4 win.
