Sabalenka outlasts Raducanu in Cincinnati thriller; Sinner marches on

CINCINNATI: World number one Aryna Sabalenka kept her Cincinnati Open title defence alive with a gritty 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-6(5) win over Emma Raducanu in a thrilling third-round encounter on Monday. The contest, lasting over three hours, was a rematch of their Wimbledon clash and featured a marathon 13-deuce game in the deciding set.

Sabalenka, 27, relied on her trademark power and clutch serving, sealing both tiebreaks to register her 18th tiebreak win of the season — the most in a single season in women’s tennis history. Despite the loss, 2021 U.S. Open champion Raducanu impressed with her resilience, even outscoring Sabalenka in total points (125-123).

“I’m really happy to see her healthy. I can see she’s improving,” Sabalenka said of her opponent. “Happy to get through this match. I really hope tomorrow I have a day off.”

Sabalenka will meet Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the round of 16.

In the men’s draw, top seed Jannik Sinner eased past Canadian Gabriel Diallo 6-2, 7-6(6), extending his unbeaten streak on hardcourts to 23 matches. The match, momentarily delayed by a fire alarm, resumed amid background noise as Sinner stayed composed to close it in straight sets.

The 23-year-old Italian will next take on French veteran Adrian Mannarino.