MIAMI (AFP) – Elena Rybakina extended her winning streak to 11 matches as she booked her place in the Miami Open quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Belgium’s Elise Mertens on Monday while world number two Aryna Sabalenka powered past Barbora Krejcíkova in straight sets.
But there was agony for Canadian former US Open winner Bianca Andreescu, who had to be wheelchaired off court after suffering a left ankle injury and retiring against Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Rybakina is looking to complete the “Sunshine Double” after her triumph in Indian Wells, but she was far from euphoric after her victory.
The Kazakh allowed Mertens to break in the sixth game of the first set but then two double faults from the Belgian allowed Rybakina to swiftly break back and then she struck again to take the opening set.
The Wimbledon champion broke early in the second set and never looked back and she will now face Italian Martina Trevisan in the quarters.
Trevisan beat former French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko 6-3, 6-3.
Sabalenka looked in ominous form as she blasted her way to victory over Krejcikova, the 2021 French Open winner, 6-3, 6-2.
Krejcikova had ended Sabalenka’s 13-match win streak in February in Dubai but Sabalenka defeated the Czech two weeks ago at Indian Wells.
This time Sabalenka took just 65 minutes to take care of business, going unbroken in the match and facing just one break point.
American Jessica Pegula looked comfortable and in command of her game as she beat Poland’s Magda Linette 6-1, 7-5.
World number three Pegula got off to a flying start – she struck seven winners in the opening nine minutes and won the first three games. With only 19 minutes on the clock she was 5-0 up.
The American will face Anastasia Potapova after the Russian beat China’s Zheng Qinwen 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) to continue her impressive run.
Romanian Cirstea followed up her quarter-final at Indian Wells by securing another last eight appearance thanks to a 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, win over Czech Marketa Vondrousova.
RevitaliZed by her Swedish coach Thomas Johansson, Cirstea is enjoying a revival in fortunes at the age of 32 but knows she will need to produce one of the performances of her life is she is to get past Sabalenka.
