Krejčíková defeated Sabalenko in the quarterfinals in Dubai after a reversal

Barbora Krejčíková in the quarterfinals of the tennis tournament in Dubai against Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenkova of the UAE on February 23, 2023.

Doha/Dubai – Tennis player Barbora Krejčíková knocked out the top seed in the quarterfinals of the tournament in Dubai after a turn number two Aryna Sabalenkova from Belarus. She managed to defeat the reigning Australian Open champion for the first time this season on the WTA circuit, defeating her 0:6, 7:6, 6:1 after an almost two-hour battle.

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In the semifinals, Krejčíková will challenge the American Jessica Pegulaová, who advanced without a fight after the other Czech quarterfinalist Karolína Muchová withdrew from the tournament before the mutual duel. Problems with her abdominal muscles, which plague her repeatedly, prevented her from entering the match with the tournament's top three.

Krejčíková, the finalist of the Dubai tournament from 2021, could not make it against Sabalenková for a long time. She lost the first set in half an hour with zero, and in the second she lost 1:3. Only then was she able to take advantage of her chance to break for the first time, gained confidence in her serve and clearly outplayed her opponent 7:2 in a shortened game.

The Czech Grand Slam champion from Roland Garros 2021 carried her self-confidence and improved performance into the third set, while Sabalenková, on the other hand, lost her sovereignty and bought mistakes. She lost serve twice and found a winner for the first time after a 13-game winning streak. Krejčíková converted the third match point.

“I just fought. I never give up, no matter what the situation is, I fight until the end,” she described in an interview on the court how she was able to turn the seemingly hopeless development of the match around. “And the Czech fans definitely helped me. They made the situation a lot easier for me, they told me funny things to lighten it up and to make me relax. So I want to thank them very much, I felt at home, like when I played in Ostrava last year,” she thanked with a smile Krejčíková to the crowds of her supporters.

In the semi-finals, the twenty-seven-year-old Krejčíková can avenge the defeat of the one-year-old world number three Pegula in the round of 16 at this year's Australian Open. The second semi-final pair consists of the Polish number one Iga Šwiateková, who also advanced without a fight after the withdrawal of the sick Karolína Plíšková, and another American Coco Gauffová.

Tennis player Lehečka eliminated the tournament number one Rubljov and is in the semifinals in Doha

< p>Tennis player Jiří Lehečka will play the semifinals at the tournament in Doha. In today's quarterfinals, the twenty-one-year-old Czech defeated world number five Andrei Rublev from Russia 4:6, 6:4 and 6:3.

Lehečka will play former world number one Andy Murray for his first appearance in the final. The British three-time Grand Slam champion also defeated the Frenchman Alexander Muller in three sets after a turnaround 4:6, 6:1, 6:2.

Lehečka lost the first set with the number one seed, but after that he improved and the winner of the tournament from 2020, Rubljov, started to get the short end of the stick. The 52nd player in the world decided to win the second set with a break at 5:4 and quickly built up a 3:0 lead in the third, which he kept without difficulty.

“The last two months have been amazing. I have improved everything. Mainly psyche on the court. At the Next Gen tournament, I gained self-confidence and learned to work with it,” Lehečka recalled in an on-court interview about his final participation in the Tournament of Champions for players under 21 years of age, which he concluded last season and is following up on with his performances this year.< /p>

Lehečka, who claimed his second triumph over a player from the top ten of the world rankings, will play in the semi-finals on the ATP circuit for the second time. He advanced to the top four for the first time last year in Rotterdam.

His opponent will be the 35-year-old Murray, who is ranked 70th after prolonged health problems. He fought with the twenty-six-year-old Muller, who advanced to the main competition in Qatar from the qualification, for more than two hours. He also had to play three-set duels in the opening two rounds.

Women's Tennis Tournament in Dubai

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