![\"Sabalenka,](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/tennis2_1752144549434_1752144572333.jpg\" "\\"Sabalenka,")
Sabalenka, with help from Djokovic, and Swiatek reach Wuhan quarters <\/p>\nWorld number one Aryna Sabalenka raced into a fourth consecutive Wuhan Open quarter-final Thursday, having revealed she spent time on holiday last month practising with Novak Djokovic. <\/p>\n
Sabalenka, with help from Djokovic, and Swiatek reach Wuhan quarters <\/p>\n
She was joined by Iga Swiatek who reached her 25th WTA 1000 quarter-final with a hard-fought 7-6 , 6-4 win over Belinda Bencic. <\/p>\n
Sabalenka, in contrast to her rusty start against Rebecca Sramkova the day before, came out firing from the get-go to blow away Russia’s world number 20 Liudmila Samsonova 6-3, 6-2. <\/p>\n
Sabalenka, whose unbeaten match run in Wuhan extended to 19-0 as she seeks a fourth straight title, took a month off after winning her fourth Grand Slam title at the US Open in early September. <\/p>\n
She went on holiday to Greece, where she spent time hitting with former number one Djokovic, who is a resident there. <\/p>\n
“We went for dinner. We practised a couple times,” Sabalenka told reporters. <\/p>\n
“I hope I was a great hitting partner. So far, he’s winning in Shanghai, so I guess I was,” she added. <\/p>\n
Sabalenka did not face a break point against Samsonova and was impressive on her second serve, dropping just three points. <\/p>\n
The Belarusian top seed wrapped up the win in 75 minutes and will face former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in the last eight.<\/p>\n
– ‘Super hard’ –<\/p>\n
Poland’s Swiatek will face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini for a place in the semi-finals <\/p>\n
“I wanted to play with confidence and make great decisions because against Belinda, you can’t let her dictate, so I really tried to do that,” said Swiatek. <\/p>\n
“It was super hard and every game was tough, that’s why it was two sets and over two hours. <\/p>\n
“But I’m happy I was there in the deciding moments, to be solid and to play one more shot back.” <\/p>\n
Bencic erased an early 3-0 deficit and served for the opening set at 5-4 before Swiatek halted the momentum and clinched it in a tiebreak after 72 minutes. <\/p>\n
The second set was also a tug of war but six-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek proved the steadier. <\/p>\n
Rybakina, who is chasing a WTA Finals berth, knocked out last week’s Beijing runner-up Linda Noskova 6-3, 6-4. <\/p>\n
Seventh seed Paolini survived a barrage of winners from Denmark’s Clara Tauson, who took the opening set before retiring with a right thigh injury when trailing 3-6, 6-1, 3-1. <\/p>\n
“She was playing amazing tennis today and honestly, I was struggling a lot,” said Paolini, who has now reached five WTA 1000 quarter-finals this season. <\/p>\n
Paolini later withdrew from her doubles last-16 citing a gastrointestinal illness. <\/p>\n
Jessica Pegula was made to battle through three sets for the second day running as she also reached the quarter-finals. <\/p>\n
The American sixth seed, who had spent almost three hours on court against Hailey Baptiste on Wednesday, needed more than two hours to move past Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 and book a last-eight meeting with Czech qualifier Katerina Siniakova. <\/p>\n
str\/dh<\/p>\n
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