Aryna Sabalenka got her ticket to the semi-finals after a long battle with Amanda Anisimova in three sets of 4-6, 6-3 and 6-2 on Friday in Rome.
Belarus, 8th in the world, took 1h 51min to qualify.
The American, 32nd in the WTA, started the meeting well, but then he slowed down and made more mistakes to provide ground.
Unable to finish, Anisimova only won 5 games in the final sets. Note, however, that he was able to win the exchange with the 5 break points he got in the fight.
This was Sabalenka’s first win in their fifth encounter. Anisimova leads the series 4-1. In their last match, in Madrid, the American won by scores of 6-2, 3-6 and 6-4.
Sabalenka could find Bianca Andreescu (90th in the WTA rankings) in the semi-finals, if the Canadian makes it to the quarterfinals on Friday, the No. 1 seed. 1 in the world and defending champion, the Polish Iga Swiatek.
No small task …
More details to come.
Source: Radio-Canada
