Top-ranked Iga Swiatek advanced to the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Open with a convincing straight-sets victory over Marta Kostyuk.
The Polish superstar bounced back with a 6-2 6-2 victory on Friday (Saturday AEST), a much more complete performance after losing a second-set tiebreak on Wednesday before outlasting France’s Varvara Gracheva.
“Today, I just kept my intensity at a high level all the time,” Swiatek said.
“It didn’t really matter to me what the score was, I just wanted to continue playing my game. I focused on myself.”
No.3 seed and two-time Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka also advanced with a 7-5 6-2 victory over Elina Svitolina, but fifth-seeded Italian Jasmine Paolini, runner-up at the French Open and Wimbledon, lost to Mirra Andreeva 3-6 6-3 6-2.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova upset No.7 seed and Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen 7-5 6-1.
Spaniard Paula Badosa scored a 6-4 6-4 win over Yulia Putintseva, who had upset Coco Gauff on Thursday.
It was a busy day for plenty of players, with some forced to play two matches after a rain-affected week.
American Jessica Pegula was called on to do double duty, the 30-year-old winning two matches to advance to the quarter-finals.
Pegula began the day with a tough 5-7 6-4 6-2 victory over last year’s finalist Karolina Muchova.
After a few hours’ rest, the world No.6 returned to court to beat compatriot Taylor Townsend 6-2 6-3 and secure her spot in the final eight.
It was Pegula’s seventh straight victory after she claimed the Canadian Open title in Toronto last week.
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