World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Madrid Open with a shocking 2-6, 6-2, 7-6 (8-6) loss to Haley Baptiste.
It was the biggest win of No. 30 seed Baptiste’s career to date, and his first over a top-five player. She saved an incredible six match points before sealing the victory.
Sabalenka, a three-time Madrid champion, dominated the early exchanges, forcing two service breaks midway through and taking the first set 6-2.
Aryna Sabalenka shockingly loses in the quarterfinals at Madrid Open
However, Batiste got two breaks of her own at the start of the second set, and although Sabalenka got a break to make it 4-2, she quickly dropped her serve again as she was forced into a deciding set with a 6-2 reversal.
Two more service breaks were exchanged in the deciding set, with Baptiste serving to save Sabalenka five match points and win the 10th game.
Baptiste then broke for a 6-5 advantage, but was unable to clinch the win as Sabalenka broke back to make it 6-6, resulting in her sixth match point at 6-5 in the ensuing tiebreaker.
But after Baptiste defeated Canada’s Leila Fernandez 7-6 (7-1), 6-3 earlier on Tuesday, Baptiste took the next three points for a dramatic victory 2 hours and 32 minutes later, setting up a matchup with Mira Andreeva in the semifinals.
Hayley Baptiste celebrates quarterfinal victory over world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka at Madrid Open
“I can’t believe it. I’m so proud of myself,” said the 24-year-old Baptiste. “It was a very close game, 7-6 in the third. I had to fight for match points, but I’m really happy now.”
“It just shows where my game is. I’ve always believed in that. Now I’m starting to put it into action and the world is seeing it.”
Defending champion Sabalenka’s loss was the latest upset in the WTA 1000 clay tournament, where the top seven seeds were all eliminated.
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