By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Sunday July 25, 2021
Donna Vekic rallied from a break down in the third set to defeat Aryna Sabalenka in Tokyo.
Photo Source: Getty
Croatia’s Donna Vekic snapped a run of eight straight losses against Top-10 opponents and produced one of the biggest upsets of the women’s singles event of the Tokyo Olympics on Monday, toppling No.3-seeded Aryna Sabalenka, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3).
Vekic trailed 4-2 in the third set but took advantage of a poor service game from Sabalenka at 4-3 to draw even and gain momentum. From there the World No.50 held firm and moved through the third-set tiebreaker to book her spot in the round of 16 at the Olympics—she will face Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, the No.15 seed, next.
Van Uytvanck Topples Kvitova, Swiatek Falls to Badosa
It was a tricky day for Top-10 seeds as Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, the No. 10 seed, and Poland’s Iga Swiatek, the No.6 seed, were both sent packing.
Kvitova, the bronze medalist at the 2016 Rio Games, took the first set but could only manage three more games against Alison Van Uytvanck in the next two sets. She fell 5-7, 6-3, 6-0.
Swiatek fell to Paula Badosa of Spain, 6-3, 7-6(4).
The Pole was absolutely gutted after her loss, and sat at her chair sobbing for several minutes after the match. Swiatek’s father, Tomasz, was an Olympic rower in the Seoul Games in 1988.