By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday April 7, 2022
Amanda Anisova remained perfect against Aryna Sabalenka, the 20-year-old moving past the top sed in three sets.
Photo Source: Getty
By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday April 7, 2022
It has been an up-and-down start to 2022 for Amanda Anisimova on many levels, but the 20-year-old has certainly shown her promise – and prowess – at times.
Today at the Credit One Charleston Open the 47th-ranked Anisimova knocked off top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, to set a quarterfinal clash with Coco Vandeweghe.
Anisimova, this year's Melbourne 250 champion in January, improves to 13-4 on the season, and 3-0 against Sabalenka, whom she also defeated twice at the Grand Slams in 2019. On the flip side, Sabalenka drops to a disappointing 7-8 record in 2022; the 23-year-old has had a great deal of trouble locating the stellar form that took her two her first two Grand Slam semifinals in 2021, and Thursday was no different.
Sabalenka hammered ten aces but also gifted Anisimova 10 double-faults, and saved only one of the six break points she faced.
Anisimova locked up her fourth Top-10 win by racing out to a 4-0 lead in the final set; the former World No.21 served out the contest on her second attempt.
No.2-seeded Paula Badosa and No.4-seeded Ons Jabeur also pulled through on Thursday. Badosa stopped American Claire Liu, 3-6, 7-6(8), 6-1. The 21-year-old California native was two points from victory four times in the second set, but the match turned completely when Badosa won her fourth set point to end the 72-minute middle set and force a decider.
Badosa will face No.10-seeded Belinda Bencic in the quarterfinals. Bencic toppled Madison Keys for the first time in four career meetings, 6-4, 6-4.
Rain delays slowed the progress of play early in the week, so several players had to do double duty to qualify for the quarterfinals.
Elsewhere Poland’s Magda Linette upset No.7-seeded Leylah Fernandez, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 (and later went on to defeat Kaia Kanepi), while No.4-seeded Jabeur put the smack down on Romania’s Irina-Camelia Begu, 6-3, 6-2 (after finishing off Emma Navarro in her first match).
Jabeur will face Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina while Linette will take on Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia.
Here’s how the quarterfinals stack up at Charleston: