By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Wednesday July 31, 2024
Playing in her first match since before Wimbledon, Aryna Sabalenka outlasted Kamilla Rakhimova in three sets at the Citi Open.
Photo Source: Mark Peterson / Corleve
Aryna Sabalenka’s hard court summer is up and running.
The two-time major champion made her return from the rotator cuff injury that forced her out of Wimbledon this year and notched a hard-fought 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 victory over Kamilla Rakhimova, the World No.78.
“I'm super happy to be back on court,” Sabalenka said. “I didn't play [for] months, it feels like. It's been more than that. Happy to get through this tough match. She played incredible tennis. I'm just super happy to get this win.”
The Belarusian, out for over a month due to the shoulder injury, hit 53 winner, 53 unforced errors and 14 double faults in the tense tussle.
She didn’t seem fully confident in her shoulder, despite passing the two hour and 46-minute test in warm, muggy conditions. Time will tell, she says of the injury that forced her to pull out of Wimbledon.
“I really hope it's okay,” said the 26-year-old, who will face either Victoria Azarenka or Wang Yafan in the quarterfinals in D.C. “At least I was able to serve without pain. It's not going to be easy to come back after injury, especially the one I had.
“I feel okay and we'll see how I feel tomorrow. But I really, really hope I'm going to be all right for the next match.”
Sabalenka improves to 31-9 on the season and reaches her first hard court quarterfinal since her run to the Australian Open title in January.
Kasatkina Falls to Dolehide
Russia’s Daria Kasatkina served for the win against American Caroline Dolehide at 6-2, 5-4 on Wednesday night, but hit the wall from there. Dolehide surged to victory, winning the final nine games to complete a 2-6, 7-5, 6-0 victory and book a quarterfinal clash with Amanda Anisimova.
The 49th-ranked American admitted that she was still in a state of shock after engineering a dramatic turnaround against the World No.12.
“I think I just needed to focus a little bit more on what was working,” she said of the win. “The conditions were tough. It was really humid. It was very dark. The match was getting longer and longer. She makes a lot of balls. So I had to focus on my game, my game style. I executed in the end.”