In the world of tennis, early-round upsets are considered part and parcel of the sport, with every tournament having at least one result that makes you stop, scratch your head and ask “how”. However, if it has come to be an expectation in tennis, it doesn’t apply to Aryna Sabalenka, at least not until Saturday. Following a surprise defeat in Madrid to an inspired Hailey Baptiste in the quarterfinals, the Belarusian must have felt she had a point to prove. At least, that was the expectation coming into Rome.
Her second-round match, though, pitted her against a tricky customer in Barbora Krejcikova. While the Czech star has struggled with injuries in recent times, she is a former French Open champion in both singles and doubles. It was always going to be a test for Sabalenka. A test she passed in flying colours with a dominant display. Having come through that, she was an overwhelming favorite in her next match, which pitted her against the less fancied Sorana Cirstea.
And everything seemed to be going to plan when she raced through the first set, winning it in just 34 minutes. For most, it seemed a done deal at that point, especially when Sabalenka broke again in the first game of the second set. Cirstea, however, did not back down, and despite being broken again right after retrieving the first break, fought on to take the last four games to win the set.
The decider started with a trade of breaks, before Cirstea broke in the fifth game to go ahead. She had a chance to serve for the match at 5-4, but Sabalenka broke back, and it seemed at the time that she had missed her opportunity, as is so often the case when playing the world #1. Cirstea, impressively broke back immediately, and on the second time of asking, the veteran made no mistake, as she served out the match to send a seismic shock through the Italian capital.
For Sabalenka, it marked the first time in fourteen months in which she had failed to get to at least the quarters of a tournament, when she lost to Clara Tauson at the Dubai Tennis Championships last year. She had held this impressive streak for 17 tournaments.
For Cirstea, despite having previously had 24 Top 10 wins, it marked her first-ever win against a World #1. It was a remarkable achievement, maybe even more impressive given that it came in her last year on tour, at the age of 36.
This result will certainly raise even more questions about Sabalenka and her inability to truly conquer clay, despite being the undisputed best player in the WTA for some time, and having already won three titles this year. She’d have been hoping to make a strong statement in Rome ahead of Roland Garros, which she came very close to winning last year, having taken the first set before Coco Gauff rallied from behind. She’d hope this result is only a blip. Still, coming on the back of Madrid, where she also lost to a player many expected her to beat, she probably goes into Roland Garros now with a cloud of uncertainty hanging over her.
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images