Alkass Digital
In a day filled with twists and turns at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open, Naomi Osaka secured her spot in the last 16, while Coco Gauff and Ons Jabeur suffered unexpected early exits.
Japan’s Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, battled past Croatia’s Petra Martic with a 6-3, 7-6 victory, adding another milestone to her comeback journey following a maternity leave. Despite Martic’s efforts to push for a third set, Osaka’s superiority got the better of the Croatian as she went on to secure the win in a thrilling tie-break.
Meanwhile, Gauff, the world number three, suffered a shock in her opening match at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex. The 2023 US Open champion was beaten by World No.42 Katerina Siniakova, with scores of 6-2, 6-4. The match saw Gauff struggle with errors, ultimately failing to maintain her lead in the second set and conceding the match to Siniakova.
Siniakova, a former WTA Doubles World No.1 who has won seven Grand Slam doubles titles, moves into the Doha Round of 16 in singles for the first time in her career.
Siniakova will face another accomplished American, Danielle Collins, in the Round of 16. World No.67 Collins, the 2022 Australian Open finalist, qualified for the main draw this week and beaten No.13 seed Veronika Kudermetova in Round of 64, and Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 7-5 yesterday in the Round of 32.
Adding to the unexpected turn of events, fourth seed Tunisian Jabeur succumbed to a 6-3, 6-2 loss against Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko.
Jabeur’s defeat adds to her challenging start to the year, highlighting the competitive nature of the tournament.
Post-match, Jabeur told reporters that she was plagued by “small problems” in her right knee, similar issues that affected her last week in a 6-3, 6-4 quarter-final loss to Beatriz Haddad Maia in Abu Dhabi.
“Definitely much better than last week, but it’s still there, unfortunately,” Jabeur, a crowd favourite in Doha, said.
“It will not heal in two or three days, but I’m doing my best to heal it, and I think it’s going to be very positive for the next weeks,” she added.
On a brighter note, Australian Open runner-up Zheng Qinwen secured a hard-fought victory in her first match since the Melbourne final when she battled past Magda Linette with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 triumph.
Meanwhile, the 16th seed Emma Navarro of the United States secured a convincing win against Elise Mertens of Belgium, triumphing 6-1, 6-3. The surprises of the day continued as unseeded Leylah Fernandez of Canada staged a comeback after dropping the first set to defeat Paula Badosa of Spain with a scoreline of 0-6, 6-2, 6-3. Additionally, Linda Noskova of the Czech Republic stunned the seventh-seeded Maria Sakkari of Greece in a hard-fought battle that extended to three sets, eventually winning 3-6, 7-6 (2), 7-5.
Qatar TotalEnergies Open Results: Second Round
Ekaterina Alexandrova (RUS x14) bt Erika Andreeva (RUS) 6-0, 3-6, 6-1
Victoria Azarenka (BLR) bt Wang Xinyu (CHN) 7-6 (7/2), 6-2
Jelena Ostapenko (LAT x8) bt Anhelina Kalinina (UKR) 6-0, 6-3
Lesia Tsurenko (UKR) bt Ons Jabeur (TUN x4) 6-3, 6-2
Naomi Osaka (JPN) bt Petra Martic (CRO) 6-3, 7-6 (11/9)
Karolina Pliskova (CZE) bt Anastasia Potapova (RUS) 6-1, 5-7, 6-4
Linda Noskova (CZE) bt Maria Sakkari (GRE x7) 3-6, 7-6 (7/2), 7-5
Zheng Qinwen (CHN x5) bt Magda Linette (POL) 6-2, 2-6, 6-3
Leylah Fernandez (CAN) bt Paula Badosa (ESP) 0-6, 6-2, 6-3
Emma Navarro (USA x16) bt Elise Mertens (BEL) 6-1, 6-3
Elena Rybakina (KAZ x3) bt Lin Zhu (CHN) 6-2, 6-1
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) bt Marta Kostyuk (UKR) 2-1 -- retired
Danielle Collins (USA) bt Marie Bouzkova (CZE) 6-4, 7-5
Katerina Siniakova (CZE) bt Coco Gauff (USA x2) 6-2, 6-4