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By Richard Pagliaro | Tuesday, February 15, 2022

 
Paula Badosa

Qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse won five straight games closing a 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 upset of third-seeded Paula Badosa in Dubai.

Photo credit: Getty

Elena-Gabriela Ruse staged a rousing comeback to set up a Romanian reunion in Dubai.

Qualifier Ruse rolled through the final five games stunning third-seeded Spaniard Paula Badosa 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 to reach the round of 16 at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

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Indian Wells champion Badosa looked to be in control when she seized a 4-1 lead in the final set.

The 56th-ranked Ruse, who won three matches in qualifying to reach the main draw, elevated her game winning 12 of the last 15 points played on her serve to spark her first Top 10 victory.

Prior to today's triumph, Ruse had yet to beat a Top 30-ranked player, but she dialed in her forehand and drilled that shot with conviction closing a two hour, 32-minute conquest on Court 1.



Ruse, who reached back-to-back clay-court finals in Hamburg and Palermo last summer, sets up a round of 16 clash with her tennis hero and Australian Open doubles partner Simona Halep.

It will be their second meeting of the season: Halep swept Ruse 6-2, 6-1 at Melbourne Summer Set last month after stopping Ruse 6-1, 6-2 at the Transylvania Open last October.

It was a day of upsets as Veronika Kudermetova cracked seven aces, won 25 of 31 first-serve points and did not drop serve defeating former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka 6-3, 6-4. 

The 31st-ranked Kudermetova will face either defending champion Garbine Muguruza or Katerina Siniakova for a quarterfinal spot.

In a clash of Grand Slam champions, 2017 Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko smacked seven aces and broke serve five times dismissing 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin 6-1, 6-2 in 52 minutes.

Ostapenko won the final six straight games to set up a round of 16 encounter with 2020 Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek. The sixth-seeded Swiatek swept Daria Kasatkina 6-1, 6-2 yesterday.



No. 10-seeded Elina Svitolina was a 6-2, 6-3 victor over wild card Mayar Sherif.

"I was expecting a tough match because she has spin, she's spinning a lot the serve as well," Svitolina said afterward. "She has a very different game style. I was expecting her to fight also till the very last point, as it happened in the second set.

"All my expectations was good. Yeah, I was just happy with the way I played today."

Two-time Dubai champion Svitolina, one of only three women to capture consecutive Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships titles, will play Swiss left-hander Jil Teichmann in the round of 16. Teichmann topped Elise Mertens 6-2, 6-4.

Eighth-seeded Ons Jabeur showed her toughness fighting through the final three games to edge former US Open finalist Vera Zvonareva 6-2, 2-6, 7-5.

Jabeur will face American Jessica Pegula next with the winner squaring off against either Halep or Ruse in the quarterfinals.

"Very tough player. Not easy. Not someone that gives you a great rhythm to play," Jabeur said. "I've won the last time in Chicago. Was feeling very good there. But I'm expecting a very, very difficult match. I still need to talk to my coach.

"I'm just coming back. To be honest, I don't want to put the pressure on myself. I know she's going to play great. I mean, let's see. I'm going to try to deliver of my magic."

 

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