By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Thursday, February 6, 2025
Defending champion Elena Rybakina fought off Ons Jabeur in three sets and American Ashlyn Krueger reached her first WTA 500-level semifinal.
Photo credit: Christopher Pike/Getty
Heavy hitters stared down stress advancing to the Abu Dhabi semifinals today.
In a rematch of the 2022 Wimbledon final, Elena Rybakina edged Ons Jabeur 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(5) to set up an Abu Dhabi semifinal vs. Swiss Belinda Bencic.
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Down 2-4 in the tiebreaker, Rybakina reeled off five of the last six points and closed the match successfully challenging a Jabeur drive initially called good that replay showed landed long.
Reigning champion Rybakina scored her sixth straight Abu Dhabi win—four of those six wins have spanned the three-set distance.
“It’s not easy,” Rybakina said afterward. “The first [match] point, she played really well and the second one, I just rushed and made a mistake.
“But I knew that it was a tough match no matter what, and I just needed to fight and play point by point.”
Earlier, 2021 Olympic gold-medal champion Bencic beat 2023 Wimbledon winner Marketa Vondrousova 7-5, 6-3.
In a clash of wild cards, Bencic, who gave birth to daughter Bella last year, reached her first Tour-level semifinal since 2023 Charleston.
The 2023 Abu Dhabi champion Bencic, who was ranked No. 1217 last November on her return from maternity leave, vaults to No. 113 in the live rankings.
In the day’s second quarterfinal, American Ashlyn Krueger fought off eighth-seeded Canadian Leylah Fernandez 7-5, 4-6, 6-2—her third straight three-set win—powering into her first WTA 500-level semifinal.
Continuing her break-out run, Krueger will face either Linda Noskova or Magda Linette as she plays for a second Tour-level final.
Prior to Brisbane, Krueger was 2-11 vs. Top 20 opponents; since then she’s 4-1 vs. the Top 20 and took charge against former US Open finalist Fernandez today.
Krueger denied two break points then threw down an ace out wide sealing the first hold of the final set for a 3-2 lead.
Feeling pressure from the American’s return, Fernandez slapped a double fault into net ceding another break and a 4-2 lead to Krueger.
World No. 51 Krueger cracked a forehand winner down the line to convert her third match point and secure her semifinal spot after a two hour, 33-minute clash.
“I thought if I keep fighting and staying in every point she's obviously not an easy competitor so I’m glad I could come out on top today,” Krueger told Monica Puig afterward. “Definitely it’s never easy playing another three-set match, but I was just trying to draw from the experience last night. I was resilient last night so I was just trying to do the same today.”
Playing with new coach and former ATP standout Davide Sanguinetti in her box, Rybakina broke immediately building a 3-0 0 lead in cruising through the first set as Jabeur tried to find her forehand range.
Blocking a forehand volley into the open court, Jabeur stretched her second-set lead to 3-1 after 46 minutes.
Mixing short slice backhands to lure Rybakina forward, Jabeur was firing her forehand with menace. The woman in black banged a forehand into the corner breaking again for 4-1.
Applying her touch, Jabeur denied a pair of break points working through a 12-point game to back up the break for 5-1.
Jabeur dropped serve at love on her first attempt to serve out the set. A running forehand strike down the line helped Jabeur serve out the second set on her second effort.
For the fifth time in their six meetings, the pair went the three-set distance.
Midway through the decider, Rybakina read the Jabeur drop shot, raced up to the ball and wristed a wonderful re-dropper crosscourt. That stirring get surprised Jabeur and helped the 2022 Wimbledon winner gain the crucial break for 4-2.
Trying to consolidate, Rybakina ran into trouble as a Jabeur backhand return crashed into the tape and crawled over giving the Tunisian the break in the seventh game.
Teeing off on heavy forehands, Rybakina torched a forehand winner edging ahead 5-4.
On the first match point, Jabeur played a tremendous drop shot-backhand pass combination then dabbed a slow slice drawing an errant backhand to save the second match point.
A gutsy Jabeur lashed a forehand down the line holding to force the tiebreaker and prompting her entire box to leap from their seats in a show of support.
Riding momentum and a supportive crowd, Jabeur snatched a 4-2 tiebreaker lead. Undaunted, Rybakina won five of the final six points closing on that correct challenge to set up a semifinal vs. Bencic.