Ekaterina Alexandrova upset Elena Rybakina 6-3 6-3 to clinch her third career top 3 win in the Adelaide quarter finals. Alexandrova ended Rybakina’s six-match winning streak this year. Rybakina won the Bribane International last week.
Alexandrova has extended her winning streak to 3-1 in her four head-to-head matches against Rybakina. Alexandrova had previously beaten her Kazakh player in the Shenzhen final and in the first round of the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati in 2020.
Alexandrova earned two breaks of serve to open up a 4-0 lead. Rybakina saved two break points to hold serve in the fifth game before pulling one break back in the sixth game. The Kazakh player held serve at 15 in the seventh game to cut the deficit to 3-4.
Alexandrova held serve at 30 in the eighth game to take a 5-3 lead before breaking for the third time in the ninth game to take a 6-3 lead.
The second set started exactly as the first set, as Alexandrova raced out to a 5-0 lead with two breaks of serve. Rybakina pulled one break back in the seventh game and held serve at 30 in the eighth game to reduce the deficit to 3-5. Rybakina missed out on three consecutive break points before Alexandrova converted her first match point.
Alexandrova hit 28 winners to 15 unforced errors. Rybakina produced 22 winners and 25 unforced errors.
Alexandrova set up a semifinal match against Jelena Ostapenko, who beat Marta Kostyuk 7-5 6-3 in 1 hour and 32 minutes.
Ostapenko opened up a 5-2 lead, but Kostyuk won three consecutive games to draw level to 5-5. Ostapenko broke three times to seal the win.
Alexandrova leads 5-3 in her eight head-to-head matches against Ostapenko.
Jessica Pegula came back from one set and a break down to beat Anastasya Pavlyuchenkova 6-7 (1-7) 7-5 6-4. Pegula earned an early break in the first game. Pavlychenkova broke back in the fourth game to draw level to 2-2. Pavlyuchenkova earned three mini-breaks to win the tie-break 7-1.
Both players traded breaks in the first two games of the second set. Pavlyuchenkova held a break point at 5-5, but Pegula saved it with her serve. Pegula sealed the second set 7-5 with a break on her second set point. Pegula earned a break in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead in the third set. Pavlyuchenkova broke back in the sixth game to draw level to 3-3. Pegula hit a drop shot winner and a forehand winner and sealed the third set 6-4 when Pavlyuchenkova netted a forehand on the match point. Pegula will face Daria Kasatkina.
