Day 3 of the WTA 500 competition saw the second seed Jabeur make it through to the round of 32 thanks to a comfortable win over Lesia Tsurenko.
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The post sunshine double fever is not one to come down anytime soon as fans have immediately been hooked to the 2023 Charleston Open. The tournament features some of the biggest names in tennis today, including Jessica Pegula, Ons Jabeur, Victoria Azarenka and others. Day 3 of the WTA 500 competition saw the second seed Jabeur make it through to the round of 32 thanks to a comfortable win over Lesia Tsurenko. Sixth seed Azarenka also made it through but the work was cut out for her against a spirited Sloane Stephens. The shock of the day belonged to Shelby Rogers, who powered past 13th seed Danielle Collins despite being a set down.
Jabeur will hope to to get her year going in full swing now that she’s back on the dirt. The World No. 5 from Tunisia started her clay-court season with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko, who was ranked 77th. Jabeur couldn’t have picked a better setting to start her clay-court career, and with her one-hour, 28-minute victory over Tsurenko, she now has a 13-3 win-loss record over the past three years at this venue.
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Tsurenko, a quarterfinalist at the 2017 US Open, fell on the court early and needed a medical break, but she managed to rally from 5-0 down to 5-3 before Jabeur finally sealed the victory. Jabeur converted five of her 13 break points while saving five of the seven break points she faced during the match. Jabeur’s play on the clay got off to a strong start thanks to her 22 winners compared to Tsurenko’s nine.
Former World No. 1 Azarenka is lurking on the opposite side of the bottom quarter, and she could face Jabeur in the quarterfinals. On Tuesday night, No. 6 seed Azarenka defeated 2016 champion Stephens 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Azarenka is competing in Charleston for the first time since 2010. She has won the Australian Open twice. She will face Anna Kalinskaya for the first time in the Round of 16 as she aims to advance to the event’s quarterfinals.
Between 2013 and 2015, Azarenka defeated Stephens in their first three meetings at three consecutive Australian Opens, but Stephens prevailed in their following four games. In Charleston, Azarenka changed the momentum back in her favour by winning in just over two hours and levelling their match at 4-4.
In what was the biggest shock of the night, unseeded American player Shelby Rogers beat 13th seed Danielle Collins 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-1. The American might have been defeated in the first set but she never lost the confidence in herself as she battled from a set down to claim a crucial win in her career. The American recorded eight aces and converted five out of nine break points. She will now face fellow American Caty McNally in the last 16.
