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World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty averted disaster on what turned out to be a day to forget for the top names at the 2022 Adelaide International. The Wimbledon champion staved off a tremendous challenge from the fast-rising Coco Gauff to move into the quarterfinals.
But second seed Aryna Sabalenka and third seed Maria Sakkari both fell by the wayside on a day of upsets.
Here are the major results from Day 4 of the Adelaide International:
Ashleigh Barty comes back from the brink
Having not played since losing in the third round of the US Open, rust was evident when Ashleigh Barty took the court against World No. 22 Coco Gauff. The American teenager had grabbed the win in their only prior meeting, in Rome last year, following Barty's retirement.
So Gauff knew exactly what to expect and kept executing her plan to perfection for one and a half sets. Gauff's forays into the net bothered the Aussie as she struggled to find the range on her usually reliable forehands.
Serving from a break point down at 2-4 in the second set, Barty was five points away from suffering an opening-round defeat in her first tournament of the year.
However, saving it freed up the 2020 Adelaide International champion and the match soon changed its complexion. With Barty's forehands firing, Gauff found it hard to dominate like before. The Aussie bagged 11 of the last 13 games to complete a wondrous 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 comeback.
"[In the first set] I was able to create opportunities but just was a little bit slack on the execution, rusty in the sense of stringing quality points together," Barty said after the match. "I felt like I would play two or three good ones and then give away two or three cheapies quite quickly, which comes with match practice."
"Midway through the second set I was able to find my rhythm a little bit better on serve and just continued to be aggressive on my forehand,"she added. "I just found execution a little bit more."
Sabalenka, Sakkari crash out; Rybakina cruises into quarters of Adelaide International
World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka's serve completely deserted her against a player ranked 98 spots below her in her first match at the Adelaide International. Kaja Juvan had never beaten a top-10 player before and had little hope of doing so in the initial stages of the first set.
Sabalenka raced out to a 2-0 lead and held a set point at 6-5 but her serving woes prevented her from taking her chances. Landing just 48% of first serves with a total of 18 double faults over the course of two sets completed dismantled the US Open and Wimbledon semifinalist's game.
Juvan grew from strength to strength as the match progressed, ultimately notching up a 7-6(6), 6-1 win for the biggest victory of her career.
Meanwhile, World No. 40 Shelby Rogers came into her face-off against sixth-ranked Maria Sakkari armed with confidence. Rogers had beaten the Greek in their only previous showdown at last year's Wimbledon.
The American looked very much eager for a repeat when she coasted to a set and a break lead against Sakkari in their Adelaide International meeting. However, Rogers inexplicably lost her way since then, allowing the French Open and US Open semifinalist to make a comeback.
She lost the next seven games in what turned out to be a topsy-turvy affair. But Rogers rediscovered her touch once again and slammed the door shut to pick up a 7-6(5), 2-6, 6-4 win.
Sakkari finished the match with nine aces and zero double faults. But it was the Greek's inability to raise her game at crucial junctures that cost her the match.
Rogers will go on to face seventh seed Elena Rybakina, who had a straightforward day unlike the other seeds. The Kazakh won 85% of her first serve points to record a commanding 6-3, 6-4 win over Czech qualifier Marie Bouzkova.
Adelaide International 2022: Day 4 Results at a glance
Singles
(Round of 16)
(1) Ashleigh Barty def. Coco Gauff 4-6, 7-5, 6-1.
Kaja Juvan def. (2) Aryna Sabalenka 7-6(6), 6-1.
Shelby Rogers def. (3) Maria Sakkari 7-6(5), 2-6, 6-4.
(7) Elena Rybakina def. (Q) Marie Bouzkova 6-3, 6-4.
Doubles
(Round of 16)
Leylah Fernandez/Erin Routliffe def. Yang Zhaoxuan/Xu Yifan 7-6(4), 4-6, 10-7.
Anna Blinkova/Ulrikke Eikeri def. Sofia Kenin/Nicole Melichar 4-6, 6-2, 10-7.
Lucie Hradecka/Marie Bouzkova def. Tamara Zidansek/Kaja Juvan 1-6, 6-3, 10-7.
(3) Darija Jurak/Andreja Klepac def. Kateryna Bondarenko/Lyudmila Kichenok 7-5, 6-3.
Shelby Rogers/Heather Watson lead Priscilla Hon/Charlotte Kempenaers-Pocz 6-2.
