"Peyton Stearns actually told me at the net 'I had you' and she was right" - Aryna Sabalenka on her 'lucky' comeback win in Indian Wells 2R

Aryna Sabalenka fought off stern resistance from Peyton Stearns on Saturday, March 9, to advance to the third round of the Indian Wells 2024.

Sabalenka entered the main draw as the second seed and received a bye in the opening round. She kicked off her campaign in the second round and soon realized it was going to be a long night, as Stearns took the opening set in the tiebreaker.

However, the reigning Australian Open champion bounced back strongly in the second set as she broke Stearns twice and leveled things up.

Stearns, nonetheless, didn't allow Sabalenka to run away with the match as she fought hard in the decider and served for the match at 5-4. She earned four match points in the tenth game, but Sabalenka saved all four to induce the second tiebreaker.

In the tiebreaker, the Belarusian cruised to a 6-3 lead but Stearns didn't let go and won the next three points. Sabalenka, however, held her nerve and eventually prevailed with a 6-7(2), 6-2, 7-6(6) win after two hours and 55 minutes.

After the match, Sabalenka revealed what Stearns said to her during their handshake at the net.

"I mean, she [Peyton Stearns] is an unbelievable player, she played crazy tennis and she said on the net, ‘I actually had you’, and she was right. I was little bit lucky probably to get this win but super happy to get through this tough match," Aryna Sabalenka said during the on-court interview.

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Aryna Sabalenka: "I was fighting today like a tiger"

Aryna Sabalenka

Aryna Sabalenka said she fought like a tiger to see Peyton Stearns off on Saturday at the Indian Wells 2024.

"I think I was right when I did this tattoo of a tiger. I was fighting today like a tiger," she further said during her on-court interview (via BNP Paribas Open official website).

The two-time Grand Slam champion also thanked the crowd in attendance at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, saying:

"I mean it's just crazy what happened, I want to say thank you so much for the atmosphere, you guys made this match even better. I really enjoyed playing in front of you."

She will take on Britain's Emma Raducanu in her third-round match on Monday, March 11. Raducanu downed Rebeka Masarova in her opener at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden before receiving a walkover against Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska in the second round.

It will be Aryna Sabalenka's first-ever clash with Emma Raducanu.