Sabalenka advances in Wuhan tournament

Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech joked that his family group on WhatsApp has become “more active” after he and his cousin Valentin Vacherot qualified for the quarterfinals of a Masters 1000 tournament for the first time.

Rinderknech defeated Czech Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) yesterday at the Shanghai tournament, after Lehecka had earlier beaten Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor 4-6, 6-7 (7-1), 6-4.

After his win, Rinderknech said, “Our family group on WhatsApp has been very active in recent days. This strengthens family ties, it’s wonderful.”

Rinderknech wrote directly to the camera after beating Lehecka, “I’m catching up with you, Val,” accompanied by a heart emoji.

Rinderknech paved the way for Vacherot, from the Principality of Monaco, in their youth when he joined Texas A&M University before him, where they lived and played together for two weeks.

The Frenchman joked, “I told him to join me, I signed him up.”

He praised his cousin saying, “I have always been confident in Valentin’s abilities. I’m not surprised but very happy for him.”

Vacherot, who participated in the Shanghai tournament after winning only one match throughout 2025 due to successive injuries, said, “I feel strong emotions when I think about the difficult times I went through. Sharing this joy with my coach, my brother, and my girlfriend is amazing, and I’m living the best moments of my life.”

Rinderknech caused a major upset by eliminating German Alexander Zverev, the third seed, in the previous round and will play in the quarterfinals for the first time in his career at this level of tournaments.

In the quarterfinals, he will face Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, who defeated Italian Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-2.

The winner said, “I was good on serve and played aggressively throughout the match and managed the tiebreak in the best possible way.”

Rinderknech broke Lehecka’s serve in the eighth game of the first set to lead 5-3 before closing it out.

In the second set, both players held their serves leading to a tiebreak which the Frenchman won.

Australian Alex de Minaur defeated Portuguese Nuno Borges 7-5, 6-2.

Wuhan Tournament

Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, ranked number one in the world, came back from behind to defeat Slovak Rebecca Sramkova 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 to reach the round of 16 at the Wuhan Masters 1000 tennis tournament in China.

Sabalenka was playing her first tournament since winning the US Open, the last Grand Slam event, last month in New York.

The Belarusian, who will face Russian Lyudmila Samsonova, ranked 16th, in the next round, is aiming for her fourth consecutive title in Wuhan.

Sabalenka fell behind 1-3 in the first set, with Sramkova maintaining her lead to close the set in 35 minutes.

However, the Belarusian showed a different face in the second and third sets, winning them comfortably to finish the match in under two hours.

After her win, Sabalenka said, “My opponent played amazingly in the first set and I couldn’t do anything.”

She added, “I knew that after the short break it wouldn’t be easy to regain my rhythm, but I recovered my level in the second set and I think I played great tennis.”

Meanwhile, American Coco Gauff, ranked third, recorded a quick win over Japanese Moyuka Uchijima 6-1, 6-0 in just 51 minutes.

American Jessica Pegula needed a marathon match lasting nearly three hours to overcome compatriot Hailey Baptiste 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (8-6).

Pegula had seven match points in the third set when leading 5-2 and then 5-4 but failed to convert until the tiebreak, which she won narrowly.

Pegula said, “I had match point, but she started playing well, and sometimes small details make you come back in the match, and that’s what happened.”

She added, “I’m proud of myself for holding on; I could have easily collapsed.”

Czech Linda Noskova, ranked 17th, continued her impressive recent form by defeating Japanese Naomi Osaka, holder of four Grand Slam titles, 7-6 (7/2), 6-3.

Noskova, who entered the top 20 players club on Monday, won the first set after a tiebreak.

In the second set, Noskova broke Osaka’s serve in the eighth game to lead 5-3 before sealing the match.

Noskova reached the Prague final last July but lost to compatriot Marie Bouzkova, then lost the Beijing final last Sunday to American Amanda Anisimova.