Aryna Sabalenka marches into Wuhan semis, Iga Swiatek stunned by Jasmine Paolini

WUHAN – Aryna Sabalenka powered into her 11th semi-final of the year with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Elena Rybakina at the Wuhan Open on Oct 10, while a flawless Jasmine Paolini stunned Iga Swiatek in just 65 minutes.

World No. 1 Sabalenka closed out the victory despite service wobbles late on, improving her win-loss record against Rybakina to 8-5 and earning a measure of revenge for a stunning loss to the Kazakh in their previous clash in 2025 in Cincinnati.

She remains unbeaten in four tournament appearances at the event and will take a 20-0 record into her showdown with Jessica Pegula on Oct 11.

Coco Gauff was also victorious, winning 6-3, 6-0 against Laura Siegemund to reach the last four in Wuhan for a second straight year.

The American third seed faces Italy’s seventh seed Paolini, who in a rematch of their 2024 French Open final shocked world No. 2 Swiatek with a commanding 6-1, 6-2 victory. Paolini had never beaten Swiatek in any of their previous six meetings.

Defending champion Sabalenka said: “Elena is a great player, very nice girl and always tough to play against.

“We have a really huge history against each other, always great battles. She always pushes me to the limit to get the win.

“I’m super happy with the performance today.”

A rock-solid Sabalenka claimed a timely break of serve in game eight on her way to forging a one-set lead in 43 minutes in temperatures above 30 deg C.

Continuing to showcase some impressive all-court prowess, the Belarusian broke twice in the second frame to build a 4-1 advantage.

Rybakina, the eighth seed, narrowed the deficit by getting one of the breaks back but could not stop Sabalenka from marching into the final four and extending her winning streak to 10 matches.

Sixth-seeded Pegula recorded her 49th win of the season with a 2-6, 6-0, 6-3 victory over Katerina Siniakova to reach a third consecutive semi-final, following Beijing and the US Open.

Pegula’s last seven matches were all three-setters, contested within a 16-day period, and the American was successful in six of them.

“I guess I’m in really good shape,” said the 31-year-old.

“I definitely don’t think I need to play any more matches or work on any physical stuff because I’ve been able to battle through these matches and play very well.

“Obviously I wish maybe it was more straightforward for my mental and physical state. But if I win every match for the rest of my life in three sets I think I’ll be pretty happy.”

Unlike Pegula, Gauff has been breezing through her matches, and has dropped a mere nine games across three rounds so far in Wuhan.

The 21-year-old from Florida converted five of eight break points against Siegemund and completed the victory in 85 minutes.

“I think I had chances in the first set to even have a greater lead, so I think I just capitalised more on those chances in the second set,” said Gauff.

In Shanghai, a cramping Daniil Medvedev battled through physical discomfort and marathon rallies to defeat Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-4, reaching the Shanghai Masters semi-finals for the first time since his 2019 title triumph.

Medvedev’s victory over the Australian seventh seed marks a milestone 50th career top-10 win for the former US Open champion and sets up a last-four clash with Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech.

The match between Medvedev and de Minaur showcased two of tennis’s flattest hitters engaged in gruelling baseline exchanges, with some rallies exceeding 20 shots, before the Russian prevailed in just under two hours despite cramp.

“I was super tired. I knew that against Alex we were going to have long points. I think in the third or fourth game, we had a couple and I was like, ‘Damn, that’s going to be a long day’,” said Medvedev.

“But I’m happy with the way I played. I was really clutch in important moments. And in the second set... I managed to really bring the best of me in the last two games.”

The victory extends Medvedev’s strong Asian swing form, having reached the semi-finals of the China Open – where he retired with cramp – before arriving in Shanghai.

Earlier, Rinderknech produced a commanding performance to upset Canadian 12th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-3, 6-4, joining his cousin Valentin Vacherot in the semi-finals.

Rinderknech’s win came a day after Vacherot, ranked 204th in the world, shocked Danish 10th seed Holger Rune to become the second-lowest ranked player ever to reach an ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.

Their fairy-tale run has set the stage for a potential family showdown, though four-time Shanghai champion Novak Djokovic looms large in Vacherot’s path.

“First of all, I follow my cousin. He’s going through the emotions, and I’m trying to battle to follow and do as good as him,” said Rinderknech, as Vacherot cheered him from the stands.

“It’s been incredible since the beginning of the week, the whole family following from home. We are in our little world of our own.”

The 30-year-old Rinderknech also made history as the oldest first-time ATP Masters 1000 semi-finalist since German Jan-Lennard Struff, then 33, achieved the feat in Madrid in 2023. AFP, REUTERS