KASATKINA AND RYBAKINA POWER THROUGH TO QUARTER FINALS AT INAUGURAL MUBADALA ABU DHABI OPEN 

• Quarter-finals confirmed for Friday as the World Number 8 survives slow start to earn victory in Abu Dhabi 
• Rybakina, Samsonova and Haddad Maia join the top seed in next round starting on Friday
• Organisers confirm ticket purchases for final days to be donated to Emirates Red Crescent’s Humanitarian Campaign aiding rescue efforts following earthquake in Turkey and Syria  

Abu Dhabi, UAE, 10 February 2023: Top seed Daria Kasatkina survived an early scare to secure her spot in the quarter-finals of the inaugural Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open presented by Abu Dhabi Sports Council. The World Number 8 emerged following tricky conditions with a 1-6, 6-0, 6-2 win over Jil Teichmann on Thursday at the International Tennis Centre, Zayed Sports City.   

A slow start from Kasatkina allowed Teichmann to take the lead in a swift first set, before the top ranked player in Abu Dhabi fired back to level the match with a 6-0 second set. In the third set, an early break from the World No.8 helped close out the match.  

On her opening victory , Kasatkina said: “It was an important win just to get the confidence of playing and winning in this tournament, and to understand the play on this court with the lights and the difficult conditions with the wind tonight.” 

“I’m happy as after that first rough set, I was able to be calm and recover, and find a way to make the opponent uncomfortable. I’m happy that my head was clear and that I was able to win and progress today.” 

Elena Rybakina continued her promising start to 2023, winning in straight sets over former world no. 1, Karolina Pliskova to book her place in the quarter-finals. The new world number 10 powered through the wind with a 6-4, 6-2 win her first match in Abu Dhabi to secure her place in the quarter-finals starting on Friday.   

Following her victory, Rybakina said: “It was nice to get the victory today – it was challenging today with the conditions with the wind but we have to adapt and overall I’m happy with the win.” 

“I enjoy playing in the UAE, I’ve trained for preseason here and it’s always nice to spend time here. I’m looking forward to the next matches and it’s nice to be playing in this new tournament.” 

Earlier, Liudmila Samsonova battled past Barbora Krejcikova in a tight encounter, recording a 7-5, 7-6 victory to progress to Friday’s quarter-finals. Krejickova, the Women’s Doubles Champion in last month’s Australian Open, saved five match points before losing out to Samsonova in a second set tiebreak. The victory for Samsonova sets up a quarter-final matchup with World Number 11, Veronika Kudermetova on Friday. 

The final match of the evening saw the longest action of the day, as Beatriz Haddad Maia saw off Yulia Putntseva to win 6-4, 6-7, 7-6 in over 3 hours of play. A quick 6-4 first set for Haddad Maia was followed by an epic 88-minute second set with Putintseva refusing to give in, saving 3 match points to then clinch the tiebreak. 

Haddad Maia would then go on to close out the match, taking the third set 7-6, securing victory through a final tiebreak to clinch her spot in Friday’s quarter-final match against third seed, Elena Rybakina.  

In the doubles quarter-final matches, Luisa Stefani and Shuai Zhang won in straight sets against Kirsten Flipkens and Laura Siegemund with a 6-4, 6-4 victory to stroll into Saturday’s semi-finals. Desirae Krawyck and Guilana Olmos followed with a 6-3 7-6 win over Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic to secure their spot in the semi-finals in Abu Dhabi.  

In Friday’s quarter-final matches, American qualifier, Shelby Rogers will take on World No. 9 Belinda Bencic to open the action on Stadium Court, before top seed Daria Kasatkina faces Qinwen Zheng.Haddad-Maia will be aiming for an upset, as she takes on third seed Elena Rybakina with the evening’s final match seeing Veronika Kudermetova go up against Liudmila Samsonova.  

In the remaining doubles’ quarter-final encounter, Miyu Kato and Monica Niculescu will play against Zhaoxuan Yang and Vera Zvonareva on Court 1 for a place in the semi-final on Saturday.  

Following the recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria, Mubadala Investment Company is offering tennis fans the opportunity to support the Emirates Red Crescent’s “Bridges of Good” humanitarian campaign. Mubadala will donate a sum matching ticket sales for this weekend’s semi-finals and finals to the Emirates Red Crescent’s “Bridges of Good”. The appeal is raising funds for disaster relief supplies in support of the UAE’s humanitarian efforts. Fans can find out more information on how to purchase their tickets at https://www.mubadalaabudhabiopen.com/ 

Off the court, there is plenty of entertainment and activities for all to enjoy. Fans can secure the best available seats at the International Tennis Centre in Zayed Sports City by visiting ticketmaster.ae and are encouraged to follow @MubadalaAbuDhabiOpen on social media channels for updates. 

For more information on everything to come at the inaugural Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open, please visit: https://www.mubadalaabudhabiopen.com/ 

ENDS