It was a day of stunning upsets at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Wednesday as defending champion Garbine Muguruza, 2021 finalist Barbora Krejcikova, former two-time winner Elina Svitolina and sixth seed Iga Swiatek all failed to advance beyond the second round.
Jil Teichmann was the first to reach the quarter-finals as she defeated Svitolina to win 7-6 6-2.
Jelena Ostapenko defeated Swiatek 4-6 6-1 7-6, qualifier Dayana Yastremska beat second seeded Krejcikova 6-3 7-6 and Veronika Kudermetova overcame fourth seeded Muguruza 3-6 6-4 6-4.
Top seed and world number two Aryna Sabalenka also fell as she was beaten by former champion Petra Kvitova, who won 6-4 6-4.
Ons Jabeur is now the only seed left in the tournament after she overwhelmed Jessica Pegula 6-3 6-1, although two-time former champion Simona Halep is still a strong contender for the title after she defeated qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-3 6-2.
Crystal Palace claimed their first European trophy on Wednesday as Jean-Philippe Mateta’s second-half goal secured a 1-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano in the final of the Conference League, the perfect farewell for manager Oliver Glasner.
Iga Swiatek stayed cool in sweltering conditions while Novak Djokovic was given a stern test before reaching the third round of the French Open, but world number two Elena Rybakina was unable to avoid an early exit on Wednesday.
World number three Iga Swiatek continued her bid to rediscover her best form at the French Open on Wednesday, reaching the third round with a 6-2 6-3 victory over Czech Sara Bejlek in a match littered with unforced errors.
World number one Jannik Sinner started his campaign for a maiden French Open title in merciless fashion, beating Frenchman Clement Tabur 6-1 6-3 6-4 to reach the second round on Tuesday.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru stormed into the Indian Premier League (IPL) final with a commanding 92-run win over Gujarat Titans in qualifier one, powered by captain Rajat Patidar's unbeaten 93 that moved the defending champions closer to a second successive title.