On a vibrant Tuesday in Dubai, McCartney Kessler made waves with her first top-10 triumph, defeating Coco Gauff—ranked third worldwide—with a score of 6-4, 7-5 at the Dubai Championships. It’s notable because Gauff hasn’t lost to anyone outside the top 50 since her surprising defeat by Sofia Kenin, who was ranked 128th, at Wimbledon in 2023.
Kessler, currently sitting at No. 54, is gearing up to face the 14th seed, Karolina Muchova, in the round of 16. Muchova recently bested Emma Raducanu in a tightly contested match that ended 7-6 (6), 6-4.
Emma Raducanu, famed for her 2021 US Open victory, had a challenging day. She appeared visibly upset, approaching the umpire’s chair early on and quickly falling behind 4-0. She rallied to push the set to a tiebreaker but was broken in the first game of the second set. Despite fighting hard, Raducanu couldn’t convert her three break points in the sixth game, ultimately conceding to Muchova 6-4.
In other matches, Iga Swiatek, the second seed, delivered a dominant 6-0, 6-2 victory over Victoria Azarenka and now sets her sights on Dayana Yastremska for a spot in the quarterfinals.
Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka ousted Veronika Kudermetova 6-3, 6-4 while defending champ Jasmine Paolini overcame Eva Lys with a 6-2, 7-5 win. Elena Rybakina, Jessica Pegula, and Paula Badosa also made it through, keeping the competition fierce.
This report includes contributions from the Associated Press.
