Aryna Sabalenka dominated Romania's Jaqueline Cristian, winning 6-1 6-4 in just one hour and 25 minutes to advance to the Madrid Open Round of 16. As the defending champion, Sabalenka will face Naomi Osaka next for a quarter-final spot. With 14 consecutive wins under her belt, Sabalenka expressed her excitement, stating, "My level in the first set was incredible.
I even hit a one-handed backhand, which was a little crazy - probably the shot of my life." Meanwhile, Venus Williams achieved her first victory since the US Open, teaming up with Great Britain's Katie Boulter to win a doubles match. Williams, who is on a 10-match losing streak in singles, partnered with Boulter to defeat China's Jiang Xinyu and Xu Yifan 4-6 6-3 (10/7) in the opening round.
Boulter described the experience as "great fun," adding, "It was a privilege to be on court with Venus, and I enjoyed every minute of it." Iga Swiatek's season continued to struggle as she withdrew from her third-round match against Ann Li due to a virus. After losing the opening two games of the deciding set, Swiatek pulled out, citing zero energy and feeling unwell. "The last two days were pretty terrible," she said.
"I think I have some virus, and I heard it's going around among players. I'm sure I'll be fine in a couple of days, but I had no energy." Swiatek will now focus on recovering before the Italian Open in Rome. In the men's singles, Alexander Zverev recovered from a set down to defeat Argentina's Mariano Navone 6-1 3-6 6-3, while defending champion Casper Ruud and third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime also advanced to the third round.