Sabalenka’s Struggles Continue as Clara Tauson Stuns in Dubai
Aryna Sabalenka’s rocky start to 2025 continues as she suffered a surprising defeat to Denmark’s Clara Tauson in the second round of the 2025 Dubai Championships. Sabalenka, who began the season with an impressive 11-match winning streak, hasn’t been able to bounce back from a heartbreaking loss in the Australian Open final to Madison Keys. That defeat, which saw Sabalenka smash her racket in frustration, seems to have lingered in her game, as she’s struggled to find her best form since.
After a disappointing first-round exit at the Qatar Open to Ekaterina Alexandrova, Sabalenka looked to regain some momentum in Dubai, where she managed a win against Veronika Kudermetova. However, she was no match for the in-form Tauson, who dominated from start to finish.
The match began with Tauson asserting herself early on, breaking Sabalenka’s serve in the fifth game to take a 3-2 lead. Despite a brief recovery from the world number one when she broke back, Tauson continued to overpower Sabalenka, winning the first set 6-3. Sabalenka, who has struggled with her serve throughout the match, was broken again in the second set, and Tauson didn’t allow her to regain any footing.
Even though Sabalenka took an early break in the second set, it was short-lived, as Tauson immediately broke back and maintained control. With another break in the fifth game, Tauson surged to a 4-1 lead and finished off the match 6-3, 6-2, securing her place in the quarter-finals of the WTA 1000 event.
Tauson, who had a marathon match just 24 hours earlier, talked about her incredible run. After her exhausting win over Elina Svitolina in a match that stretched nearly three hours and was delayed by rain, Tauson admitted she was unsure of how she’d perform given the lack of rest. But she defied expectations, showing remarkable resilience and determination.
“It’s been a crazy 24 hours for me. I only got about five hours of sleep last night, so I wasn’t sure what shape I’d be in today,” Tauson said after her win. “But I felt really good out there. It was a great performance.”
With her victory, Tauson now turns her attention to her quarter-final match against Linda Noskova, while Sabalenka, having suffered two early exits in Doha and Dubai, will need to regroup and refocus for the Sunshine Double—a term for the prestigious Indian Wells and Miami tournaments.
