Clara Tousson delivered the big surprise of the tournament in Dubai, after eliminating the world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka with 6:3, 6:2, reported FOKUS.
The 22-year-old Dane dominated the match and qualified for the quarterfinals of a WTA 1000 tournament for the first time in her career.
Tousson, who is 38th in the world rankings, reached 6 breaks in the match, leading almost the entire time. She won after an hour and 23 minutes of play, and this is the first success in her career against a world leader and only the second against a Top 10 tennis player.
"I had a crazy 24 hours, I only slept 5 hours after the victory against Elina Svitolina yesterday, I went to bed at 3.30 in the morning. I didn't know what kind of shape I would be in today, but it turned out to be pretty good", said Towson after the match.
In the quarterfinals she will meet Linda Noskova (Czech Republic), who defeated Jessica Pegula (USA) 6:3, 7:6 (8).