World number two Aryna Sabalenka faced a surprising loss at the China Open after being defeated by Nikola Bartunkova. The match took place in the third round of the tournament held in Beijing.
Sabalenka had a difficult time converting break points during the contest, failing to capitalize on five opportunities. She also threw her racquet after falling behind early in the second set. Bartunkova completed the 6-4 6-3 victory in one hour and 35 minutes.
The loss was a major setback for Sabalenka who has had a mixed season by her own high standards.
Bartunkova entered the match ranked No. 34 in the world and seeded 26th at the tournament. Her victory was the second Top 10 win of her career and her first against a Top 3 player. Sabalenka had defeated Bartunkova in three sets when they met in Berlin in June.
The match was played on a hard court surface typical of the China Open. Bartunkova advanced to face Austria’s Sinja Kraus in the round of 16.
Sabalenka’s defeat came one day after world No. 1 Elena Rybakina was eliminated by Alina Charaeva. It marked the first time since 2015 that the top two seeds at the China Open both failed to reach the round of 16.