Maria Sakkari delivered a significant upset at the Mutua Madrid Open, defeating the sixth seed Jasmine Paolini with a commanding 6-2, 6-1 victory to secure her spot in the Round of 16.
Paolini`s loss was one of two upsets involving Top 10 players on Sunday, as World No. 3 Jessica Pegula was also eliminated, surprisingly falling 6-3, 6-2 to Moyuka Uchijima. For the Japanese player Uchijima, this marked her first-ever win against a Top 10 opponent after previously going 0-6, and her first victory against a Top 25 player, ending a 0-for-9 streak in that category.
Sakkari`s win likewise snapped a challenging sequence against Top 10 competitors, breaking an 0-8 run dating back to last year`s BNP Paribas Open. Her record against elite players on clay courts is now level at 6-6.
“I was clear on what I had to do on the court,” Sakkari commented after the match. “Just went out and executed it perfectly. I didn’t give her any room to breathe. That was my goal — that is the goal against the very good players. I think it was pretty good, I have to say.”
Considering what has been a challenging season for the former Top 10 ranked player, this victory over the World No. 6 represents Sakkari`s best win of the year by ranking. It also marks her return to the Round of 16 at a WTA 1000 tournament, a level she hadn`t reached since the Internazionali BNL d`Italia in Rome last year.
“It feels pretty good because it’s been a while since I had, let’s call it a statement win for myself,” Sakkari shared. “It wasn’t easy all this time. But at the same time, I knew that I had to trust, as we say, the process. Trusting that it’s going to come. It’s a good step forward and I want to stay humble with my expectations. I feel like the pieces are coming together. Still a long way to go, though.`
Sakkari has recently resumed working with coach Tom Hill, following his nearly year-long coaching partnership with Peyton Stearns.
“We’re two people with the same ambitions, the same goal,” Sakkari said of their renewed collaboration. “We believe in each other. Just feels very comfortable and he knows my game like no one else. He just came in without drastically changing my game, just put the pieces back together and it’s working quite well so far.”
Having won three consecutive matches, Sakkari is set to face the 17th seed Elina Svitolina in the Round of 16. Their head-to-head record is currently tied at 2-2, and this upcoming match will be their first encounter on clay.
Paolini had been in strong form, aiming to reach the fourth round in her fifth consecutive WTA 1000 event.
Sakkari`s serving was particularly effective, featuring six aces, and she lost her serve only once throughout the match. In contrast, she successfully broke Paolini`s serve six times.
Jessica Pegula, who had an impressive 7-1 record on clay this season, including a recent title win in Charleston, and was on track to achieve a tour-high 28th win of the year, experienced an unexpected outcome in her initial meeting with Uchijima.
Uchijima`s performance against Pegula included breaking the American`s serve five times while successfully defending five of the seven break points she faced. Uchijima will advance to play the winner of the later match between No. 14 Daria Kasatkina and No. 21 Ekaterina Alexandrova on Tuesday.
Jasper Hawthorne 
Dominic Ashworth