Sensational! Yulia Putintseva hangs tough in absurd Abu Dhabi rallies

Yulia Putintseva

View Profile came out at the wrong end of a late-night battle against No.6 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia

View Profile in the second round of the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open, falling 6-4, 6-7(5), 7-6(4) after 3 hours and 13 minutes.

But the Kazakh left fans incredulous after pulling off a pair of absurd defensive escapes deep in the third set. Scampering across every inch of the court and beyond, Putintseva proved impossible for Haddad Maia to hit through -- and had the presence of mind to finish both absurd rallies with the flourish of a winner.

Haddad Maia had already been unable to see off Putintseva despite serving for the match twice in the second set. Putintseva had saved three match points in the first of those, an eight-deuce tussle that she took to level at 5-5. The World No.45 had also trailed 5-3 in the second-set tiebreak, and 3-0 in the third set.

However, two errors of judgment cost her just as she finally took the lead. Serving for the match at 5-4, 30-15, Putintseva stopped the point to challenge a Haddad Maia shot that had in fact landed on the baseline. Trailing 5-4 in the ensuing tiebreak, she received a point penalty for an audible obscenity, handing Haddad Maia a fourth match point. The Brazilian duly converted it to triumph in the second-longest tour-level match of the 2023 season so far.

Photos: All of this year's three-hour matches

Haddad Maia completed a perfect day for seeds in Abu Dhabi, joining No.1 Daria Kasatkina

View Profile , No.3 Elena Rybakina

View Profile and No.8 Liudmila Samsonova

View Profile in victory. She will face No.4 Veronika Kudermetova

View Profile in the quarterfinals.