2021 Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi days: The tournament in photos

Take a trip through the first WTA event of the season via top photos from the 2021 Abu Dhabi WTA Women’s Tennis Open.

01 /43
Karolina Muchova pulls off some behind-the-back magic as the players started their practice sessions for the Abu Dhabi WTA Women’s Tennis Open on Monday.

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02 /43
Ukrainian teenager Marta Kostyuk, one of the newest entrants into the Top 100, is all smiles as she prepares for the Abu Dhabi main draw.

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03 /43
Daria Kasatkina gets loose during her training session on Monday, as she awaited her opening match on Centre Court on Tuesday.

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04 /43
2020 WTA Player of the Year and this week's top seed Sofia Kenin converses with the media during her pre-tournament press conference.

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05 /43
No.6 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan hits the Abu Dhabi courts for practice on Tuesday evening.

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06 /43
Daria Kasatkina was the first main-draw winner of the 2021 WTA season, gritting past Wang Qiang in three sets on Centre Court.

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07 /43
Veronika Kudermetova notched the biggest upset of Day 1, eliminating No.10 seed Anett Kontaveit. Kudermetova now holds a 3-0 head-to-head record against Kontaveit.

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08 /43
No.15 seed Ons Jabeur fought off two set points in the opening frame before overcoming Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets on Monday.

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09 /43
18-year-old Canadian Leylah Fernandez opened her 2021 season with a nightcap victory, claiming a straight-set first-round win over Jasmine Paolini.

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10 /43
Coco Gauff only dropped a single game in her opener as she moved through to the second round on Thursday.

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11 /43
Aryna Sabalenka claimed her 10th straight match-win, dating back to October of 2020, with her first-round victory in Abu Dhabi.

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12 /43
Top seed Sofia Kenin gritted out a tough first set in over an hour en route to quelling the challenge by qualifier Yang Zhaoxuan and moving into round two.

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13 /43
Karolina Pliskova found out she was playing lucky loser Despina Papamichail not long before her match began, but the Czech was still able to claim a straight-set first-round victory.

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14 /43
Garbine Muguruza defeated Kristina Mladenovic in straight sets in the first round, leveling their head-to-head rivalry at two wins apiece.

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15 /43
No.2 seed Elina Svitolina emerged victorious in the Centre Court nightcap on Thursday, defeating Jessica Pegula in straight sets.

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16 /43
Tamara Zidansek of Slovenia booked her spot in the round of 16 on Friday, backing up her upset of Jennifer Brady in the opening round with a second-round win over Leylah Fernandez.

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17 /43
Top seed Sofia Kenin kept loose before her second-round match against Kirsten Flipkens. Kenin advanced to the third round after Flipkens retired due to a left ankle injury.

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18 /43
Aryna Sabalenka kept on winning on Friday, claiming her 11th straight match-win after overcoming Ajla Tomljanovic in two close sets.

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19 /43
Paula Badosa ousted Alize Cornet on Friday, setting herself up with a third-round tilt against Veronika Kudermetova.

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20 /43
Ajla Tomljanovic, Donna Vekic, and Maria Sakkari share a few laughs before their doubles match on Friday.

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21 /43
292nd-ranked Russian qualifier Anastasia Gasanova stunned former World No.1 Karolina Pliskova in straight sets to reach the round of 16. It was Gasanova's first-ever match against a Top 100 player.

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22 /43
2nd seed Elina Svitolina did some stretching before her second-round victory over Vera Zvonareva on Saturday.

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23 /43
Under the Abu Dhabi foliage, Ukrainian teen Marta Kostyuk gritted out a tough three-set win over Hsieh Su-wei to reach the round of 16.

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24 /43
Former World No.1 Garbine Muguruza claimed her second straight-set win of the week on Saturday, defeating Aliaksandra Sasnovich to make the third round.

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25 /43
Reigning US Open doubles champions Vera Zvonareva and Laura Siegemund talk strategy as they make their way into the doubles quarterfinals in Abu Dhabi.

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26 /43
Top seed Sofia Kenin had to save a match point before getting past Yulia Putintseva in a three-set third-round thriller.

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27 /43
Not to be outdone, No.2 seed Elina Svitolina saved two match points in her third-round clash, edging Ekaterina Alexandrova in a final-set tiebreak.

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28 /43
6th-seeded Elena Rybakina moved into the Abu Dhabi elite eight by ousting former Top 10 player Daria Kasatkina.

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29 /43
Sara Sorribes Tormo booked her spot in the quarterfinals after ousting qualifier Anastasia Gasanova.

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30 /43
Aryna Sabalenka expressed herself to the press after eliminating Elena Rybakina and reaching the Abu Dhabi semifinals.

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31 /43
Maria Sakkari reeled off the final ten games of her quarterfinal to upset No.1 seed Sofia Kenin and earn her fifth career win over a Top 5 player.

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32 /43
After losing a bagel first set, Marta Kostyuk surged back to defeat Sara Sorribes Tormo and reach the semifinals of a WTA singles event for the first time in her career.

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33 /43
Veronika Kudermetova completed the semifinal lineup, defeating Elina Svitolina in a final-set tiebreak. It was Kudermetova's third Top 5 win, and her second win in two meetings with Svitolina.

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34 /43
Hayley Carter and Luisa Stefani defeated reigning US Open champions Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva in the doubles semifinals, and will take on Shuko Aoyama and Ena Shibahara in the doubles final.

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35 /43
Maria Sakkari skips rope before her semifinal clash with Aryna Sabalenka.

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36 /43
Aryna Sabalenka ousted Maria Sakkari in straight sets to claim her 14th consecutive match-win and reach the singles final.

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37 /43
Veronika Kudermetova booked a spot in her first-ever WTA singles final after ending the run of teenager Marta Kostyuk.

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38 /43
Shuko Aoyama and Ena Shibahara were victorious in the doubles final, defeating Hayley Carter and Luisa Stefani, 7-6(5), 6-4.

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39 /43
The 2021 Abu Dhabi WTA Women’s Tennis Open was the fourth career WTA doubles title for the team of Shuko Aoyama and Ena Shibahara.

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40 /43
Aryna Sabalenka goes through one last warmup before the singles championship match on Wednesday.

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41 /43
Playing in her first WTA singles final, Veronika Kudermetova was aiming for her sixth Top 10 win against Aryna Sabalenka.

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42 /43
The week ended with Aryna Sabalenka collecting a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Veronika Kudermetova for the 2021 Abu Dhabi WTA Women’s Tennis Open singles title.

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43 /43
Aryna Sabalenka jumped for joy after claiming her 15th straight match-win and her third consecutive title, which is projected to move her to a new career-high ranking of World No.7.

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