WUHAN, China (AP) — Second-ranked Caroline Wozniacki and third-ranked Angelique Kerber both lost Wednesday in the third round of the Wuhan Open.
Wozniacki lost to Olympic champion Monica Puig 7-6 (10), 7-5, while Wimbledon champion Kerber was upset by Ashleigh Barty 7-5, 6-1.
"I feel like we both know each other's game very well," said Puig, who is now 3-3 against Wozniacki. "I feel like the difference is who's going to take their opportunities and their chances, who's going to make or miss the shots."
Puig trailed in both sets and needed six set points to win the first set.
Barty snapped a seven-match losing streak against top-10 opponents by winning eight of the last nine games against Kerber. She will next face Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who upset two-time champion Petra Kvitova 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.
"I feel like I'm a top-20 player," said Barty, who lost in last year's final. "Obviously we'd like to push towards top 10, but it was really important to prove to myself that the foundations we've set up are working."
Also, Dominika Cibulkova defeated 13th-seeded Daria Kasatkina 6-3, 7-6 (3), Chinese wild-card entry Qiang Wang beat Daria Gavrilova of Australia 7-5, 6-2, Aryna Sabalenka beat American qualifier Sofia Kenin 6-3, 6-3, and Anett Kontaveit defeated Zhang Shuai 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.
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