Sabalenka reaches Cincinnati last 16 as Medvedev falls

World number one Aryna Sabalenka moved into the fourth round of the Cincinnati Masters on Tuesday with a swift, one-sided win over Wang Xinyu. Sabalenka closed out a 6-1, 6-3 result in 54 minutes, continuing a run that has now reached 45 consecutive match victories at the Masters 1000 level.

The same day brought a major surprise in the men’s draw, where Daniil Medvedev, the fourth seed, was knocked out after a three-set contest against Brandon Nakashima. The match marked one of the tournament’s early headline results, reshaping the outlook in Medvedev’s portion of the bracket.

Key results on Tuesday in Cincinnati Nakashima, who recently reached the final in Montreal, came through a tight opening exchange and then turned the match around. After losing the first set in a tie-break, 6-7 (3/7), he edged the second set 7-6 (7/4) and finished strongly in the decider to win 6-1. A pivotal moment arrived in the second set, when Nakashima saved three match points before pushing the contest into a deciding set. From there, he produced his most decisive tennis of the match to complete the upset and eliminate Medvedev. In the women’s draw, fourth seed Coco Gauff also advanced, beating fellow American Ann Li 6-1, 7-6 (7/3). Gauff controlled the opening set but found the second more complicated, with both players exchanging early breaks before the tie-break settled the outcome. Withdrawals and upsets alter the draws

Aryna Sabalenka

Elsewhere, Felix Auger-Aliassime progressed in the men’s singles by defeating Juan Manuel Cerundolo 7-5, 6-1. In a development that affected the women’s bracket, eighth seed Elina Svitolina withdrew because of an ankle injury.

Another unexpected result came with Andrey Rublev’s loss to Nuno Borges. The defeat is set to push Rublev out of the top 20 in the world rankings for the first time since January 2020, underscoring how quickly the picture can change at elite events.

With Sabalenka advancing efficiently and her Masters 1000 streak extending to 45 straight match wins at that level, attention will remain on whether she can maintain her momentum through the later rounds. At the same time, Medvedev’s exit, alongside Rublev’s defeat and Svitolina’s withdrawal, leaves the tournament landscape altered, placing new focus on which remaining players can take advantage of the openings created by Tuesday’s results.