Alexandrova saves match point, beats Baptiste to reach Abu Dhabi final – Tennis Now
By Richard Pagliaro Friday, February 6, 2026
Photo credit: Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open Facebook
Ekaterina Alexandrova I almost met my opponent in the second set today.
Second seed Alexandrova saved match points for the second time and reached the final of the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open.
Alexandrova defeated the American wild card player 4-5 in the second set to win the match point haley baptiste 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-3, she advanced to the tour final for the 13th time in her career.
It’s a big transition for Alexandrova, who arrives in Abu Dhabi with just one win all season.
This week, Alexandrova defeated Dayana Yastremska, Alexandra Eala and Baptiste and will compete in tomorrow’s finals for the title and $185,500 winner’s check.
Alexandrova, ranked 11th in the world, will face the third seed Clara Towson Or the Czech qualifiers ranked 101st in the world Sarah Bellec in Saturday’s final.
The 31-year-old Alexandrova will compete for the fourth WTA hard court title of her career and her first title since winning in Linz in 2025.
Today, Baptiste resolved four break points and maintained a 4-3 lead in the second set. Baptiste then held on to love at 5-4 and won the match point in the 10th game with Alexandrova’s serve.
In this dramatic 14-point game, Alexandrova firmly saved the match point and then tied the score at 5.
In the deciding game, Alexandrova scored three points in a row while trailing 5-4, grabbing the second set tiebreaker and forcing the game into a third set.
In the deciding set, Alexandrova immediately broke serve and led 2-0. She scored eight of her 10 points to extend the lead to 3-0. Baptiste made a last-ditch effort at 2-4 and earned two break points, but Alexandrova resolved both break points and won six consecutive points on serve to end a victory that lasted 2 hours and 27 minutes and improved the score to 13-18 in the WTA semifinals.
