Aryna Sabalenka, what have you been up to?

The streak ended in the most unexpected way. Aryna Sabalenka, fresh off fifteen consecutive victories and the dominant player this early in the season, fell in the quarterfinals of the Madrid WTA 1000 against a wild Hailey Baptiste, able to come back and close 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(6) after nullifying no less than six match points.

For a set and a half she had looked like the usual Sabalenka: powerful, precise, in control. Then Baptiste shifted gears, mixing up shots and strategies, enough to send the world number one out of rhythm. The second set flew by, the third became a thriller: Sabalenka had the match in her hands several times, but Baptiste boldly erased any chance of victory for the Belarusian with a series of aggressive choices that reversed the inertia of the match.

In the tiebreak of the decisive fraction Sabalenka started ahead, but once again Baptiste found lucidity in the key moments. A forehand error by the Belarusian gave the American the first match point, which she converted with a cross-court shot that proved impregnable.

For Sabalenka it was only the second defeat of the year, but it weighed: not so much for the result, but for the way a match that seemed already closed escaped her. For Baptiste, however, it is the most important win of her career, the one that can change a season (and more).