Aryna Sabalenka’s struggles continued Wednesday as the Belarusian top seed suffered a shock 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) defeat to unseeded American Ann Li in the Wuhan Open round of 32.
The loss extended a frustrating spell for the four-time Grand Slam champion, who has not won a title since completing the Sunshine Double with victories at Indian Wells and Miami earlier this year.
Sabalenka reached the U.S. Open final last month but lost to Elena Rybakina, leaving the 28-year-old facing her first season without a Grand Slam title since 2022.
She also suffered a third-round exit at the China Open earlier this month and surrendered the No. 1 ranking to Rybakina following the U.S. Open.
The early exit came at a tournament where Sabalenka has enjoyed considerable success. She won the Wuhan title in 2018, 2019 and 2024. The WTA 1000 event was not held from 2020-23 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Li, ranked 31st in the world, earned the biggest win of her career after recovering from a 4-2 deficit in the second set to force a deciding set.
Sabalenka's hopes appeared all but over when she fell 4-1 behind in the final set and took a medical timeout. However, she mounted a late fightback, saving five match points before holding serve to make it 5-3.
Li kept her composure to finally convert her 10th match point and seal a memorable upset.
Sabalenka's error-strewn display proved costly, as she hit 44 unforced errors compared with Li's 28 during the two-hour, 27-minute match.
Earlier Wednesday, American second seed Jessica Pegula also exited the tournament, with 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko rallying from a set down to secure a 2-6, 7-6 (7), 6-3 victory.
