DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka made a remarkable comeback to secure her place in the second round of the Dubai Championships on Monday. After falling behind a set and a break, Azarenka emerged victorious against Anhelina Kalinina with a score of 2-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4.

The 35-year-old Azarenka found herself trailing 5-2 in the second set and was down 4-2 in the tiebreaker, yet she turned the match around by winning five consecutive points.

Next up for Azarenka is a challenging match against second-seeded Iga Swiatek, who advanced directly to the second round due to a bye.

In another surprising outcome, Amanda Anisimova, fresh off her victory at the Qatar Open just two days earlier, was defeated by fellow American McCartney Kessler with a scoreline of 6-2, 6-3.

Additional matches saw No. 11 seed Diana Shnaider eliminate Magdalena Frech with a decisive 6-2, 6-2 victory, while No. 12 seed Mirra Andreeva triumphed over Elina Avanesyan, winning 6-2, 6-1. Andreeva’s win sets her up for a clash with 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova.

Two seeded players faced early exits on Monday: No. 10 seed Daria Kasatkina was knocked out by Sorana Cirstea in a 6-1, 6-4 match, while No. 13 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia was ousted by Anastasia Potapova, who swept the match 6-3, 6-0.

Former Wimbledon and U.S. Open finalist Ons Jabeur also fell in her match, losing to American Peyton Stearns with scores of 7-6 (6), 6-4.