Kontaveit beat Shuai Zhang (China) in three sets in the UAE tournament on Monday, and was waiting for the outcome of Rogers qualification final with Leylah Fernandez (Canada, WTA 39th), which took place Tuesday.

In the event, Rogers prevailed 6:4, 7:6 (7:5).

The pair last played two years ago at the Australian Open round three, which Rogers won in two sets.

Rogers went out in round two in Melbourne last month, albeit against the ultimate tournament winner, Belarusian player Arina Sabalenka.

Kontaveit had battled with health issues in the latter half of 2022 after a career high second in the world, which she attained in summer. She took a medical break briefly during her round one game with Zhuang on Monday.

The Estonian is now ranked 18th, and is the seventh seed in Abu Dhabi.

She will stay on in the region to play in tournaments in Doha, Qatar and in Dubai, UAE.

Wednesday's game starts round 5 p.m. Estonian time. A quarter finals clash between either world number nine Belinda Bencic (Switzerland) or Marta Kostyuk (Ukraine, WTA 57th) beckons for the victor.

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