Romania's Simona Halep returns the ball to Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus during their Dubai Tennis Championships quarter-final match in the Gulf emirate on Feb 20, 2020. (KARIM SAHIB / AFP)

BEIJING - Top-seeded Simona Halep was made to sweat, beating Tunisian Ons Jabeur with a 1-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7) win at the Dubai Championships on Thursday.

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In what seemed like a close match, the Romanian star saved a match point in the two-hour battle against the Tunisian player.

"It was like a football match or a Fed Cup match, I didn't really realize what was going on on court," said Halep. "Everyone was with a lot of energy so we had to give our best. I think it was a great match."

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Halep next meets Aryna Sabalenka in the quarterfinals.