Svetlana Kuznetsova fought back from a set down to knock two-time former champion Elina Svitolina out of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday. Top seed Svitolina breezed through the first set, breaking Kuznetsova twice before serving it out 6-2. Breaks were traded at the start of the second set and Kuznetsova tamed Svitolina's serve again in the tenth game to take it 6-4 before jumping out to a 5-0 lead in the deciding set. Svitolina saved two match points on the way to holding serve in the sixth game, but three-time Dubai finalist Kuznetsova then served out a 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory to set up a round of 16 meeting with Barbora Krejcikova