Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka earned her tenth win in a row in an undefeated season, beating the revelation of the tournament, Poland’s Magda Linette, 7-6 (1) and 6 in the second semi-final of the Australian Open. -2 in an hour and 33 minutes of play.
Her rival in the grand final on Saturday is Kazakhstan Elena Rybakina, who defeated another Belarusian, Viktoria Azarenka, 7-6 (4) 6-3.
It took Sabalenka five years with a remarkable presence in the most privileged part of the WTA list and eleven professional titles to make the long-awaited leap: a Grand Slam final, which she had been denied three times with as many defeats in the semi-finals. finals. .
There was a cheering crowd in a Rod Laver Arena, which produced a huge turnout as Australia celebrates the country’s National Day every January 26, and was able to withstand the windy and cool conditions better than its rival Linette.
However, the Pole started more organized and consistent, scoring an early break against an erratic Sabalenka, who finished the first set with nine errors more than her rival.
Linette’s firmness wasn’t enough, in her first semifinal of a slam, and her proposal was shattered in a tiebreaker match that put Sabalenka on track after scoring the first six points.
Sabalenka’s furious tennis didn’t slow down for a Linette who lost steam as a result of her demanding defence, and was mirrored with a ‘double break’ from the Belarusian stroking the pass for what was to be her first final.
Linette, revelation of the tournament at the age of 30, did not give up and kept her serve after saving three match points. However, in the next game, Sabalenka closed out the match with her signature shot: a forehand winner.
“She played great tennis,” said the Belarusian. “I didn’t start very well, but in the tiebreak I found my rhythm,” he said after the game at the Rod Laver Arena.
The winner laughed when the interviewer told her that the speed of some of her forehands surpassed that of some of the men on the track and she jokingly replied that it was something that didn’t surprise her because “they play very slow”.
The Belarusian is face to face with 3-0 in favor of her rival in the final, the Kazakh Rybakina.
Sabalenka triumphed in three sets in the duels they held in Wuhan in 2019 and in Wimbledon and Abu Dhabi in 2021.
“It’s great to be in the finals in these kinds of tournaments. She is a great player, very aggressive and already has experience winning Wimbledon”, concluded the fifth seed of the tournament.
Sabalenka became virtual number two in the WTA ranking, while Linette climbed to number 22.
Source: El heraldo
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