Sabalenka powers into Australian Open final after beating Badosa in straight sets
Share:
Aryna Sabalenka has powered into the final of the Australian Open by seeing off her good friend and the 11th seed Paula Badosa under the roof on Rod Laver Arena as she continues her pursuit of a third straight title at Melbourne Park. The Belarusian’s forehand and serve proved too powerful despite Badosa’s early resistance, and the world No 1 pulled away in the second set to win the tournament’s first semi-final 6-4, 6-2 in 86 minutes.
![[Paula Badosa of Spain gestures she’s OK after a fall during her semi-final match against Aryna Sabalenka at the Australian Open.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/db29bb5755c90af1fbb7b7f16e52306d021ab0fe/199_140_3220_1932/master/3220.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Sabalenka took time to find her range, and for much of the first set this match appeared on a knife edge, as an avalanche of unforced errors from the world No 1 kept her opponent in it. But after the roof closed midway through the set, the defending champion elevated her game and Badosa had few answers.
The 11th seed was a surprise participant in the semis after her upset of American Coco Gauff in the quarter-finals. But in the early stages of her first appearance in the last four of a grand slam, the Spaniard looked the better player. She broke Sabalenka in her first service game and had multiple chances to take a 3-0 lead in the first set.
“Somehow I was able to turn around the game in that crucial game,” Sabalenka said. “That was a super tough match against the friend, super happy for her, to see her on her highest level.”. The defending champion may have arrived slowly for this contest but she left in a rush. Half an hour into this compelling duel the scoreboard still showed 2-2, but the favourite eventually took control and claimed the first frame in 53 minutes. The entire second set took just 33 minutes. After an uneven tournament prior to Thursday this was a statement display by Sabalenka, who is now the first player to reach a third-straight final at Melbourne Park since Serena Williams in 2017.
