Sabalenka overpowers Zheng to retain Australian Open crown

 

[January 27, 2024]  By Shrivathsa Sridhar

MELBOURNE (Reuters) -Aryna Sabalenka continued to be an irrepressible force at the Australian Open as she powered to a 6-3 6-2 victory over Chinese 12th seed Zheng Qinwen on Saturday to successfully defend her title and add a second Grand Slam trophy to her cabinet.

The Belarusian second seed has barely put a foot wrong at what has turned into her happiest hunting ground as she became the first woman to retain the Melbourne Park crown since compatriot Victoria Azarenka in 2013.

"It's been an amazing couple of weeks and I couldn't imagine myself lifting this trophy one more time," Sabalenka said after receiving the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup.

"I want to congratulate you Qinwen on an incredible couple of weeks here in Australia. I know it's really tough to lose in the final but you're such an incredible player.

"You're such a young girl and you're going to make many more finals and you're going to get it."
 

Sabalenka came into the match without dropping a set at the year's first major and stayed perfect to join Ash Barty, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Lindsay Davenport in the elite club of players to have managed the feat since 2000.

She was almost as dominant in 2023 when she dropped only one set, in the final against Elena Rybakina, and has since showed the maturity and emotional control that comes with Grand Slam success to blow her opponents away.

Her rip-roaring form has helped her reach at least the last four at the previous six majors including the Wimbledon semis last year, having missed the 2022 tournament at the All England club due to Russian and Belarusian players being banned.

Like last year, the trophy will not mention where Sabalenka is from as she is competing at Melbourne Park without national affiliation under conditions imposed on Russian and Belarusian players by organisers since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine

She unleashed monster groundstrokes to grab the final by the scruff of the neck with an early break and thousands of Chinese supporters and millions back home watched Zheng fall behind 3-0.

NO FLAGS

The charismatic 25-year-old has a big Melbourne fan base and she rode the Rod Laver Arena support to take the first set, serving out at the second attempt.

Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - January 27, 2024 Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka poses with the trophy after winning the final against China's Qinwen Zheng REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez

Zheng showed she was slowly growing in confidence in her second meeting with Sabalenka by firing up her own big forehand amid the rallying cry of "Jia You" from her compatriots in the crowd.

A clean crosscourt winner earned Sabalenka a break point in the opening game of the second set, however, and Zheng's double fault handed it to her on a platter.

The contest was then briefly halted with when a protester unfurled a Palestinian flag and shouted anti-war slogans before being taken out of the stadium by force.

The 21-year-old first-time finalist Zheng, who bidding to match the 2014 feat of her idol Li Na, China's first Grand Slam champion, in winning the Australian Open saw her hopes fade after two more errors on serve left her 4-1 down.

Sabalenka shrugged off a shaky service game to close out the most one-sided final since Azarenka beat Maria Sharapova 6-3 6-0 in 2012 with another thunderous forehand winner.

She raised her arms in triumph before running to her team and patting the bald head of fitness trainer Jason Stacy, which she has been signing in marker pen as a pre-match ritual throughout the tournament.

Zheng, meanwhile, cut a disappointed figure as she sat in her chair and pondered what might have been.

"I feel very complicated because I could have done better than I did in this match," she said.

"This was an amazing memory for me. I'm sure there's going to be more and better in the future."

(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Melbourne, editing by Nick Mulvenney and Hugh Lawson)

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