Aryna Sabalenka defeats Elena Rybakina in three sets to win the Australian Open title | Australian Open 2023

[ad_1]

Throughout her massive win streak to start this season, Aryna Sabalenka has consistently maintained that her mindset has changed. She’s more of an author now, and is willing to work for her success instead of mindlessly swinging for the fences. After the Wimbledon champion achieved her first-ever Grand Slam singles final, those principles were put to the ultimate test.

Despite being pressured tremendously into the hopeless final, Sabalenka didn’t bat an eye. Focused on finding solutions and after a great match full of daring and hard shooting from both players, Sabalenka defeated Elena Rybakina 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to win the Australian Open.

With her first major title, Sabalenka, seeded fifth, will return to number two in the WTA rankings, equaling her career-high ranking. Unbeaten in 2023, she won her first 11 matches of the season with two titles to her name.

In a match between two of the biggest servers and shot makers in the sport, the primary goal was clear to both of them – offense. None of the players shook away from the pressure of such a massive moment, and made massive strikes from the get-go. After Sabalenka opened the match with an ace, Rybakina responded with a three.

Early on, Rybakina’s experience and composure were immediately apparent. She broke in the second game and then backed it up with some impenetrable serve. When Sabalenka produced a stellar break back comeback to tie it at 4-4, Rybakina broke again and then slammed the door in the opening set with a love fist.

Sabalenka reached her first Grand Slam final as the most decorated player of the year, winning every set she’s played so far in 2023, and doing so by adopting her more poised demeanor. Even after she fell on set, she refused to betray a major affection.

With her more dynamic heavy ball shooting and greater athleticism, Sabalenka has been known to outpace Rybakina in any neutral rally. As she began to read the Kazakh’s serve and penalize her second serve, the Belarusian dominated. Sabalenka broke for a 3-1 lead and then brilliantly built it up with a solid and good hold.

Even as Rybakina made a comeback and put her serve under tremendous pressure at the end of the second set, Sabalenka consistently found her way inside the baseline as she let her groundstrokes sing. The group finished with a ridiculous 21 wins for only 10 effective errors.

The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads up on the weekend’s action

Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertisements, and content funded by third parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Elena Rybakina took the first set before Aryna Sabalenka took over. Photograph: Jamie Joy/Reuters

When they converged in the final penalty shootout, the level only rose under pressure. Both players swung freely, forcing themselves inside the baseline and desperately trying to wrestle for the lead. In the end, the more dynamic ground game Sabalenka won.

The first chance of the third set came through Rybakina’s break point at 2-2, which she countered with a non-rebound serve before moving on with an impressive fist. But Sabalenka kept pushing, demolishing her forehand as she added three break points at 3-3. Rybakina hit two more unreturned serves, but Sabalenka finished off a fierce combo of shots with an overhead win to grab the decisive break.

To her credit, Rybakina pressed Sabalenka to the end, making each serve uncomfortable and then forcing her opponent to serve the match. Three tournament points came and went, including a double fault, but the Belarusian refused to let her emotions take over in a stressful final. Sabalenka forced a final miss with a forehand by Rybakina, and was floored as a champion in the major slams at last.

[ad_2]