Sabalenka reaches maiden Grand Slam final after beating Linette at Australian Open
WTA
Aryna Sabalenka reached her maiden Grand Slam final at the 2023 Australian Open after beating Magda Linette.
Aryna Sabalenka has numerous accomplishments on the WTA Tour, but she still missed a bit on the biggest stage. The 24-year-old Belarusian previously played in three Grand Slam semifinals, but she lost all of them.
She also played in the WTA Finals final in 2022, and she was only one spot away from becoming the World No. 1 player last year. This time, she wants to take it a step further and succeed at the 2023 Australian Open.
Sabalenka started her season with a triumph in Adelaide and kept her form also in Melbourne. She's currently leading the WTA Race and also she's very close to winning her first Grand Slam title.
In the semi-finals of the "Happy Slam," she took on the only unseeded player among the last four, Magda Linette. The Pole had a sensational tournament, and she was making Polish fans happy, after World No. 1, Iga Swiatek, was eliminated by Elena Rybakina.
The match started better for Linette, who started with a break but soon lost her advantage, and the score was tied at 2-2. Both players then showed a serving masterclass and so the first set had to be decided in a tie-break.
More experienced Sabalenka was a better player in the tie-break and dominantly won it 7-1. The World No. 5 followed up in the second set as she got two quick breaks to lead 4-1.
Sabalenka then faced three break points on her serve when leading 4-1, but after saving all, nothing could stop her from winning 7-6(1), 6-2 in an hour and 35 minutes to book her first major final.
In the final, she will play against the 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, who defeated Sabalenka's compatriot Victoria Azarenka in the other semi-final match.
