Australian Open 2024: Only Zheng can stop Sabalenka | Tennis | Kinds of sports

Only she, Qinwen Zheng, can stop the overwhelming Aryna Sabalenka as she attacks, hits and accelerates towards her second trophy in Melbourne, which will also be her second at a major. The 25-year-old Belarusian overcame the stubborn resistance of the American Coco Gauff this Thursday (7-6 (2) and 6-4, in 1 hour 42 minutes) and will meet the Chinese in the final this Saturday (9.30, Eurosport). Add and keep going, because she already has 13 wins in Melbourne, and because if there is one reliable player on the big stages, it is she, the strongest hand on the circuit; yes, a lot of power, but over the year here its consistency has also increased.

Since Serena Williams reached the finals in 2016 and 2017, no player has achieved this feat. Sabalenka is charging into the finals again, and he says he’s doing it with extra motivation for the finals that eluded him in September in New York. “I was a little passive that day, I slowed down, but in pre-season I worked on my shots to get to the gate and finish there,” she explains. Their determination is reflected in the results of these days. Without giving up a single set so far, only Gauff, the same one who beat him that day in the US Open, managed to truly embarrass him. Otherwise, he walks or wins relatively comfortably.

The world number two – the bills prevent her from dethroning Poland’s Iga Swiatek even if she wins the title – is set to follow in the footsteps of her compatriot Victoria Azarenka, the last to win two crowns in a row main Australian (2012 and 2013). “I know I’ll be ready to fight, I won’t go crazy. When you play your first ending, you tend to get nervous and rush. Now I am completely calm,” she says, while Zheng, a beginner at these levels, takes notes. The Asian, a promising 21-year-old player, was able to take advantage of the gaps in the draw – she did not meet anyone top 50– and why not, they think she and her coach, Catalan Pere Riba, are aiming to make a splash.

If Sabalenka tries to emulate Azarenka, she will be following in the footsteps of Na Li, the champion from a decade ago. Her appearance in the final (a 6-4 double against Jamstremska, also in 1 hour 42 minutes) marks the fourth for the Chinese tennis player, simplifying the previous three for her compatriot; two in Melbourne and one at Roland Garros. So far, she and Sabalenka have met only once. It was last year, on the asphalt of the US Open. Having won, the second one hopes to win again. “She’s playing the best tennis of her life,” says Zheng, ranked fifteenth in the world and indeed riding a very optimistic wave.

On the other hand, Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner will meet in the first men’s semi-final this morning. In the second (9.30, Eurosport) Russian Daniil Medvedev and German Alexander Zverev, the executioner of Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals, will play.

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