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World number 2 and reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka will lock horns with Zheng Qinwen of China in the final of the Australian Open 2024. Sabalenka and Qinwen will go head to head in the summit clash of the tournament on January 27, Saturday. Sabalenka got better of Coco Gauff in the semifinal clash to make a safe passage to the final match of the year-opening Grand Slam.
Also read: Aryna Sabalenka smashes racquet after defeat in US Open 2023 final
12th seed Zheng Qinwen ended the fairytale journey of the Ukrainian tennis player Dayana Yastremska to make it to her maiden Grand Slam final. Zheng beat her counterpart 6-4, 6-4 on the Rod Laver Arena to become the only second Chinese player ever to reach a Grand Slam final. Sabalenka, on the flip side, avenged her US Open 2024 final defeat. By beating her American counterpart, the 25-year-old 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 in one hour and 42 minutes, Sabalenka became the first player to reach back-to-back Australian Open finals since Serena Wiliams.
It feels unbelievable: Zheng Qinwen on reserving her maiden Australian Open final berth
After making it to the final of AO2024, the 21-year-old said, “It feels unbelievable. I mean, I’m super excited to have such a great performance today and arrive in the final. I think my opponent was playing unbelievable tennis and had really good baseline strokes. It’s tough to explain my feelings now.” On the other hand, Sabalenka said that she was motivated by revenge after the 19-year-old beat her earlier.
She said, "I was able to focus on myself. I was prepared that she was going to move well and put all the balls back and I was just ready for anything. That was the key and the support here. It's always a great fight (against Gauff). She's a great player and I enjoy playing her. I really hope that in the future we are going to play many more finals."
