(Tennis news) To advance to a quarterfinal matchup with Qinwen Zheng, Sabalenka overcame Maryna Zanevska, Jodie Burrage, Clara Burel, and Daria Kasatkina. The Belarusian swept through the opening set and won it with just one game remaining.
Despite Sabalenka still having a significant gameplay advantage, Zheng was able to boost her level in the second set to stay up with her. The defending champion of the Australian Open won the crucial break to take the match 4-3, and she then increased her lead to 5-3 with a serve hold.
Sabalenka brought up a match point on her serve as Zheng served to remain in the match, but the Chinese player resisted to get herself out of trouble. The next game was won by the Belarusian 6-1, 6-4, bringing an end to the proceedings.
To get to the last eight, Keys defeated Jessica Pegula, Liudmila Samsonova, Yanina Wickmayer, and Arantxa Rus. In the quarterfinals, Marketa Vondrousova, the reigning Wimbledon champion, was her opponent.
The opening set was quickly won by Keys, who got out to a quick start. The Czech was only able to win one game in the set. As she again broke Vondrousova’s serve to claim victory 6-1, 6-4, the American continued to push forward in the second set.
Head-to-Head
Head-to-head, Sabalenka has a 2-1 advantage over Keys. At the 2023 Wimbledon, the former prevailed in their most recent meeting in straight sets.
Predictions
This semifinal matchup features two of the most potent ball strikers on the circuit. Throughout the competition, Sabalenka has been in excellent shape, displaying some great serving and hitting abilities. With 17 victories in the previous round, she didn’t encounter a single break point.
With her victory in the quarterfinal, Sabalenka became the first woman since Serena Williams in 2016 to go to the semifinals of all four Majors in a single season. Her victories have all been in straight sets, and she hasn’t suffered more than five games of loss in any of her matches thus far.
Vondrousova was unable to establish herself as Keys controlled the game to go to the semifinals for a third time. She advanced to the championship round here in 2017 and, if she keeps performing at her current level, she might do it once more.
Keys has done a terrific job by playing with restraint and without committing too many blunders per game. She waits for the ideal time to release the full force of her shots rather than just hitting hard on every occasion.
If they both play their best, this match may be a masterclass in first-strike tennis. The likelihood of that occurring is pretty high given how they have performed thus far. Sabalenka will likely be favoured to make it to her second Major final because she appears to be playing a little bit better.
Aryna Sabalenka to win in 3 sets.
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