The Belarusian player Aryna Sabalenkathe world number two, will play in the final of the tennis tournament in Madrid next Saturday, in search of his second title in Magic Boxafter winning this Thursday in the semifinals against the Greek Maria Sakkari (9), by 6-4 and 6-1 in one hour and 26 minutes.
Sabalenkawinner in Madrid in 2021, will face his fifth final this season, after those in Adelaide and the australia tomorrowwhich he won, and in Indian Wells and Stuttgart, which he lost.
sakkari, instead, he returned to stay on the border of the semifinals, the pending account of his career: 7 wins and 22 losses including today.
If in the nocturnal session this Thursday the Polish Iga Swiatek dominant in Russian Veronika Kudermetovathe world number one and two will meet in a final for the second tournament in a row, after meeting two weeks ago in a decisive match in Stuttgart, where Swiatek won, 6-3, 6-4.
There have been eight previous meetings between Sabalenka and Sakkari, with the Belarusian leading 5 wins to 3. But they have never played on clay before and Madrid gave them the chance on a hot and windy afternoon.
Sabalenka, who had struggled in the round of 16 before the Colombian Camila Osorio and especially in the quarterfinals against the Egyptians Mayor Sheriff (59 WTA), who took the first set from her, does not like jokes. They started strong and took a 3-0 lead.
sakkari He returned the break in the fifth, before the sixth game of maximum tension in which there were six advantage situations, with four ‘break’ points for the Belarusian, before the Athenian kept his serve.
Although she doubled her rival with winners, Sabalenka made gestures that were not entirely satisfied with her game. Even so, when he turned to his right he was hard to stop.
At 5-4, Sakkari was forced to serve well to stay alive in the set. But he was unable to withstand the pressure of his rival, who skillfully took back and disarmed the Greek with the power of his right hand.
The Hellenic player, who has only one title in his career, did not achieve the necessary consistency at the beginning of the second set to level the clash. He gave up a serve again (3-1), lost his goal, with balls looking for corners but lingering or staying in the net.
She put another break on a tray for Sabalenka, who at 5-1 gave Sakkari two break points. However, the Greek was unable to get back into the match, giving his opponent the first match point with a long return and serving the clash with a return out.
Sabalenka clinched the 2021 title in Madrid after defeating the then world number one, the Australian, in the final Ashleigh Barty. Now, if his opponent next Saturday is Swiatek, he will have a chance to try again.
Before the semifinal in Madrid, Sakkari lost this season in Linz, Qatar and Indian Wells. He himself jokes about it saying that he “knocked that wall over and over again”.
Source: La Verdad
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