Gutsy Sabalenka beats Pavlyuchenkova, wind to reach Melbourne semis / Photo: Martin KEEP - AFP
Gutsy Sabalenka beats Pavlyuchenkova, wind to reach Melbourne semis
Aryna Sabalenka kept a historic Australian Open hat-trick on track Tuesday as she battled past Russian 27th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 in the quarter-finals.
The world number one will face Spain's Paula Badosa for a place in the Melbourne final after the Spanish 11th seed stunned Coco Gauff in straight sets.
It was the Belarusian's 19th win in a row at Melbourne Park but turned into a battle for survival in increasingly windy conditions during a match that had both players struggling to hold serve in the third set.
"Honestly I was just praying, trying to put the ball back in these tough conditions," said Sabalenka, the champion in Melbourne for the past two years.
"We both were, it was difficult to play. I'm just super happy I was able to somehow magically win this match."
The quarter-final opened in nervy fashion with few baseline exchanges and Sabalenka broke early to grab a 3-1 lead.
She did not face a break point in the opener and clinched the set in 31 minutes with a rocket forehand crosscourt winner.
The stiffening breeze and falling temperatures resulted in staccato tennis for the purists.
Only eight of 50 rallies in the first set lasted longer than four shots and only one went beyond nine as winners were peppered with errors.
Pavlyuchenkova turned the match on its head in the second set as a brilliant forehand down the line gave her a break, and then she held for a 3-1 lead.
Pavlyuchenkova found another gear and began to extend the rallies, breaking again to lead 4-1.
An exchange of breaks took the Russian to a 5-2 lead and she served out to love to level the match.
Another Sabalenka unforced error, her 19th, saw her broken again at the start of the third set.
Both players were struggling badly by now to keep the ball in court and the first four games went against serve.
In the eighth game Sabalenka made the decisive move, breaking for 5-3 and going on to clinch the match in 1hr 53min.
Standing in Sabalenka's path to the final will be Badosa, who almost quit the sport last year because of a chronic back condition.
Badosa shattered world number three Gauff's dream of a first Australian Open title with a 7-5, 6-4 win earlier to reach her first Slam semi-final.
She is the first Spanish woman into a major semi-final since Garbine Muguruza, also at Melbourne, in 2020.
It has been a remarkable comeback to tennis for Badosa, who was ranked outside the top 100 a year ago after a stress fracture in her back.
"I mean, a year ago, I was here with my back that I didn't know if I had to retire from this sport, and now I'm here playing against the best in the world," said Badosa.
Sabalenka can become the first woman for 26 years to win the title three times in a row at Melbourne Park.
G.Svensson--RTC
