Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka and world number 1 Iga Swiatek will face off again at the Mutua Madrid Open in a repeat of last year’s final.
World number 1 Swiatek needed just 71 minutes to reach her third final of the year and move closer to her third WTA 1000 title of the year in a one-sided semi-final, en route to a 6-0 victory. 1, 6-3.
The Pole finished runner-up to Sabalenka in Madrid last year and will now face the Belarusian in a rematch after the second seed defeated former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in a final set thriller.
Swiatek broke her serve in the second game of the match and, after saving two break points for a 4-1 lead, never looked in danger of losing the upper hand against her powerful opponent.
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Iga Swiatek said she felt “very good” after reaching the final of the Madrid Open for the second year in a row.
“(I feel) really good,” Swiatek said in an on-court interview. Sky Sports Tennis. “I wasn’t really thinking about what happened last year, but for sure repeating this good result is a good thing and I’ll have the chance to play a good match in two days, so it’s is really exciting and I’m overall happy with the whole tournament.”
Tale of the gang
“Swiatek played with great confidence”
“As expected, Iga Swiatek got off to a fast start and never looked back,” said Anne Keothavong. Sky Sports Tennis.
“She was the best player in every department. She just had too much for Madison Keys, who did her best to try to live with her in some of her exchanges and there were times when you thought she was going to force her way past Iga but she just wasn’t able to produce that kind of tennis consistently.”
Sky Sports Tennis Expert Colin Fleming added: “Iga Swiatek is the ultimate test on clay in women’s football right now. Keys’ good stuff was pretty good, but it was few and far between. She had three break points in the match but couldn’t really take them but there’s no shame in that.
Sabalenka wraps up rehearsal in Madrid
Sabalenka needed more than two hours to defeat Rybakina and continue her title defense, coming back from a set down to win 1-6 7-5 7-6 (5) and book her place in Saturday’s final.
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Aryna Sabalenka talks victory over Elena Rybakina and what it means to book a spot in the Madrid Open final against Iga Swiatek
It will also be the first meeting of 2024 between Swiatek and Sabalenka, winners 6-3 3-6 6-3 in last year’s final and the 10th of their careers.
“I’m happy that we can play a final against the best players,” Swiatek said on Thursday before knowing her final opponent. “It shows consistency. It will definitely be a challenge, whoever the player is. I will be ready. I will focus on myself.”
Rybakina broke Sabalenka twice in the first set and reached an easy 6-1 margin. Sabalenka then found herself trailing 3-1, 4-2 in the second set, only to win five of her next six games to level the contest.
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Highlights of Elena Rybakina vs. Aryana Sabalenka in the Madrid Open semifinals
Both players held serve throughout the third set, but Sabalenka, a back-to-back Australian Open champion, took a 5-1 lead in the tiebreaker before winning on her third point. match.
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As the second Grand Slam of 2024 approaches – the French Open at Roland Garros from May 26 – you’ll be able to watch all of tennis’ biggest stars in action live on Sky Sports as they compete throughout the clay court season.
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