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Sabalenka Survives Serve Struggles to Reach Australian Open Fourth Round

Posted : 17 January 2025

Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka faced a challenging third-round match at the Australian Open against Denmark's Clara Tauson, but managed to secure a 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 victory. Despite struggling with her serve, Sabalenka kept her dream of a third consecutive title alive after a two-hour battle on Rod Laver Arena. The conditions, with heavy balls and slower courts, made serving difficult, and Sabalenka had trouble maintaining consistency, even dropping her serve multiple times.

 

Sabalenka was broken early in the match, and the pair exchanged seven consecutive breaks, with the world No.1 conceding four of them. Despite these struggles, Sabalenka found her rhythm and eventually won the first set in a tense tiebreak. She acknowledged that winning the first set provided her with the mental strength to stay in the match, even without her best serve. In the second set, Sabalenka dropped serve again but responded strongly, holding her ground until a pivotal game at 4-4 where she broke Tauson’s serve.

 

The match saw an intense exchange of winners in a game that featured seven deuces before Sabalenka secured the crucial break. Despite Tauson’s resilience, Sabalenka saved two more break points and clinched the win in 2 hours and 6 minutes. After the match, Sabalenka praised Tauson for her performance and expressed how important it was to push herself to the limit to secure the victory. Sabalenka’s 17th consecutive win on Rod Laver Arena keeps her on course for a rare Australian Open hat-trick.

 

In contrast, two-time Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka’s tournament ended in disappointment as she was forced to retire due to injury during her third-round match against Belinda Bencic. Osaka had been dealing with abdominal issues leading into the tournament and was visibly struggling during the match. After losing the first set in a tiebreak, she could no longer continue, ending her bid for a comeback at Melbourne Park. Bencic, who advanced to the fourth round, expressed hope for Osaka’s quick recovery and wished her the best for the rest of the year.

 

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