On Saturday, Aryna Sabalenka successfully defended her Australian Open title with a straight-set win over China’s Qin Wenzheng.
The Belarusian second seed, who won 6-3 6-2, became the first woman to retain the Melbourne Park title since compatriot Victoria Azarenka in 2013.
Sabalenka proved too powerful for the 12th seed as she wrapped up the match in 76 minutes to claim her second Grand Slam crown on Rod Laver Arena.
Zheng reached her first Grand Slam final unseeded when many players were eliminated during her side’s draw, and the gulf in class quickly became apparent.
Sabalenka became the fifth woman to win the Australian Open without dropping a set after Lindsay Davenport, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, and Ash Barty.
Sabalenka became the fifth woman to win the Australian Open
She is also the second player in the Open Era, after Azarenka, to win her first two women’s singles Grand Slam titles at the Australian Open.
She is also the third player to win back-to-back seasons at the same women’s singles major event in the last 10 years, following Serena Williams at Wimbledon (2015–2016) and Iga Svetek at Roland Garros (2022–2023).
Sabalenka also became the second player in the last 20 years to win the women’s singles Australian Open final without dropping a game since Serena Williams against Maria Sharapova in 2007, according to Opta.
Zheng, the second Chinese player to qualify for a Grand Slam final and first since Li’s title here in 2014, will make her first top 10 ranking at No. 7 on Monday, while Sabalenka remains at No. 2.
