Australian Open: Sabalenka Kicks Off Title Defense with Straight Sets Victory Against Stephens
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Melbourne, Jan 12 (NationPress) Two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka commenced her title defense at the Australian Open with a decisive straight sets win of 6-3, 6-2 against Sloane Stephens in the first round on Sunday.
Ranked as the world’s number one, Sabalenka is striving to become the first female athlete since Martina Hingis to achieve a three-peat in Melbourne. The Swiss legend secured three consecutive titles at this major event from 1997 to 1999.
As the top seed for the first time at a Grand Slam, Sabalenka aims to be the first leading seed to clinch the Australian Open women’s singles title since Ashleigh Barty won her home Slam in 2022, according to WTA statistics.
Sabalenka, the reigning champion of both the Australian Open and US Open, achieved victory on Sunday, extending her winning streak at hard-court majors to 15 matches. Since the onset of the 2023 season, she boasts an impressive 28-1 win/loss record at hard-court Slams, with her sole defeat occurring in three sets during the 2023 US Open final against the young American star Coco Gauff.
Sabalenka swiftly surged to a 3-0 advantage in just seven minutes, and although Stephens rallied to 4-3, Sabalenka broke her serve once more to regain control. The match concluded with Sabalenka hitting 20 winners and breaking Stephens' serve five times out of 13 break points.
In the second round, Sabalenka is set to face Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, who made a strong debut in the main draw of the Australian Open by defeating Great Britain’s Sonay Kartal with a score of 6-1, 7-6.
In other match highlights, Paula Badosa triumphed over Xinyu Wang with a score of 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) to advance to the second round, where she will compete against either Turkish player Zeynep Sonmez or Australian wildcard Talia Gibson.
Meanwhile, Canadian Leylah Fernandez moved on to the second round after a 7-5, 6-4 victory against Ukrainian player Yuliia Starodubtseva. She will face the winner of the matchup between Spaniard Cristina Bucsa and France's Chloe Paquet.
