Indian Wells (United States) (AFP) – World number one Aryna Sabalenka roared into her third Indian Wells WTA 1000 final on Friday, overpowering 14th-ranked Czech Linda Noskova 6-3, 6-4. The Belarusian star, chasing her first Indian Wells title after runner-up finishes in 2023 and 2025, could find herself up against Elena Rybakina in a rematch of the Australian Open final won by Rybakina in January.
Kazakhstan’s Rybakina, who also beat Sabalenka in the 2023 Indian Wells final, faced ninth-ranked Ukrainian veteran Elina Svitolina in the other semi-final. Sabalenka fired 37 winners, including 11 aces, applying relentless pressure from the baseline against her 21-year-old opponent. She broke the big-serving Noskova twice as she powered to a 5-1 lead in the opening set.
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There was a hiccup as she tried to serve out the set and Sabalenka, who had lost just one point in her first three service games, was broken. Noskova kept the set alive with a battling hold in a marathon eighth game, fending off a set point with a service winner and sealing the game with an ace.
Serving for the set again, Sabalenka opened with a double fault and went down 0-30, but a pair of big serves and a backhand winner brought her to set point and she claimed it with an ace. Sabalenka broke Noskova to open the second and was on her way. Noskova fended off a second break, but she was unable to convert a break opportunity in the eighth game as Sabalenka brought it home, capping the victory with a forehand winner on her third match point.
© 2024 AFP
