Sabalenka destroys Keys in 51 minutes, faces Andreeva in Indian Wells final
Aryna Sabalenka made extremely quick work of Madison Keys on Friday in Indian Wells. Sabalenka will face 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva in the final on Sunday.
Aryna Sabalenka 2024 | Zuma / Panoramic
Aryna Sabalenka said that she was eager to avenge her recent Australian Open final loss to Madison Keys.
So eager, in fact, that Sabalenka required only 13 total games and a mere 51 minutes to get her revenge.
The top seed came within one game of a double-bagel and beat Keys 6-0, 6-1 in the semi-finals of the BNP Paribas Open on Friday night. Sabalenka will next meet Mirra Andreeva in Sunday’s championship match at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Palm Springs, California.
Sabalenka made a statement right from the start. She broke Keys in the second, fourth and sixth games, and only one game in the entire first set went to deuce.
More of the same continued in the second, as Sabalenka raced to a 5-0 advantage. One game away from a humiliating 6-0, 6-0 defeat, Keys finally got on the scoreboard with a love hold — after which the American jokingly threw her hands up in the air in celebration. Sabalenka was quick to put an end to the proceedings with a quick hold at 5-1.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect this match to be that fast, and of course I’m super happy to be in another final here,” she commented during her post-match press conference. “I was just following the same strategy and that’s it — just keep her out of the rhythm. Don’t give her fast balls just so she’s not in a good rhythm of her shots.”
The world No 1 previously defeated American McCartney Kessler (7-6 (4), 6-3), Italian Lucia Bronzetti (6-1, 6-2), lucky loser Sonay Kartal (6-1, 6-2) and Russian Liudmila Samsonova, the No 24 seed (6-2, 6-3).
Keys advanced to the last four by beating Russian Anastasia Potapova (6-3, 6-0), Belgian Elise Mertens, the No 28 seed (6-2, 6-7 (8), 6-4), Croat Donna Vekic, the No 19 seed (4-6, 7-6 (7), 6-3) and Swiss wildcard Belinda Bencic.
Indian Wells WTA 1000, other semi-final result (Indian Wells Tennis Garden, hard, USD 8.963.700):
- Mirra Andreeva beat Iga Swiatek (2): 7-6 (1), 1-6, 6-3
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