She was the big favorite and she did not fail in her status. Aryna Sabalenka, world number 2 and defending champion, won the Australian Open this Saturday by outclassing Zheng Qinwen. The young Chinese player (21 years old, 15th in the world), who was playing in the first Grand Slam final of her career, was unable to do anything against the power of her opponent. The final score, 6-3, 6-2 in a little over an hour, demonstrates the gap between the two players.
The triumph is total for Sabalenka (25 years old), who will not have lost a set in the Australian fortnight. She is only the fifth player to achieve such a feat in the 21st century, after Lindsay Davenport, Maria Sharapova, Venus Williams and Ashleigh Barty. She is also the first to keep the trophy in Melbourne for more than ten years, and the double of her compatriot Victoria Azarenka in 2012 and 2013.
For Zheng, who reached the final without having to beat a single player in the top 50 after the massacre among the top seeds in her half of the table, the serious things will begin. She will enter the world top 10 on Monday (7th), and will now be expected in China as the one who can bring a third major tournament to the country, after Li Na’s coronations at Roland-Garros (2011) and the Australian Open (2014).