The 2024 Australian Open women’s tournament will put the cherry on top of two weeks of spectacle with a final that predicts strong emotions. Aryna Sabalenka will try to impose her favoritism against Qinwen Zheng who is making her debut in a Grand Slam final and arrives full of confidence and having enough weapons to make a splash.
Every athlete lives unforgettable moments that can mark the future of their career and this Saturday, January 26, there will be two women who will fight face to face to win the crown of the Open the Australia 2024 and give a boost to their respective trajectories. Aryna Sabalenka She is just one win away from revalidating the title and proving that she is an almost unapproachable player in this tournament, as well as becoming a strong candidate to regain the world number 1. For her part, Qinwen Zheng opens a stage of excitement for all those who see in her a star in the making, being able to give an outstanding boost to her career at just 21 years old. Melbourne will witness an exciting match full of nuances that can determine the final result.
Aryna Sabalenka, the supreme power of unapproachable tennis
For years, the Belarusian has had that powerful feeling that only a few are capable of transmitting, such as the fact that the fate of all the games she plays is in her hand. The tennis of the current world number 2 is so powerful that it can nullify the proposal of its opponent, but only when it is applied with moderation, with intelligence and tactical order. That is the great change that has been perceived in Sabalenka for just over a year and that she continues to polish with surprising naturalness.
He is brimming with confidence after a tournament that was unblemished for his interests. He did not give any of his rivals a choice, being able to take all the partials decisively. The only one who put his hegemony in trouble was Cori Gauff, whom he mercilessly punished with the rest on second serves, being able to emerge strongly when she found herself breaking down and 30-0 for the young American. This was a tremendous test of fire for a woman who adapts perfectly to the conditions of Melbourne and who has already experienced on several occasions everything that comes with playing in a Grand Slam final.
Qinwen Zheng, turning point in limitless talent
Sooner or later this moment had to come and it happened quickly and forcefully. At only 21 years old, the Chinese player has confirmed everything that was intuited about her since 2022, when she began to make herself known to the general public. That set won against Swiatek in Paris showed the infinite potential of a player who has managed to evolve in all facets of her tennis and who has an innate ability to move the ball with her drive, change heights, speed and show off her refined technique. .
No matter how much he has reached the final without facing a single top-50 tennis player, nothing can overshadow the merit that comes with having asserted his status as seed and maintaining coolness in tense moments. She was on the verge of falling into the abyss in the fratricidal clash against Wang, but once that challenge was resolved with more heart and intangibles than with tennis, her superiority has been manifest. She has a whopping 44 aces, she is amazing with her total tennis and has a great opportunity to break the mold if she were able to escape the presumed stage fright and emerge as champion of the Rod Laver Arena.
Tactical and head-to-head keys to the women’s final of the Australian Open 2024
How can you make a player who is overwhelming with all her blows uncomfortable? That is the question that will be on the minds of Pere Riba and all of Zheng’s technical staff. The Spanish coach knows well what it is to beat Sabalenka in a Grand Slam final since he did it just a few months ago, in New York, leading in Gauff’s footsteps. Aware that he has a rough diamond on his hands with the Chinese player, the plan has to be none other than to present a very high first serve percentage, look for changes in height and speed to take Sabalenka out of her comfort zone, cover the backhand as soon as possible to dominate with that supreme forehand and not be afraid of what may happen.
Qinwen has nothing to lose, and everything to gain, knowing that her technical resources can significantly bother a player who is not exempt from certain mental blocks, although she has made a lot of progress in that, and who needs to be very fine to reduce errors. not forced. Aryna will seek to condemn every second serve of the Chinese, look for backhand exchanges and structure her offensive tennis with a certain margin of error in the first shots, in order to reduce errors, but without allowing Zheng to acquire the initiative. It will determine how powerful she is with her service, as well as the emotional management that comes with knowing that she is a great favorite to revalidate the title. She managed to keep the Chinese at bay in the only confrontation between the two, which took place at the 2023 US Open with a result of 6-1 6-4 in her favor. Will she manage to repeat it now?
Women’s final prediction for the Australian Open 2024: Aryna Sabalenka – 65% Qinwen Zheng – 35%
