Aryna Sabalenka came back from a set down to defeat Marketa Vondrousova 4-6 6-3 6-1 and reach the fourth round of the Australian Open.
In her third consecutive match, Sabalenka lost the opening set, but she overcame early serving issues to defeat the Czech.
Sabalenka said, “I am really happy right now, and I am most happy that I made only 10 double faults.”.
“She played unbelievable tennis today, and I worked really hard to earn this victory. I’m really pleased to win.”.
“In my last match I had some trouble with my serve. I really expect in my next match to have a great serve. I’ll just keep working on my serve and keep hoping it gets better.”
It was Sabalenka’s service struggles that continued on Margaret Court Arena, as she double faulted in the opening game to give Vondrousova an early advantage.
Later, she told reporters that she was putting too much pressure on herself, leading to her service suffering.
Sabalenka explained her win today by saying, “I think it’s more mental… (in) the last matches I was trying to control everything on my serve; my legs, my arm, the ball toss. (Today) I just stopped thinking.”.
After trading additional breaks midway through the set, Vondrousova remained resolute to take the opener in 38 minutes despite Sabalenka’s heavy hitting.
The two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist found her rhythm in the second set, breaking Vondrousova’s serve in the second game with a powerful crosscourt backhand before leveling the match.
In the decider, Sabalenka broke Vondrousova on three occasions to secure the victory and set up a meeting with Kaia Kanepi in the fourth round.
Sabalenka said Kanepi is a great player. “She serves well. Hits pretty hard. And, yeah, it’s really interesting to play against her,” she added.
