In a stellar display of dominance, Aryna Sabalenka secured her status as the reigning champion at the Australian Open women's singles title on Saturday.
The Belarusian second seed showcased her prowess on the court, defeating China's Zheng Qinwen with a commanding score of 6-3, 6-2.
Notably, Sabalenka now holds the distinction of being the first woman since Victoria Azarenka in 2013 to successfully retain the prestigious Melbourne Park title.
FACTBOX on Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka
Age: 25
Nation: Belarus
WTA Ranking: 2
Seeding: 2
Grand Slam titles: 2 (Australian Open 2023, 2024)
ROAD TO FINAL
First round: beat Ella Seidel (Germany) 6-0 6-1
Second round: beat Brenda Fruhvirtova (Czech Republic) 6-3 6-2
Third round: beat 28-Lesia Tsurenko (Ukraine) 6-0 6-0
Fourth round: beat Amanda Anisimova (U.S.) 6-3 6-2
Quarter-finals: beat 9-Barbora Krejcikova (Czech Republic)6-2 6-3
Semi-finals: beat 4-Coco Gauff (U.S.) 7-6(2) 6-4
Final: beat 12-Zheng Qinwen (China) 6-3 6-2
EARLY LIFE
* Born in Minsk. Began playing tennis at age six.
CAREER TO DATE
* Began her professional career playing on the ITF Circuit in 2012.
* Won three singles titles and one doubles title on ITF Circuit in 2015.
* Played first WTA qualifying event at Rabat in 2016 and played in her first WTA main draw at Dubai the following year. Ended 2017 ranked number 78 for first top-100 finish.
* Won two WTA titles at New Haven and Wuhan in 2018. First Top-20 season finishing ranked 11th.
* Won three WTA singles titles and three doubles titles in 2019, including first Grand Slam doubles title at the U.S. Open with Belgian partner Elise Mertens.
* Won Doha, Ostrava and Linz titles for a joint Tour-leading record in 2020. Climbed one place in the rankings for her first Top-10 season.
* Won Abu Dhabi and Madrid in 2021 and reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
* Reached the 2022 U.S. Open semi-finals. Qualified for the WTA Finals for the second consecutive year where she defeated the top 3 players of the tournament -- Jessica Pegula, Ons Jabeur and Iga Swiatek -- and finished runner-up losing to Caroline Garcia.
* Won the Australian Open beating Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan) and reached Wimbledon and French Open semi-finals, finished runner-up at the U.S. Open in 2023 after defeat by Gauff. Also won titles in Adelaide and Madrid.
* Reached career high ranking of number one in September, 2023.
* Won the Australian Open for the second consecutive year, beating Zheng Qinwen.
