WATCH: “I knew you guys wanted to send me home,” Aryna Sabalenka takes a dig at fans after reaching the Indian Wells Open semifinals
The second seed moves another step closer to the title at Indian Wells Open defeating Coco Gauff in straight sets
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Aryna Sabalenka
Ever since her remarkable breakthrough at the Australian Open earlier this year, Aryna Sabalenka has continued to impress. The second seed demonstrated her skills yet again on Wednesday, this time against the sixth-seeded Coco Gauff. Sabalenka put on a stellar performance, winning the final seven games of the match and securing a resounding 6-4, 6-0 victory over the 19-year-old rising star.
Although Coco Gauff had previously held a 3-1 advantage over Aryna Sabalenka in their head-to-head matches, Sabalenka’s recent improvement in serving proved to be the deciding factor in this encounter. Sabalenka dominated the match, allowing Gauff to win only nine return points and denying her any break point opportunities.
Speaking at the post-match on-court interview Sabalenka said, “I knew you guys wanted to send me home. Thank you everyone for coming and supporting us, mostly her, but us. The atmosphere was unbelievable. I don’t want to leave, I want to stay here as long as I can just to enjoy the atmosphere.”
Sabalenka cruised into her first Indian Wells Open semifinal, winning 50% of her return points (27/54) and 50% of her break points (4/8). With a record of 16-1, the World No. 2 aspires to linger at the Indian Wells Open until Sunday. However, to achieve that, she must overcome Maria Sakkari in Friday’s semifinal clash.
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Aryna Sabalenka’s next challenge against Maria Sakkari
In the semifinals, Aryna Sabalenka will face the world No.7, Maria Sakkari. To reach the quarterfinals, Sabalenka had to defeat Evgeniya Rodina, Lesia Tsurenko, and Barbora Krejcikova. She faced off against Coco Gauff, another top 10 player, in the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Sakkari beat Shelby Rogers, Anhelina Kalinina, and Karolina Pliskova to earn a spot in the quarterfinals, where she competed against Petra Kvitova.
In their head-to-head record, Sabalenka holds a 4-3 advantage over Sakkari. However, Sakkari won their last meeting at the 2022 WTA Finals in straight sets. In the previous round, Sabalenka exhibited a strong serving performance against Gauff and hit deep groundstrokes, which restricted her opponent’s movement on the court. On the other hand, Sakkari had another impressive comeback victory against Kvitova to secure her place in the semifinals.
Although it looks like Sabalenka should win the match considering her current form, it is understood that Sakkari is no lesser opponent too. On her day she can win against any player on the tour. Overall, it will be an interesting match between these two and a treat to watch for the fans.
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