Fifth seed Aryna Sabalenka powered past surprise semifinalist Magda Linette 7-6(1) 6-2 to reach her maiden Grand Slam final at the 2023 Australian Open.
Polish world No.45 Linette, who had never before been past the third round of a Grand Slam, started the match with a 2-0 lead, but Sabalenka quickly got the encounter back on serve and played a flawless, fearless tiebreak to win her 19th consecutive set this season.
The 24-year-old Sabalenka raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set. Linette did give the Belarusian a hard time by saving three match points on her serve to stay in Rod Laver Arena a bit longer, however, it was evident that the encounter wouldn’t suddenly turn into a nail-biter.