Aryna Sabalenka eases past best friend Paula Badosa into third straight Australian Open Final

Aryna Sabalenka is into the Australian Open final again after easing past Paula Badosa on Thursday night in Melbourne. The World No.1 has won the last two editions of the tournament and will now go for a three-peat.

Sabalenka saw off Badosa 6-4, 6-2 in what was a pretty flawless performance taking advantage of an off day from Badosa who seemingly hit her ceiling when beating Coco Gauff last round.

It is usually a tough match up for Badosa who is best friends with Sabalenka off court but one that she has grown into during her resurgence in the past year. But there seems to be no stopping the Belarusian who will face either Iga Swiatek in what would be a blockbuster showdown or Madison Keys.

Keys of course previously reached the final of the Australian Open so will be looking for redemption and to spoil the so-called dream final which we could get on Saturday.

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Completed in just over an hour and 27 minutes, Sabalenka clocked 32 winners despite 21 unforced errors while Badosa's issue came in the fact she hit 15 unforced errors, more than her 11 winners showing the difference between the pair. It was a hotly contested start as Badosa eased into a 2-0 lead with her only break chance of the match but she was soon hit back as Sabalenka turned the tide and led 3-2 suddenly after breaking twice on the spin. She went into a 4-2 lead and Badosa didn't get another chance.

She lost the opening set 6-4 and the second saw an even more emphatic Sabalenka display as she eased into a 3-1 lead and aside from at 5-1, she barely lost a point on serve but never faced a break point importantly. Sabalenka broke twice in the set and went on to seal it 6-2. Nearly as flawless as you can get, the big question is though. Who does she face in the final?

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