(Photo credit score: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports)
No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka stormed into her third straight U.S. Open semifinal with a 6-1, 6-4 victory in opposition to No. 23 seed Qinwen Zheng of China on Wednesday in New York.
Next up for the 25-year-old Belarusian is a matchup with Seventeenth-seeded U.S. participant Madison Keys, who downed ninth-seeded Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-4.
Sabalenka has but to drop a set in Flushing Meadows and by no means confronted a break level throughout her 73-minute quarterfinal win in opposition to Zheng.
“I think I definitely played great tennis today,” Sabalenka stated in her on-court interview. “Super happy with the performance. I have myself another opportunity to do better in the semis.”
Sabalenka reached the ultimate 4 in any respect 4 Grand Slam occasions this season, profitable the Australian Open and shedding within the semifinals on the French Open and Wimbledon. Serena Williams was the final girl to make all 4 Grand Slam semifinals in 2016.
Sabalenka began quick in sunny circumstances, profitable 22 of the primary 27 factors to open up a 5-0 lead. She transformed 3 of seven break probabilities, together with the seventh recreation of the second set, to take management.
Zheng, 20, was taking part in in her first main quarterfinal and completed with 13 winners and 16 unforced errors.
Sabalenka misplaced within the semifinals at New York to Leylah Fernandez in 2021 and Iga Swiatek in 2022.
Keys, 28, can be headed to her third U.S. Open semifinal. In her solely profession Grand Slam closing, she misplaced to Sloane Stephens in 2017, and she or he fell to eventual champion Naomi Osaka of Japan within the 2018 semifinals.
Against Vondrousova, Keys received the primary 5 video games to cruise via the primary set. The second set was tighter, with Keys saving 4 break factors to succeed in 4-4, then getting the one service break to go up 5-4. She subsequently closed out the victory on her third match level.
Overall, Keys saved all 9 break factors she confronted whereas changing all three of her break alternatives.
–Field Level Media