New world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka has made a triumphant start to her WTA Finals campaign after beating seventh-ranked Zheng Qinwen 6-3 6-4.
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After beating the Chinese in the Wuhan final three weeks ago in her last tournament before Riyadh, the Belarusian managed to again get the job done against the 22-year-old and improve to a 5-0 record in their head-to-head.
While the three-time Grand Slam champion again didn't allow Zheng to clinch her first win in their meetings, it was all but an easy day at the office for the three-time Grand Slam champion.
Throughout the match, there wasn't much separating the two since both players were serving pretty well. But the only difference was that the world No. 1 took the small chances and openings when she had them.
How Sabalenka beat Zheng?
Early on, the Belarusian faced a break point in the third game but managed to save it. A couple of games later, she earned her first break points in the sixth game before serving out for the first set four games later.
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In the second set, the lone break points were seen in the ninth game - the Sabalenka had them - and realized to go 5-4 up before wrapping things up in the following game.
During the second set, Zheng lost just seven points on her serve. But unfortunately for the Paris Olympics gold medalist, that one bad service game was too costly.
Following her opening win, the 2022 WTA Finals runner-upadmitted that her goal for Riyadh is to win her maiden title at the season-ending tournament.
It would mean everything to me. Its one of my dreams. I really worked hard the past years since the very beginning of my career. I really hope Ill be able to hold this beautiful trophy one day," the 26-year-old said.
In her second group-stage match, Sabalenka will play against the winner of the match between Elena Rybakina and Jasmine Paolini.
