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Sabalenka opened with two straight aces. She won the first six points, and though Pegula held for 1-all, it was clear from the start that Sabalenka was thoroughly in control. From one point to another, she ran Pegula corner to corner, sending missiles from each side, firing big serves, drilling deep and hard returns. Sabalenka attributed her fine play today to the work she’s put in to improve her movement. “When you can move well,” she said, “you can hit hard.”
To watch Sabalenka in full flight is remarkable. The temptation is to think she is, to use a familiar phrase, “going for it.” But is that accurate when a player has been taught and trained to hit the ball a certain way? Did Monica Seles “go for it” or did she merely execute, as surely as a Sampras flat serve or a Serena Williams backhand return?
Meanwhile, the court looked like a hill for Pegula. The first set had flown by in 25 minutes. Versus a free swinger like Sabalenka, the hope is to weather the storm and keep the ball in play just long and proficiently enough to extract a few errors and chip away at her confidence. Once upon a time, this was a reasonably effective clay court gambit.
But in the contemporary tennis world, clay court tennis tilts less around these trench-like maneuvers. The name of the game is racquet head speed—the kind of finishing power that dictates rallies wire-to-wire. Again and again, Sabalenka barely gave Pegula time to think. Up against such power and depth, Pegula’s flat strokes began to betray her. With Pegula serving at 2-all, Sabalenka broke serve, and at 2-4, earned the insurance break with a net cord winner. Serving at 5-2, 30-30, Sabalenka tore two pages from the Sampras playbook: back-to-back aces.
Next up for Sabalenka is Elise Mertens, upset winner today over third-seeded Simona Halep. They’ve played one another six times, Sabalenka taking four. The two are also doubles partners, earlier this year winning the Australian Open. It will be interesting to see how Mertens seeks to apply pressure to an opponent she knows so well, likely with a wide range of tactics. “On the court, we are opponent and it’s different,” said Sabalenka. “Off the court, we are friends. She’s a great player.”
As for Sabalenka, her response to pressure boils down to two words: keep swinging.