Aryna Sabalenka has shaken off the cobwebs from Toronto and is in full flight once again in Cincinnati.
The Belarusian freight train is picking up serious speed with Sabalenka bulldozing past the world number one in her typical boisterous style.
Cincinnati is seeing the Sabalenka we are far more familiar with, after a premature exit to the returning Amanda Anisimova in Toronto increasingly starts to look like a blip.
Despite the scoreline of 6-3, 6-3, the two sets felt rather different with the second far more complicated than the first.
In just over half an hour, the Belarusian clinched the first set, taking real advantage of the slower Iga Swiatek second serve.
The second however took over 80 minutes, with Swiatek saving nine match points before the hope of a comeback was finally stifled.
Sabalenka was quizzed after her game on how she managed to beat the world number one who has gotten the better of her twice already this year in the finals in Rome and Madrid.
Aryna Sabalenka shares how it felt during the tense final moments of her win over Iga Swiatek
The Belarusian, who will replace Coco Gauff as the world number two at the end of the tournament, remained broadly composed throughout the dying moments despite squandering nine match points,
With Sabalenka having bossed the match all the way until those last few points, she was asked what was going through her mind when Swiatek was trying to claw her way back.
Sabalenka replied: “That was definitely the toughest moment of the match.
“I kept telling myself, ‘she’s world number one. She’s gonna keep fighting and trying her best. You gotta stay aggressive. You gotta put her under pressure. You’ve gotta play your tennis and just go for it.’ That was kind of my mentality in the tough moments.”
Preparing to face Jessica Pegula in the final, Sabalenka will have another difficult mountain to climb, with the American currently on a nine-match winning streak after defending her Canadian Open title last week.
Will Aryna Sabalenka be able to beat Jessica Pegula?
Pegula seems to be having a Gauff 2023 style summer with wins and trophies continuing to come her way.
However what might be worth pointing out is Pegula’s lack of top level opponents so far in her nine consecutive wins.
She played nobody inside the top 20 during her winning run in Toronto and again in Cincinnati has made it to the final without facing a player within 20 ranking spots of her.
Sabalenka on the other hand just bulldozed past the world number one and despite a rockier campaign in Canada, is looking back to her best.
While Pegula won their last encounter at the WTA Finals, their last match since 2022, Sabalenka has previously emerged the victor in four of their six battles.
It feels like Pegula is at the perfect moment to disrupt the Sabalenka power, but with the speed of the courts in Cincinnati, it’s going to be a tall order for the American to keep a lid on this one.
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