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E-mail Xinhua, January 6, 2025
Aryna Sabalenka and Jiri Lehecka got their 2025 seasons off to the perfect start by winning the singles titles at the Brisbane International tennis tournament on Sunday night.
Sabalenka, the world number one, dropped her first set at the key Australian Open warm-up tournament against 107th-ranked Polina Kudermetova, but recovered to win the match 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and 47 minutes.
It extends Sabalenka's winning streak in Australia to 12 matches and means she has won four of the last five tournaments she has entered in the country, including the Australian Open in 2023 and 2024.
Of her 18 career titles, 16 have been won on hard courts.
"I felt all of the support from the very beginning of the week until the very last point. I really appreciate it and that's why I love playing in Australia and in Brisbane," she said after the match.
Sabalenka raced into a 3-1 lead in the first set but Kudermetova, playing in her first career final and her eighth match in Brisbane after coming through qualifying, kept her composure and leveled things at 3-3, before breaking serve again and winning the set.
Kudermetova had another chance to break serve leading 2-1 in the second set but could not capitalize, allowing Sabalenka to level and eventually run away with the match.
The run to the final means the 21-year-old will climb into the top 60 in the rankings.
Both will now head to Melbourne where Sabalenka is aiming to become the first woman since Martina Hingis in the 1990s to win three consecutive Australian Open finals.
In the men's final, world No. 28 Lehecka won his second career title when Reilly Opelka was forced to retire from the men's final due to a back injury when trailing 4-1 after just 13 minutes of play.
"It is never easy to finish a match this way, I know how you feel, Reilly," Lehecka said. "It has been an honor to see you back playing and if your body can take it you will be there for many more years."
It was Lehecka's second straight walkover win, after second seed Grigor Dimitrov had withdrawn from their semifinal on Saturday.
The Czech will rise to 24th in the rankings ahead of the Australian Open.
