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E-mail Xinhua, January 15, 2025
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka was challenged by Jessica Bouzas Maneiro but won her second round match at the Australian Open on Wednesday.
Sabalenka beat the 54th-ranked Spaniard 6-3, 7-5 in one hour and 34 minutes at Melbourne Park to continue her push for a historic third consecutive Australian Open title.
Aryna Sabalenka celebrates a point during the women's singles 2nd round match between Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and Jessica Bouzas Maneiro of Spain at Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, Jan. 15, 2025. (Photo by Hu Jingchen/Xinhua)
It was Sabalenka's ninth straight win at the Australian Open in straight sets and 14th win in a row in Australia.
The Belarusian was pushed hard by Bouzas Maneiro, who led 5-2 in the second set and had an opportunity at 5-3 to serve it out to force a third.
In response, Sabalenka took her play to another level to win five straight games and finish the match.
"She played incredible tennis today, and it was a really tough one," Sabalenka said of her 22-year-old opponent after the match. "It's a good challenge to have and I love it. I have to play better, so this is the way I improve my game."
Trailing 5-3 in the second set with Bouzas Maneiro serving, Sabalenka held her nerve and drew errors from the Spanish player.
Sabalenka again broke serve with the scores tied 5-5 to give herself a chance to serve for the match and brought up two match points.
Both were denied, however, by crosscourt winners from Bouzas Maneiro - one each off her forehand and backhand.
In the following point, Bouzas Maneiro had Sabalenka on the run behind the baseline before the three-time Grand Slam champion produced her best shot of the match - a crosscourt forehand winner - to bring up a third match point, which she converted with a powerful serve.
Sabalenka will play Denmark's Clara Tauson in the third round.
