Sabalenka makes quick work of Krejcikova en route to US Open semis

Thursday, 9 September 2021 01:20 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

NEW YORK (REUTERS): World number two Aryna Sabalenka bulldozed her way past Barbora Krejcikova 6-1, 6-4 on Tuesday to reach the US Open semi-final for the first time.

Sabalenka had three double faults in the first game at Arthur Ashe Stadium but still managed to hold serve, then came back in the second game to break a listless Krejcikova, who had just five winners in the first set and struggled badly with her serve.

Krejcikova, who captured her maiden major at Roland Garros this year, saw her serve broken at the start of the second and while she got a bit of her spark back as the match went on it was too little, too late.

Belarusian Sabalenka, who reached the semi-final at Wimbledon, won eight of the first 10 points in the second set and did not face a single break point after fending off five of the six she faced in the first set.

She closed out the match after one hour and 26 minutes with an ace and beamed at the cheering New York crowd.