Qinwen Zheng, the Chinese youngster who reached her first Grand Slam final, failed to create history when she was thrashed by Aryna Sabalenka at the Australian Open final.
At the Rod Laver Arena on Saturday (January 27), Sabalenka lifted her second Grand Slam title after winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-2.
Following the loss, Zheng received some words of wisdom from Novak Djokovic. The 24-time Grand Slam champion took to his Instagram to post a story and praised the 21-year-old for having an amazing tournament.
Amazing tournament. More to come. Djokovic wrote on his Instagram Story
After praising Zheng, Djokovic wrote a congratulatory note to Aryna Sabalenka, who defended her title. On Instagram, the Serb reposted the Australian Open’s post and simply wrote: “ Congratulations.” Sabalenka replied by writing “Thank you” on her Instagram Story.
Though Sabalenka defended her Australian Open crown, the Serb was denied the final victory in Melbourne after Italian rising star Jannik Sinner defeated him in four sets 6-1, 6-2, 6-7(6-8), 6-3. Djokovic called this match one of his worst at a Grand Slam event. Notably, the 10-time Australian Open champion also did not score a single break point in the match.
That defeat was his first at the Australian Open since 2018, and it came after 2,195 days. Djokovic ruled in Australia by continuously winning the trophy since 2018 but the change came in 2024 when Sinner defeated Russia’s Daniil Medvedev in the final 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3.
Aryna Sabalenka wanted to prove her consistency by winning another Grand Slam
Aryna Sabalenka played her third Grand Slam final at the 2024 Australian Open. She also became the first woman to reach six straight semifinals at Grand Slam events since Serena Williams, after beating Barbora Krejcikova in the quarterfinals.
Also, all of Sabalenka’s victories came in straight sets in the tournament. After the championship match, Sabalenka said she wanted to prove her consistency by winning more major titles.
It's been on my mind that I didn't want to be that player who wins it and then disappears. I just wanted to show that I'm able to be consistently there, and I'm able to win another one. Sabalenka said at the press conference
Sabalenka will remain in second place in the rankings despite the victory. Poland’s Iga Swiatek still tops the rankings despite getting knocked out of the tournament by Linda Noskova in the third round.
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