Sabalenka breezes into third consecutive Wuhan Open semi-final

Aryna Sabalenka continued her Wuhan Open dominance as she reached her third consecutive semi-final at the competition with a straight sets victory over Magdalena Frech.

Sabalenka needed just over an hour to down her Polish opponent, emerging a 6-2 6-2 victor in a largely one-sided contest.

The Belarusian laid down a marker of her intentions early on, serving a love game in the opener before quickly racing into a 4-0 lead.

Frech would get her first point on the board in the fifth game, but the damage had been done in the opening exchanges as Sabalenka saw out her serve to take the advantage.

The world number two threatened to end the contest in double quick time after she claimed a 3-0 lead in the second set, only for Frech to respond and close to within one game.

However, Sabalenka held firm to secure the win, sealing the triumph with her third match point as she extended her winning streak to 15 matches in Wuhan.

Sabalenka will now face Coco Gauff for a place in the final in what will be the pair's first encounter since the Belarusian's semi-final win at the Australian Open earlier this year.

3rd consecutive #WuhanOpen semifinal for @SabalenkaA pic.twitter.com/BnCyoxZ20E

— wta (@WTA) October 11, 2024

Data Debrief: Sabalenka continues Wuhan love story

Sabalenka is only the second player after Ashleigh Barty to reach the semi-finals of the Wuhan Open in all their first three appearances at this tournament.

Only Serena Williams (21 in Rome, 20 in Miami and 19 in Madrid) has won more consecutive matches in a single city hosting a WTA-1000 event than Sabalenka in Wuhan (15) since the format’s introduction in 2009.