Sabalenka’s storybook comeback amazes in Australian Open triumph

The self-titled ‘queen of double faults’ began with that self-inflicted wound but finished with an astounding turnaroundPhotograph: Robert Prange/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Robert Prange/Getty Imagesryna Sabalenka started the final with a double fault and ended on the ground sobbing. It was, in a way, the story of her previous 12 months. Last year, the Belarusian was the self-described “queen of double faults” – a tour-high 440 of them last season.

She became a champion on Saturday because she bested both – and, in turn, Elena Rybakina. She brought herself to heel after losing the first set and after each of the 10 break points she engineered but did not win.When Sabalenka had a first championship point and double-faulted she howled, then pushed back her shoulders and shimmied. Shook it off, reset. It took another three match points to finally get over the line.

The result was deserved. The match felt overwhelming in its potency, pickling the senses and destroying what we thought we knew about the leaders in women’s tennis. At the start of this, the favourite was Iga Swiatek. The form guide had the world No 1 v the rest of the field. Who would challenge her? Jessica Pegula was certainly one, Ons Jabeur another.

There were other possibilities, but Sabalenka and Rybakina were low on the list. That it turned out to be that pairing made for a gripping show of mental and physical mastery, two players with similar skill sets but differing methods of execution.Photograph: David Gray/AFP/Getty Images Rybakina does not look like a power player. The ball does not seem to cop the full brunt of her body and her ball striking is pure in its absence of any other sound. There is no grunt or scream or audible struggle. Rybakina moves like a player who has plenty of time and space, and strikes as if casting a fishing rod.

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