A day before her 25th birthday, the 2021 Mutua Madrid Open champion Aryna Sabalenka returned to the final of the WTA 1000 tournament with a 6-4 6-1 victory over Maria Sakkari in the Manolo Santana Stadium.
In the pair’s ninth career meeting, Sakkari recovered from 0-3 down to tie the first set at 3-3, but Sabalenka recorded another break of serve to clinch the first set. The second-seeded Belarusian continued the momentum, dropping just one game as she raced through the second set.