Australian Open women’s singles final preview: How to watch, follow, stream

Who: Aryna Sabalenka vs Madison Keys
What: Australian Open women’s singles final
Where: Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, Australia
When: 7:30pm (08:30 GMT) connected Saturday
Follow Al Jazeera’s unrecorded build-up followed by our substance and photograph watercourse of the match.

The irresistible unit of Aryna Sabalenka meets the unbreakable tone of Madison Keys successful an Australian Open women’s singles last connected Saturday that promises to beryllium a thunderous slugfest.

Defending champion Sabalenka was hailed by beaten semifinalist Paula Badosa arsenic being truthful bully it was “like she’s playing a PlayStation” aft dishing retired a merciless straight-sets bludgeoning to her bully friend.

The never-say-die American Keys, who volition crook 30 adjacent month, saved 8 interruption points and a lucifer constituent successful a nerve-shredding last acceptable against Iga Swiatek that went each the mode to a 10-point tiebreak.

“Definitely immoderate big-hitting. I deliberation that is going to happen,” the almighty 19th effect Keys predicted of the final. “Not a batch of agelong points.”

What is the head-to-head grounds betwixt the women’s singles finalists?

Keys and Sabalenka person met 5 times previously, with the Belarusian winning 4 of them, astir precocious connected the Beijing hard courts past year. Keys’s sole triumph came connected writer successful Berlin successful 2021.

“She’s playing unthinkable tennis,” said Sabalenka. “She’s a precise assertive player, serving well, moving well. She’s successful large shape. It’s going to beryllium a large battle. We had a batch of large battles successful the past.”

Aryna Sabalenka practises connected tribunal during time 13 up of the Australian Open last [Quinn Rooney/Getty Images]

What would an Australian Open threepeat mean for Sabalenka?

Sabalenka volition stay satellite fig 1 aft Swiatek’s decision portion Keys is guaranteed to beryllium backmost successful the apical 10 for the archetypal clip since 2019 successful the caller rankings.

Both players are successful rampant signifier and connected 11-match triumph streaks aft winning their respective warm-up events. Sabalenka, the modern-day queen of Melbourne Park, has won 20 consecutive matches connected the celebrated bluish hard courts.

If she makes it 21 it volition spot her implicit a treble not witnessed this century. The past idiosyncratic to execute the three-peat successful Melbourne was Martina Hingis successful 1999 and lone 4 different women person done it – Margaret Court, Evonne Goolagong, Steffi Graf and Monica Seles.

Three successful a enactment is simply a uncommon accomplishment astatine immoderate Slam and has lone been done this period connected 3 occasions.

At Roland Garros, Justine Henin completed the treble successful 2007 and Iga Swiatek emulated it past year. Serena Williams won 23 Grand Slam singles titles but lone managed a hat-trick once, astatine the US Open from 2012-14.

Madison Keys of the United States overcame Iga Swiatek of Poland successful the semifinal [Hannah Peters/Getty Images]

How galore Grand Slam finals has Keys reached?

Sabalenka volition beryllium successful her 5th Slam final, Keys successful lone her second, having mislaid the 2017 US Open last 6-3, 6-0 to Sloane Stephens. “I’ve evidently thought of that lucifer endlessly for the past 8 years,” said Keys, who broke down successful tears aft beating Swiatek successful a seesawing contention that lasted 2hr 35min.

“I was truthful consumed with being tense and the infinitesimal that I ne'er truly gave myself a accidental to really play. You tin besides play tennis done that, I deliberation is thing that I’ve been moving truly hard on.

“That’s 1 of the biggest lessons that I tin instrumentality from that US Open final.”

What’s the prize money?

The full prize wealth is $59.8m, a 12 percent summation from 2024.

The Australian Open volition manus retired a $2.16m reward for singles champions and men’s and women’s doubles champion teams volition person $502,000.

The breakdown successful the singles class (men and women) is:

Champions: $2.16m
Runners-up: $1.17m
Semifinalists: $0.68m
Quarterfinalists: $412,242
Round of 16: $260,363
Third round: $179,759
Second round: $123,974
First round: $81,822

Aryna Sabalenka is targeting a 3rd consecutive Australian Open rubric [Quinn Rooney/Getty Images]

Where to watch, travel and watercourse the Australian Open tennis Grand Slam?

Al Jazeera volition supply unrecorded substance and photograph sum of the men’s and women’s singles finals.

The authoritative broadcasters of the Australian Open are:

Africa: beIN Sports and SuperSport.
Europe: Eurosport, SRG SSR.
Asia Pacific & Oceania: ESPN, Tennis Channel, beIN Sports, CCTV, iQIYI, GDTV, WOWOW, Nine, Stan Sport, Digicel, CJ ENM, TDM, ESPN International, SKY, Sportcast and K-Plus.
India & subcontinent: Sony Sports Network.
Latin America & Caribbean: ESPN International.
Middle East: beIN Sports.
North America: ESPN, TSN, RDS and Tennis Channel.
Central Asia: Sony Sports Network and Eurosport.

Source

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Al Jazeera and quality agencies