Brisbane International 2025: Aryna Sabalenka kicks off campaign, makes a strong statement against Renata Zarazua

Aryna Sabalenka began the 2025 season at the Brisbane International with an impressive victory over Mexico's Renata Zarazúa. The World No. 1 took control of the match from the start, and despite a shaky serving game, she dominated the rest of the match, winning 6-4, 6-0.

The 3-time Grand Slam champion started strong with her serve, breaking early in the first game. Within minutes, Sabalenka was up 3-0 and was impressive on her serve, just as she was in the latter months of 2024.

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Zarazúa (No. 75) held her serve well, with an 88% first serve rate, winning 65% of them, which allowed her to play with relative ease on her service games. However, she struggled to find answers to Sabalenka’s short points, and the Belarusian began to assert dominance on the court.

The Mexican wasted a break point in the third game before breaking in a hesitant service game by Sabalenka in the fifth. Zarazúa broke cleanly and leveled the set at 4-4, with both players still having chances. However, the World No. 1 became more comfortable on the court and broke again to win the set 6-4.

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With more confidence in the second set, Sabalenka showed her class in the important points. While Zarazúa had her chances, she could never capitalize, with Sabalenka saving two break points early in the match and converting 3 out of 3 break opportunities. The Belarusian finished the second set in flawless fashion, 6-0, after 29 minutes, winning 74% of the points played.

In the Round of 16, Sabalenka will face 15th seed Yulia Putintseva (No. 27), who defeated McCartney Kessler (No. 67) easily, 6-2, 7-5. The two have faced each other twice before, with a 1-1 record, though Putintseva's win came back in 2019. Their last meeting was just a few months ago, where Sabalenka won in the third round of the Wuhan Open, a tournament she eventually won.

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