Sabalenka downs Badosa in Stuttgart to move on to the final

Aryna Sabalenka played a nearly flawless match to take down Paula Badosa 7-6(5) 6-4 and move on to the final of the event.

She played in the final last year as well but lost to Ashleigh Barty and now she will play in it again. This time around she won't have to face Barty but she might face the reigning world number one once again as Iga Swiatek is widely expected to advance to it. Sbalenka played a really great match, it was not perfect but every time she need to come up big, she did.

She had some early match struggles against a very focused Badosa who for the most part controlled the match rather well. The Spaniard served well and did not allow Sabalenka to get into a good rhythm. After missing a few early break chances, Badosa eventually did take the 4-2 lead. At 5-4, she served for the match but lost her serve to extend the opening set.

We went into the tiebreak and early on it was all Badosa. She went up 3-0 but Sabalenka continued fighting and eventually, she got to 4-4. From there she outplayed her opponent to take it 7-5. It was a huge confidence booster for Sabalenka and it proved crucial for the rest of the match. Wonky play lost Sabalenka her serve early in the 2nd but she got it back right away.

After that, she settled into a serving clinic not allowing Badosa much. The Spaniard really struggled to get the ball back into the court, and she failed to use either of the three break points she faced. At 4-5, she allowed Sabalenka her first and the Belarussian took it. A good effort from Badosa but lost every crucial rally in the match.