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Sabalenka tees up Ostapenko final in Stuttgart

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3 daysTennis

Aryna Sabalenka will face Jelena Ostapenko in the final of the Stuttgart Open after beating Jasmine Paolini in straight sets on Sunday. 

In a repeat of their Miami Open final-four showdown last month, Sabalenka repeated the trick with a combative 7-5 6-4 victory over her Italian opponent. 

Sabalenka held her nerve to take the first set despite almost throwing away a 5-2 lead, before Paolini started strongly to win the first three games of the second.

But breaks in the fifth and ninth games saw Sabalenka fight back to reach the showpiece match, though the world number one acknowledged the difficulties she had to overcome. 

"She makes me work for every point. It was hard to get the win," said Sabalenka of Paolini. "I was just trying to stay aggressive, to put as much pressure on her."

Ostapenko, meanwhile, enjoyed a far easier route to the final, defeating Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4 6-4 in one hour and 29 minutes. 

She built on her sixth-straight victory over Iga Swiatek with a powerful display, reaching her first clay-court final since her Roland-Garros success back in 2017. 

Data Debrief: Fourth time lucky for Sabalenka?

Sabalenka's victory saw her reach her fourth final in Stuttgart, though she is yet to claim the title, having lost to Ash Barty in 2021 and Swiatek in both 2022 and 2023.

But she comes into her latest final with confidence. Since 2000, Sabalenka is only the second women's player to win all her first five seasonal matches against opponents in the top 10 in straight sets, after Serena Williams in 2014 (completed matches only).

However, she faces a stern test in Ostapenko, who, with her victory, equalled Petra Kvitova (seven in 2019) for the most appearances taken to reach their first final in women's singles at the Stuttgart Open since the inception of the tournament in 1978.