The Ostrava Open 2020 came to a grand conclusion and it was a battle of the Belarusians in the finals! Victoria Azarenka took on her compatriot Aryna Sabalenka in a monumental clash at the Czech WTA tournament. At the end of the day, it was Sabalenka who lifted her second crown of the year.

World No.13 Aryna Sabalenka started off the match in emphatic fashion by sending in a thundering forehand to open her account. This set the tone for most of the first set as she easily claimed it 6-2.

Both athletes are masters when it comes to playing from the baseline. Sabalenka got the rewarding points on a few occasions when she varied her returns to tire out Azarenka. Here’s a few examples of the same!

However, Azarenka, who reached the finals of the 2020 US Open, tried to fight back in the opening set. But she was massively overpowered by her compatriot. Her juicy drop shots did the tricks on certain plays, but it wasn’t enough for her to win the first set. 

Victoria Azarenka took a medical timeout while trailing in the second set

The opening set ended in despair for the two-time Grand Slam champion, and the subsequent one also began on a rocky note. The match began tilting in the favor of Sabalenka as she delivered extraordinary service games after the other. 

Azarenka had troubles early in the second set and required a temporary halt to the match. She used her medical timeout and a doctor came up to examine the 31-year-old’s fitness.

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She had to take a tablet, after which the physio offered to give her a quick head massage. There were speculations about a possible migraine, but she bounced back on the court to fight until the last point! 

As mentioned above, Sabalenka destroyed her opponent with her first serve and gained 73% of points from them. She was swift in breaking Azarenka’s serve too as the five break points in the match proved to be vital in her victory. On the other hand, Victoria Azarenka only managed to win three service games in the entire match which caused her downfall. 

Sabalenka did not wait too long to capitalize on her opponent’s shortcomings. She replicated her fine first set performance to win the second with the same scoreline. The match ended 6-2, 6-2, in favor of the 22-year-old after dominating her more experienced opponent.

With this win, Sabalenka also takes the lead in the head-to-head meeting between the two! This is the first time that an All-Belarusian WTA final is taking place. Furthermore, Sabalenka is now ahead with two victories compared to Azarenka’s one in their meetings. 

WATCH: Victoria Azarenka Wins the Weirdest Point of the Year