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Aryna Sabalenka doing a runway walk with her 2024 Australian Open trophy has sparked delight among tennis fans.
Sabalenka secured a dominant 6-3, 6-2 victory over Zheng Qinwen in the Melbourne Major final on Saturday (January 27). With the win, the Belarusian became the first woman in a decade to win consecutive Grand Slam titles Down Under.
The road to the title presented challenges for Sabalenka, who faced reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff and former French Open winner Barbora Krejcikova. However, the hard-hitting Belarusian eased past her opponents, cruising to the title without dropping a set through her seven matches.
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Sabalenka was ecstatic after winning her second Grand Slam title. While returning from the court, she was seen confidently doing a runway walk with her trophy.
Understandably, her gesture delighted fans on social media. One fan reckoned seeing some camp from the Belarusian besides introverts on the women's tour was refreshing.
"After so many dominant introverts, it's nice to see some camp back on top of the women's game," the fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Another fan labeled Sabalenka a "queen" for the way she walked, adding that she deserved the title.
"Walking like a queen. She deserves it," the fan's tweet read.
A third user credited Aryna Sabalenka for being one of the most "lively and lovely" tennis players.
"One of the most lively and lovely tennis players," they wrote.
Here are a few other fan reactions:
"I'm really speechless" - Aryna Sabalenka on winning back-to-back Australian Open titles
Aryna Sabalenka was lost for words as she reflected on winning the Australian Open title for the second time in a row.
During her on-court interview, the Belarusian admitted that she couldn't picture herself winning the trophy Down Under one more time after her triumph in 2023.
"It's been an amazing couple of weeks. I couldn't imagine myself lifting this trophy one more time and it's an unbelievable feeling right now. I'm really speechless," Sabalenka said.
Sabalenka went on to shower praise on her opponent Zheng Qinwen for being an "incredible player" and expressed confidence in the Chinese reaching and winning more finals in the future.
"I know this feeling, it's tough to lose in a final but you are such an incredible player, such a young girl. You are going to be in many more finals and you are going to get it," the Belarusian added.
Aryna Sabalenka has now closed the gap with Iga Swiatek to 865 points on top of the rankings. Meanwhile, Qinwen's fairy tale run in Melbourne saw her move eight spots up the leaderboard to No.7.
