World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka had all the answers against No. 16 Mirra Andreeva, winning 6-3, 6-2 to return to the Brisbane International final. The victory is the two-time Australian Open champion’s 40th victory on the continent.

Sabalenka won the 2023 tournament when it was held in Adelaide and finished second to Elena Rybakina last year.

Brisbane: Draw | Scores | Order of play

Sabalenka reached her first final of the new season without losing a set. On the way to the final she picked up victories over Renata Zarazua, Yulia Putintseva, Marie Bouzkova and Andreeva. To defeat Andreeva, Sabalenka saved all eight break points she faced, ending the teenager’s hopes of an upset.

“For me it’s always the same tactic: stay aggressive and put a lot of pressure on my opponent,” said Sabalenka. “I’m really happy that I was able to play such aggressive tennis against Mirra. It seems like everything worked out really well for me.”

“She is a great young player. I’m pretty sure she’ll be in the top 10 soon and for a long time.”

Andreeva was playing in her second WTA 500 semifinal, having made it for the first time in Ningbo last fall. Andreeva made it clear from the start what she intended to do, earning three break point chances in Sabalenka’s opening game. But as she would prove throughout the 90-minute match, the world No. 1 has already honed her ability to give her best when she needs it.

Sabalenka bravely thwarted Andreeva’s chances and continued to do so, securing a fourth break point to keep the score at 4-3. There, Andreeva let her guard down and played an errant game to hand Sabalenka the only break of the first set.

With a leap in hand, Sabalenka opened her shoulders and increased her speed. Sabalenka broke Andreeva twice more in the second set and secured the win.

Sabalenka finished the match with 26 winners and 22 unforced errors. Andreeva more than held her own, scoring 23 goals with 26 unforced errors. But the youngest couldn’t overcome her odds of 0 to 8 on break point chances.

Sabalenka will face No. 107 Polina Kudermetova, who made it through qualifying and reached her first WTA final. The 21-year-old continued her successful conclusion to the 2024 season, in which she reached the quarter-finals in Seoul and the semi-finals in Merida.

After successfully qualifying, Kudermetova defeated Wang Xinyu, Liumila Samsonova, number 3 seed Daria Kasatkina, Ashlyn Krueger and Anhelina Kalinina to reach the biggest final of her career. On Saturday, Kudermetova prevailed with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Kalinina.