Paula Badosa expects Aryna Sabalenka to push the boat out after the Belarusian offered her a shopping trip to apologise for ending her Australian Open hopes on Thursday. (Full Coverage | More Tennis News)
Saba♕lenka is into a third straight final at the Melbourne Park slam after beating Badosa in straight sets in the las🍷t four, with Madison Keys awaiting her in Saturday's showpiece.
The two✃-time de♏fending champion could become just the sixth woman to win three straight Australian Open titles in the Open Era.
Martina Hingis (𓄧1997 to 1999), Margaret Court (1969 to 1971), Evonne Goolagong (1974 to 1976), Steffi Graf (1988 to 1990) and Monica Seles (1991 to 1993) are the only female players to have previously achieved that feat.
Sabalenka had to see off her close friend Badosa to return to the final, with t෴he Spaniard sayinౠg after the match there was nothing she could do to counter the Belarusian's power.
Speak🦩ing in her on-court interview after the match, Sabalenka said she would offer to take Badosa shopping by way of a🌄pology.
When asked what she would like Sabalen𒅌ka to buy her in a post-match press conference, Badosa laughed: "Something really expensive ⛎then!
"It's got to 🥀be something really expensive because I think now she's doubled her pr♊ize money, so she won't have a problem with that!"
This was Badosa's best-ever run at a grand slam, with the Spaniard having previously fallen in the quarter-finals at t𒉰he 2021 French Open🦩 and last year's US Open.
