(Rank/Seed)
So, the final pits (4/4) Li Na against (21/20) Dominika Cibulkova in a final no one would have predicted.
Li is 31 years old and has already mentioned retirement in the near future, so this could be her last hurrah. Li has a losing record in finals (8-11) and in major finals (1-2), losing both times at the Australian Open despite having won the first sets in 2011 and 2013. However, unlike her opponent she has obviously been here before and knows how to win a major, having won the French Open in 2011. Her form couldn't be much better having reached the WTA Championships final at the end of last year, defended Shenzhen almost 3 weeks ago and is now into her second straight Australian Open final. Aside from being one point away from going out against Safarova in the 3rd round, the rest has been pretty plain sailing as she's looked better with each round since that time.
Cibulkova is a 24 year old surprise package and I mean that quite literally too, considering at 5" 3 she is one of the shortest major finalists in the Open Era! She also has a losing record in finals (3-5), her biggest final to date coming way back in 2008 at the Canadian Open. Her biggest title to date was her win in Stanford last year, an event worth just under $796,000, so this is a different challenge all together, one in which she has nothing to lose. Previously, she had never gone beyond the 4th round here, having reached that stage just once before in 2009. Her recent form indicated that she would be dangerous here, after reaching the quarters of Brisbane (losing to Serena Williams) and losing a tough first round in Sydney to Kerber. Apart from her come from behind win against Sharapova, the rest has been plain sailing as she's dropped only 15 games in the other 5 matches, beating the likes of Schiavone, Voegele, Suarez Navarro, Halep and Radwanska!
Li has never lost to Cibulkova, leading 4-0. The last two times they've played, (the last being at Toronto 2013) Cibulkova has taken Li to a tiebreak in one set, but neither were as close as their meeting in Madrid 2010, where Li won 7-5 in the third. So, Cibulkova always tests Li but will she handle the pressure well? It will be a slugfest of a match where unforced error counts will prove decisive. Li appears much calmer under the influence of Rodriguez and seems to believe that it will be three times a charm. On the other hand, Cibulkova has believed in herself all fortnight and will presume herself capable of causing another upset. I still think Li will win in straight sets though.
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