Qinwen Zheng will be hoping this is just the first of many, but her dream of winning a Grand Slam title did not come true today.
She met a formidable performer in Sabalenka, who just had to much for her to deal with.
The champion was gracious in victory and said she felt Zheng will win plenty of titles herself in career to come.
This stadium could be renamed as it has become a home from home for Aryna Sabalenka.
She a consecutive win in Melbourne, taking the title without losing a single set in the process.
The Belarusian becomes only the fifth player to do so.
She joins Ash Barty, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Lindsay Davenport are women to achieve this feat.
Aryna Sabalenka seals a win with a convincing 6-3 6-2 two sets win over Qinwen Zheng.
The world number two put the pressure on from the off, breaking her opponent immediately.
From that point onwards, Zheng was on the back foot and Sabalenka did not take her foot off the gas.
This is why she is currently the best player in the world.
They play 'staying alive' by the Bee Gees in between games which seems really apt for Zheng.
Sabalenka is now serving for the match.
She races into a 40-0 lead with three match points, surely this is the moment she was dreaming of last night.
The nerves seem to be there as she sends two shots wide of the base line to bring Zheng back to 40-30.
Before we know it, the game is back to deuce after a great drop shot by Zheng.
Zheng is making Sabalenka work for this win as she pulls it back to deuce from match point once again before putting the pressure right on with a break point.
Sabalenka lets out a huge roar as she wins the point to take herself to championship point once again.
She plays a forehand return across court to seal the victory.
Zheng has to serve to stay in the match now.
She plays some good shots to win the first two points before Sabalenka pulls one back.
A return goes deep, giving Zheng two game points.
She holds her serve to make Sabalenka work for this win.
Zheng makes a brilliant start to the game, getting into a 30-0 lead.
Sabalenka seems to thrive on pressure and pulls it back to 30-30.
A deep, hard serve wins another points to put her a point away from holding another service game and she duly delivers.
She is now one game away from the title.
Zheng is the only player to serve a double fault in this game and they are coming back to haunt her.
She has to dig deep and a great return on her second serve wrong foots her opponent to take the point.
Drop shots are coming into Zheng's game and testing Sabalenka.
Sabalenka is returning deep and pulls the game back to deuce.
Zheng serves a double fault, the second of this game, putting Sabalenka in a break point positon.
Aryna Sabalenka plays an amazing drop shot to break the serve.
Sabalenka starts strongly but in the second point, Zheng returns a first serve brilliantly.
The game goes one way, then the other but the big Sabalenka serve is always a problem to any player.
She goes on to hold her serve and take a commanding lead in the second set.
Zheng needs to hold her serve to stay in this match.
She manages to get into a two game point situation but Sabalenka returns perfectly to leave Zheng a spectator as the ball passes her.
The pressure continues as Sabalenka pulls it back to deuce.
Just as Zheng is about to serve there is some disturbance in the crowd and the individual is escorted out by security.
Zheng takes it all in her stride as she holds her serve.
Zheng is not giving up the ghost just yet.
She fights back against the Sabalenka serve to get to 30-30.
Sabalenka shows no mercy however and wins the next two points to go into a two game lead.
Zheng manages to put the first set out of her mind as she continues serving well.
Then a double fault allows Sabalenka right back into the game at 30-30.
Zheng puts a deep first serve in but Sabalenka's return is just truly world class and unreturnable.
Another double fault gifts an early break to Sabalenka.
Sabalenka starts the game with a deep serve which is hard to return.
Zheng manages to start working the Belarusian, getting her moving around the court.
She has a chance as a return pops up but sends it wide of the line.
Sabalenka has two set points on her serve but Zheng manages to pull a point back with a great forehand return.
Try and she might, Zheng cannot stop the juggernaut that is Sabalenka as she claims the first set.
Aryna Sabalenka is just growing in confidence now.
She has her game so well planned out for her opponent.
Against the serve, she races into a position of three set points.
Zheng cannot get her first serve in but manages to pull an ace out of the bag with her second.
From nowhere, Zheng finds her game and brings it back to deuce.
The game swings one way and then the other but Zheng manages to hold her serve.
Sabalenka is really utilising her wide serve well here.
It is crazy to think that earlier in her career she struggled so much with her serve and constantly had double faults.
Zheng is struggling to find a way to return her serve.
Sabalenka takes herself one game away from the first set.
When Zheng does not get her first serve in, Sabalenka is just waiting for the ball to dispatch it.
Zheng has a lot of support here in Melbourne but they are not having much to cheer at the moment.
However, some deep serves by Zheng, followed by an ace wins the game for the world number 12.
Great reply by the world number two.
Her big serves target some body shots to Zheng and the Chinese star just cannot find the returns.
Even on her second serve, Sabalenka's accuracy wins her points.
She takes a commanding first set lead, again dropping only a single point in her serve.
Zheng tries to force her way back into this set with a brilliant service game.
She wins without dropping a point, taking her aces for the tournament to 49.
Sabalenka had no answer to Zheng in that one.
Great reply by Zheng who gets her game going and finds herself with three breaks points after racing into forty-love lead against the serve.
Sabalenka is never going to make anything easy for her opponent and continues with her big hits to win the next three points to tie the game up at deuce.
She holds her serve brilliantly when she looked destined to be broken after the first three points of the game.
Sabalenka shows that she is not just about her big serve.
Even when Zheng gets her first serve in, the deep forehand shots by her opponent force her into errors.
Aryna Sabalenka breaks Zheng's serve, only dropping a single point.
Aryna Sabalenka starts with a strong service game.
Forcing Qinwen Zeng on the back foot with her huge serve.
The Belarusian wins the game without dropping a single point.
Both players are out on court and going through their warm-up.
This is the final everyone has been waiting for.
Zheng needs to overcome the Sabalenka serve to dtand any chance of taking the Grand Slam title.
Aryna Sabalenka is fancied to get over the mental hurdle of defending her Australian Open crown in Melbourne.
She has only lost 16 games of tennis on her way to the Grand Slam final.
Having struggled in semi-finals before, she came back from a slight wobble to beat teenage sensation Gauff.
We could see another final where power is needed over finesse against an attacking Zheng.
She has nonetheless fully merited her arrival in the showpiece to back up her showing at Flushing Meadows last summer.
I believe in the destiny. I try to not let other things affect me, even if destiny. You know, when everything is working well, I believe in the destiny. But if the destiny doesn't go on my side, I don't believe that at all. Only depends where destiny goes.
Qinwen Zheng
Aryna Sabalenka is the first woman to reach back-to-back finals since Ons Jabeur at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2022.
She is fine form and looking to get back to the sort of form that saw her as the world number one.
If she can win the final without dropping a set, she will put the icing on the cake to a phenomenal 2024 Australian Open.