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Muguruza demolishes Rybarikova to reach 2nd Wimbledon final

REUTERS/Toby Melville / Action Images

Garbine Muguruza is headed to the Wimbledon final for the second time in the past three years.

Muguruza brought Magdalena Rybarikova's surprise run to a screeching halt in the semis Thursday, beating the 87th-ranked Slovak 6-1, 6-1 in just 65 minutes.

Rybarikova had used her craft, guile, and variety to reach the final four of the tournament, at which she'd previously lost in the first round in eight of her nine main-draw appearances. She'd knocked off title favorite Karolina Pliskova and grass-loving fireballer CoCo Vandeweghe along the way, but her trickery didn't flummox Muguruza the way it had Rybarikova's previous opponents.

The Spaniard was on top of every ball, adapting fluidly to the different paces and spins thrown her way. She crept forward at every opportunity, whether taking a ball on the rise to rip a groundstroke from inside the baseline, or attacking the net - a tactic she used to great effect in her fourth-round win over Angelique Kerber - to keep the pressure on Rybarikova.

As she's done throughout the tournament, Muguruza attacked with her backhand, taking it up the line and forcing Rybarikova to defend her forehand side time after time. She also picked her spots carefully; rather than aiming for the lines and trying to crank winners, she widened her margins and focused on placement, forcing Rybarikova to play shots from compromising positions. It was one-way traffic from the opening serve.

Muguruza made her first Slam final at Wimbledon in 2015, losing to Serena Williams in straight sets. Two years later, with one major title under her belt and Serena out of the picture, she looks primed to finish what she started.

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