Australian Open: Sabalenka edges past Svitolina to enter 4th consecutive final
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka continued her golden run at the ongoing Australian Open 2026 as she registered a dominant 6-2, 6-3 straight-sets victory over Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina in the women’s singles semifinal at Rod Laver Arena on Thursday.
Sabalenka was in complete control from the start and needed just over an hour to seal her place in the final. This will be the fourth consecutive time she plays in the Australian Open final.
The Belarusian used her power and strong serving to keep Svitolina under constant pressure and did not allow any chance of a comeback as she moved closer to her third Australian Open title.
Sabalenka won 67 per cent of her points on first serve and an impressive 79 per cent on second serve, underlining the one-sided nature of the match.
Svitolina struggled to match Sabalenka’s pace and consistency. The Ukrainian won just 56 per cent of points on her first serve and 50 per cent on her second, while committing three double faults.
The top seed converted four of her seven break-point opportunities, while allowing Svitolina only one break from four chances. Sabalenka also edged her opponent in total points won, claiming 65 points compared to Svitolina’s 46.
“An incredible achievement, but the job is not done yet,” Sabalenka said on court after the match.
“I’m super happy with the win. She is such a tough opponent. I’ve been watching her game — she played incredibly throughout the tournament. I felt I had to step in and put as much pressure as possible on her, and I’m glad the level was there today. I played great tennis and am happy to get the win in straight sets,” she added.
Sabalenka, who lost the 2023 final to Madison Keys, will face either Elena Rybakina or Jessica Pegula in Saturday’s final in Melbourne.
(IANS)
