Aryna Sabalenka

January 30, 2026 11:16 AM

Australian Open: Aryna Sabalenka says hindrance call against her helped in semi-final win

Aryna Sabalenka said losing a point for hindrance after grunting in a rally helped fire her up on the way to an emphatic Australian Open semi-final win over Elina Svitolina. World number one Sabalenka beat Svitolina 6-2 6-3 to reach her fourth successive Australian Open final but she was infuriated at 2-1 in the first set when Swede Louise Azemar Engzell awarded the point to Svitolina mid-rally. Remonstrating with Engzell, Sabalenka was told she had made two noises after a shot, with the secon...

January 30, 2026 10:03 AM

Supreme Sabalenka and Rybakina set up Australian Open final showdown

Aryna Sabalenka swept to her fourth successive Australian Open final with a 6-2 6-3 victory over Ukrainian Elina Svitolina on Thursday in a semi-final overshadowed by geopolitical tension and will play familiar rival Elena Rybakina next. Rybakina set up a blockbuster rematch of the 2023 final at Melbourne Park by overcoming American Jessica Pegula 6-3 7-6(7), as the Russian-born Kazakh ramped up her own hunt for a second major title following her 2022 Wimbledon triumph. Top-seeded Belarusian S...

January 28, 2026 4:42 PM

Aryna Sabalenka and Elina Svitolina set for politically-charged Australian Open semi-final

Aryna Sabalenka will aim to take a huge stride towards a third Australian Open title in four years when the Belarusian top seed clashes with Ukraine's Elina Svitolina on Thursday in a semi-final simmering with geopolitical tension. Both players will navigate the political sensitivities that have cast a shadow over their meetings on the tour since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, for which Belarus has been a staging ground, and there will be no customary handshakes at the net. The war has ...

January 23, 2026 10:51 PM

Alcaraz dazzles in 100th Grand Slam match as Sabalenka, Gauff grind through

Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff took a rocky path to the fourth round of the Australian Open on Friday but Carlos Alcaraz glided into the last 16 in his 100th Grand Slam match. Home favourite Alex de Minaur made the last 16 for the fifth successive year, becoming the second Australian to achieve the feat in the professional era since John Newcombe's run from 1969-76, while third seed Alexander Zverev continued to dominate Briton Cameron Norrie. A day after 40-year-old Swiss Stan Wawrinka led a ...

January 23, 2026 3:09 PM

Alcaraz dazzles in 100th Grand Slam match as Sabalenka grinds through to fourth round

Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff took a rocky path to the fourth round of the Australian Open on Friday but Carlos Alcaraz's road was paved with gold in his 100th Grand Slam match. A day after 40-year-old Stan Wawrinka led a parade of yesterday's heroes into the third round, the TikTok generation had their moment in the Melbourne Park sun. American 18-year-old Iva Jovic knocked out seventh seed Jasmine Paolini 6-2 7-6(3) while Canadian 19-year-old Victoria Mboko beat 14th seed Clara Tauson to bo...

January 23, 2026 9:05 AM

Sabalenka passes Potapova test to reach Australian Open fourth round

World number one Aryna Sabalenka passed her first major test of the Australian Open on Friday, fending off a serious challenge from Anastasia Potapova to reach the fourth round with a tense 7-6(4) 7-6(7) win. At a Grand Slam spiked with geopolitical tension, Potapova played for Austria after a recent nationality switch from Russia, and represented the central European nation with distinction in the early match at Rod Laver Arena. Seemingly down and out at 4-0 in the second set, the world numbe...

January 18, 2026 11:38 AM

Aryna Sabalenka primed for Australian Open after exhibition experiments

Aryna Sabalenka's off-season featured a string of exhibition matches and the world number one said on Friday they had given her the ideal platform to experiment and refine her game ahead of her push for a third Australian Open title. While the majority of players chose to wind down after a gruelling 11-month campaign, Sabalenka played exhibition matches in Atlanta and New York last month before facing Nick Kyrgios in a controversial "Battle of the Sexes" showdown in Dubai. She began the 2026 s...

January 16, 2026 2:57 PM

Players welcome Grand Slam prize money boost but vow to push for more

The Australian Open will offer a record A$111.5 million ($74.73 million) in prize money this year and while players welcomed the increase, top names like Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka said the push for a bigger payout must continue across the Grand Slams. The world's top players wrote a letter to the Grand Slams calling for significant improvements in prize money in April last year. The French Open ($65.42 million) and Wimbledon ($71.60 million) boosted their prize pots last year, although th...

January 15, 2026 2:34 PM

Top trio eye Grand Slam glory with Aryna Sabalenka targeting third Australian Open crown

Australian Open favourite Aryna Sabalenka headlines a powerful cast of characters at Melbourne Park along with Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff as they look to shape the early-season narrative at the year's opening Grand Slam. While the women's game has been more open than the men's in recent years, the trio sparked a shift in momentum by sweeping nine of the last 12 Grand Slams and Sabalenka will head to Melbourne bidding for her third Australian Open crown. In addition to claiming a fifth Grand Sl...

January 6, 2026 12:07 PM

Sabalenka eases through Brisbane opener, Kyrgios falls at first hurdle

World number one Aryna Sabalenka began her 2026 campaign with a thumping victory at the Brisbane International on Tuesday while her "Battle of the Sexes" opponent Nick Kyrgios fell short on his return to singles action after nearly a year out. Sabalenka, who was beaten in straight sets by Kyrgios a week ago in a Dubai exhibition, resumed her preparations for the Australian Open by turning on the style to beat Cristina Bucsa 6-0 6-1 in 47 minutes to reach the third round. "Definitely my serve w...