Aryna Sabalenka and 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina will face off in the this year's Australian Open Women's Singles Final after overcoming their respective opponents on Jan. 26th in the semifinals.
23-year-old Rybakina of Kazakhstan defeated double champion Victoria Azarenka, who last won the title 10 years ago, 7-6 (7-4) 6-3. Rybakina was seeded 22nd.
Belarusian 24-year-old Aryna Sabalenka's 10-match winning streak remains unbroken after she defeated Magda Linette of Poland 7-6 (7-1) 6-2. Her 30-year-old opponent was unseeded.
The women will face off on Saturday Jan 28th at 8:30 am (Ireland time) in what will be Sabalenka's first grand slam final and Rybakina's second major final.
"I'm super happy to be in the final and play one more time here," said Rybakina. Of her Wimbledon win, she noted that "It was different conditions, I couldn't play aggressive tennis and I couldn't go so much for my shots but I was happy to win."
"I got a lot of experience from Wimbledon and I want to come on court [for the final] and enjoy the moment."
Of her semi-final triumph, Sabalenka admitted "I didn't start really well", but said that "In the tiebreak, I kind of found my rhythm and just started trusting myself, started going for the shots...It was great tennis from me on the tiebreak."
The women's doubles semifinals will be played tomorrow, Jan. 27th.
