Thursday, January 29th
Women's singles semi-finals
Aryna Sabalenka (1) vs Elina Svitolina (12) | Rod Laver Arena, 09:30 CET
Jessica Pegula (6) vs Elena Rybakina (5) | Rod Laver Arena, 11:00 CET
Sabalenka vs Svitolina - 09:30 CET
Match news and form
Aryna Sabalenka ended 18-year-old Iva Jovic's breakthrough run while dealing with near 100F temperatures on the Rod Laver Arena, holding off a late first-set fightback to prevail 6-3, 6-0 in the quarter-finals. The world No. 1 has refused to drop a set in the tournament so far and improves to a spotless 10-0 in the season.
Sabalenka has now reached at least the semi-final in 12 of her last 14 tournaments and certainly deserved to remain the top-ranked player. With six finals at WTA 1000 level or higher after January 2025, there is no reason why she shouldn’t expect a fourth consecutive final appearance in Melbourne as well.
Elina Svitolina joins Sabalenka in the semi-finals with a 10-0 record in the 2026 season and a perfect campaign in Melbourne, during which she has not lost a set so far. After vanquishing Diana Shnaider and Mirra Andreeva, the Ukrainian destroyed third seed Coco Gauff, 6-1, 6-2, in under an hour.
She must be over the moon to have overcome her 0-3 quarter-final history at the Australian Open (lost in 2018, 2019, 2025). Svitolina had started the year without winning a match in a tournament (outside the BJK Cup) since Montreal, but ended the drought with a title in Auckland and has no intention of stopping now.
Head-to-head
Sabalenka leads 5-1. A majority of their encounters came on clay courts, including the latest one at Madrid in 2025, when the Belarusian won in close, straight sets.
Stats & facts
Sabalenka holds a 7-6 record in Grand Slam semi-finals (3-0 at the Australian Open) but has won six of the last seven.
Sabalenka has become just the third top seed in the last decade to reach the Australian Open semi-final without losing a set.
Svitolina is searching for her maiden Grand Slam final after losing all three semi-finals to date: Wimbledon and the US Open in 2019, and Wimbledon in 2023.
Svitolina has seven career wins over world No. 1 players, but not on hard courts since beating Simona Halep at the 2017 WTA Finals in Singapore.
Betting analysis
Sabalenka is not only the clear favourite to win this match but also to win the title for the third time. Svitolina is sufficiently capable to pose a threat but is likely to be overwhelmed by the occasion.
Sabalenka in 2026
Best results: Brisbane (title)
Best results on outdoor hard courts: Brisbane (title)
Record: 10-0
Record in the last 10 matches: 10-0
Record on outdoor hard courts: 10-0
Record against top 20: 3-0 (career 106-59)
Record in Grand Slam semi-finals: 0-0 (career 7-6)
Record in semi-finals: 1-0 (career 41-21)
Sabalenka at the Australian Open
Career record: 33-6
Best result: Champion (2023, 2024)
Last year's result: Final
Record in semi-finals: 3-0
Preparation: Brisbane (title)
Road to the semi-finals: Rakotomanga Rajaonah (6-4, 6-1), Zhuoxuan Bai (6-3, 6-1), Potapova (7-6, 7-6), (17) Mboko (6-1, 7-6), (29) Jovic (6-3, 6-0)
Svitolina in 2026
Best results: Auckland (title)
Best results on outdoor hard courts: Auckland (title)
Record: 10-0
Record in the last 10 matches: 10-0
Record on outdoor hard courts: 10-0
Record against top 10: 2-0 (career 45-57)
Record in Grand Slam semi-finals: 0-0 (career 0-3)
Record in semi-finals: 1-0 (career 23-25)
Svitolina at the Australian Open
Career record: 34-12
Best result: Semi-finals (2026)
Last year's result: Quarter-finals
Record in semi-finals: 0-0
Preparation: Auckland (title)
Road to the semi-finals: Bucsa (6-4, 6-1), Klimovicova (7-5, 6-1), (23) Shnaider (7-6, 6-3), (8) M. Andreeva (6-2, 6-4), (3) Gauff (6-1, 6-2)
Pegula vs Rybakina - 11:00 CET
Match news and form
Jessica Pegula finally cleared the quarter-final hurdle at the Australian Open for the first time in her career after three unsuccessful bids in the past. The American met her third compatriot of the campaign on Wednesday and vanquished an error-strewn Amanda Anisimova, 6-2, 7-6, in an hour and 35 minutes.
It was the closest she has come to losing a set in this otherwise perfect outing so far. The world No. 6 did not drop more than three games per set in the first three rounds and later sailed past defending champion Madison Keys, 6-3, 6-4. Two of her five career Grand Slam top-10 wins have come this week alone.
Elena Rybakina joins Pegula as another semi-finalist who did not lose a set in the first five rounds. After comfortably dismissing unseeded players in the first three rounds, the Kazakh knocked out Elise Mertens, 6-1, 6-3, and second seed Iga Swiatek, 7-5, 6-1, in the fourth and quarter-final rounds, respectively.
With now 10 semi-final or better performances in the last 12 months, Rybakina very much deserves to remain firmly in the world's top five. She is the reigning champion in Strasbourg, Ningbo and WTA Finals, and stands on the cusp of reaching the final at the Australian Open for the second time in her career.
Head-to-head
Tied at 3-3. Elena Rybakina levelled the head-to-head after winning both of their encounters in 2025, at the Billie Jean King Cup in September and at the WTA Finals in Riyadh in November.
Stats & facts
Pegula is about to play her third career Grand Slam semi-final after the two at the US Open, where she became the runner-up in 2024 and lost in the semi-finals in 2025.
Pegula had lost eight of 10 Grand Slam meetings with top-10 players until this month and now seeks her third consecutive such victory of this week alone.
Rybakina won her first two Grand Slam semi-final matches - at Wimbledon in 2022 and the Australian Open in 2023 - but lost the third and latest one at Wimbledon in 2024.
Rybakina had not beaten a top-10 player in a major since the 2023 Australian Open until her recent victory over Swiatek.
Betting analysis
Former Wimbledon champion Rybakina will have the advantage in this exciting contest between world No. 5 and No. 6. That said, this match-up has the ingredients of going to a deciding set and concluding in either player's favour.
Pegula in 2026
Best results: Brisbane (semi-finals)
Best results on outdoor hard courts: Brisbane (semi-finals)
Record: 8-1
Record in the last 10 matches: 8-2
Record on outdoor hard courts: 8-1
Record against top 10: 2-0 (career 28-37)
Record in Grand Slam semi-finals: 0-0 (career 1-1)
Record in semi-finals: 0-1 (career 20-16)
Pegula at the Australian Open
Career record: 20-6
Best result: Semi-finals (2026)
Last year's result: Round of 32
Record in semi-finals: 0-0
Preparation: Brisbane (semi-finals)
Road to the semi-finals: Zakharova (6-2, 6-1), Kessler (6-0, 6-2), Selekhmeteva (6-3, 6-2), (9) Keys (6-3, 6-4), (4) Anisimova (6-2, 7-6)
Rybakina in 2026
Best results: Australian Open (semi-finals)
Best results on outdoor hard courts: Australian Open (semi-finals)
Record: 7-1
Record in the last 10 matches: 9-1
Record on outdoor hard courts: 7-1
Record against top 10: 1-0 (career 32-27)
Record in Grand Slam semi-finals: 0-0 (career 2-1)
Record in semi-finals: 0-0 (career 22-15)
Rybakina at the Australian Open
Career record: 19-6
Best result: Final (2023)
Last year's result: Round of 16
Record in semi-finals: 1-0
Preparation: Brisbane (quarter-finals)
Road to the semi-finals: Juvan (6-4, 6-3), Gracheva (7-5, 6-2), Valentova (6-2, 6-3), (21) Mertens (6-1, 6-3), (2) Swiatek (7-5, 6-1)