Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka is through to a sixth consecutive Grand Slam semifinal after routing 29th-seeded Iva Jovic 6-3, 6-0 on Tuesday in the Australian Open at Melbourne.
Sabalenka won the Australian Open championship in 2023 and 2024, then fell in the final against Madison Keys last year. The 27-year-old Belarusian has won 25 of her past 26 matches in Melbourne.
Jovic, an 18-year-old Los Angeles native, was playing in her first major quarterfinal. She never previously got past the second round in a Grand Slam tournament.
Sabalenka dominated the 90-minute match with her serve. She won 83.3% of her first-serve points and saved all five break points she faced, including two in the final game. Sabalenka wound up with a 6-1 advantage in aces.
“It was a tough match,” Sabalenka said. “Don’t look at the score, it wasn’t easy at all.
“She played incredible tennis. Pushed me to one step better level. And I’m super happy with the win.”
Next up for Sabalenka is a semifinal match against the winner of the later Tuesday contest featuring third-seeded Coco Gauff of the United States and 12th-seeded Elina Svitolina of Ukraine.
Gauff and Sabalenka have split 12 career meetings. In the most recent matchup, Sabalenka won in straight sets at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in November after Gauff prevailed in the French Open final last June.
Sabalenka is 5-1 lifetime against Svitolina, having prevailed in the past four meetings.
–Field Level Media
