Fifth seed Elena Rybakina advanced to the Australian Open semi-finals on Wednesday, prevailing over six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek with a commanding second-set performance at Melbourne Park. Seeking her first major title, Swiatek lost 7-5, 6-1 to American Jessica Pegula in Saturday’s final.
Rybakina unleashed 11 aces and 26 winners as she thwarted Swiatek’s Grand Slam aspirations by winning eight of the last nine games, highlighting her dominance. “Really pleased with the win,” Rybakina declared. “We know each other well; I tried to be aggressive.”
Swiatek had taken the first game on a break in the opening frame but couldn’t capitalize on her early advantage. Both players held serve until Swiatek’s final game, where an error led to Rybakina claiming the set after almost an hour of play.
In the second set, Rybakina capitalized on Swiatek’s frustrations with a strong service game. She broke Swiatek again late in the set and then comfortably held her service game to ensure victory.
Swiatek admitted that her serve had been less effective during this tournament compared to earlier matches, citing inconsistent performance due to match pressure. “I didn’t serve as well as I wanted to,” she said. “My serve could have given me more points. In the pre-season, I already changed some things, but in a match like this one, you don’t always get that time.”
She added, “I need to work on my serve and focus on improving. It’s not ideal, but it comes back to old patterns.”