Aryna Sabalenka marched into the Australian Open final on Thursday after dispatching Elina Svitolina in straight sets.
Sabalenka, who is aiming to win her third title in Melbourne, rarely looked troubled as she waltzed to a 6-2, 6-3 victory against the Ukrainian 12th seed.
Martina Navratilova had advised Svitolina on how to defeat Sabalenka, but this advice had little effect as the Ukrainian was outplayed by her Belarusian peer.
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Sabalenka is now one match away from winning her third Australian Open title in four years, and she will need to defeat Elena Rybakina or Jessica Pegula to do so.
Following her defeat of Svitolina, Sabalenka secured her place in the history books alongside Martina Hingis.
Aryna Sabalenka matches feat achieved by Martina Hingis and Evonne Goolagong
As per OptaAce, Aryna Sabalenka is now just the third player in the Open Era to reach four or more consecutive Women’s Singles finals at the Australian Open.
Sabalenka [pictured below, left] won the title in 2023 and 2024, before losing the 2025 final to Madison Keys.
The last player to achieve the feat was Martina Hingis in 2003. In fact, in 2003, Hingis had made her sixth consecutive Australian Open Women’s Singles final on the trot.
From 1998 to 2003, Hingis won three consecutive Australian Open titles, before losing three consecutive finals.
Evonne Goolagong is the third player to achieve the feat in the Open Era. Goolagong – who is the only woman to beat Margaret Court, Martina Navratilova, and Chris Evert in a Grand Slam final – made six consecutive Australian Open finals between 1971 and 1976.
In fact, Goolagong made seven Australian Open Women’s Singles finals in eight years between 1971 and 1978.
Returning to Sabalenka, the Belarusian will hope she can re-produce her semi-final form when she contests the Australian Open final on Sunday.
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Sabalenka’s dominant Australian Open campaign
Aryna Sabalenka has been a dominant force at the 2026 Australian Open.
The 28-year-old is yet to drop a set at the event, defeating the likes of Iva Jovic and Victoria Mboko on her way to the final.
However, the Belarusian will face her toughest test yet in the Australian Open final, particularly if she plays Elena Rybakina.
Rybakina, the 2023 Australian Open finalist, has the power to match Sabalenka’s strong groundstroke game, and defeated Sabalenka in their last match in the final of the 2025 WTA Finals.
