Elina Svitolina has marched into the Australian Open semi-finals after comfortably defeating Coco Gauff.
The Ukrainian star, seeded 12th at the tournament, wasted little time defeating Gauff; taking only 59 minutes to defeat the American star 6-1, 6-2.
Gauff, who played a ‘shocking’ match according to Tim Henman, was so frustrated after the match that she smashed her racket in the hallways of Rod Laver Arena.
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Svitolina will face Aryna Sabalenka on Friday, with the winner claiming the opportunity to face Jessica Pegula or Elena Rybakina in the final.
Svitolina is certainly the underdog against Sabalenka, who has won two of the last three titles in Melbourne.
Martina Navratilova, a three-time women’s singles champion at the Australian Open, has offered Svitolina some advice heading into her semi-final clash with Sabalenka.
Martina Navratilova says Elina Svitolina must play ‘fearless tennis’ to defeat Aryna Sabalenka
“I think she needs to do what she did today: play fearless tennis,” Navratilova said during a live broadcast on the Tennis Channel.
“She’s been so much better at playing outside of her comfort zone that it’s not a discomfort zone, it’s a comfort zone now.“
“She’s much more aggressive positionally and she has got to get the ball as deep as she was against Coco. Of course, again, Coco loops the ball – Sabalenka never loops the ball.
“She’s going to have to be really outside of her comfort zone but she’s got a shot at it. She needs to keep being aggressive. We’ll see.”
Svitolina has enjoyed a remarkable run in Melbourne, reaching the semi-finals at the 13th time of asking. The 31-year-old has defeated Mirra Andreeva and Coco Gauff on her way to the last four, and the Ukrainian should present an interesting challenge to Aryna Sabalenka, who has been in red-hot form.
Sabalenka, the champion in 2023 and 2024, has defeated Victoria Mboko and Iva Jovic on her way to the last four in Melbourne.
The winner of Svitolina or Sabalenka will face either Elena Rybakina or Jessica Pegula in the final.
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What happened the last time Elina Svitolina and Aryna Sabalenka played each other?
Elina Svitolina and Aryna Sabalenka last met on the WTA Tour at the 2025 Madrid Open; a WTA 1000 event held in the Spanish capital.
Sabalenka came into the semi-final match with a 4-1 record against the Ukrainian, and the Belarusian proceeded to extend her head-to-head record in Madrid.
Sabalenka defeated Svitolina 6-3, 7-5, before beating Coco Gauff in the final.
After defeating Svitolina, Sabalenka said: “Thank you so much guys [the crowd] for the atmosphere you bring here,” said Sabalenka on court. “It’s really enjoyable playing in front of you. I really love this stadium.
![“Thank you so much guys [the crowd] for the atmosphere you bring here,” said Sabalenka on court. “It’s really enjoyable playing in front of you. I really love this stadium.
“Honestly, I hate playing the second [match] in the night session. It’s the worst as usually people are not staying for the last match – they always come for the night session match.
“I was like: ‘Please guys, stay.’ Thank you so much for staying.”](https://cdn1.tennishead.net/uploads/106/2026/01/GettyImages-2212336667-1024x683.jpg)
“Honestly, I hate playing the second [match] in the night session. It’s the worst as usually people are not staying for the last match – they always come for the night session match.
“I was like: ‘Please guys, stay.’ Thank you so much for staying.”
