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World number one Aryna Sabalenka continued her strong start to the season by defeating Australian Open champion Madison Keys to reach the semi-finals of the Brisbane International, strengthening her preparations for the first Grand Slam of the year.
The match was a repeat of last year's Australian Open final, where Keys claimed a three-set victory, but this time Sabalenka asserted her authority with a composed 6-3 6-3 win. The Belarusian has her sights set on a third Australian Open title in four years after lifting the trophy in 2023 and 2024, and her performance in Brisbane underlined her intent.
At 27, Sabalenka has already collected four major titles and has yet to drop a set this week. She has conceded only 13 games across three matches, highlighting both her consistency and sharpness at the beginning of the campaign. Speaking after the match, the defending Brisbane champion said her previous loss to Keys provided motivation, but insisted she treats every encounter as a fresh challenge rather than dwelling on past results.
Sabalenka's reward is a semi-final clash with Karolina Muchova, who produced one of the upsets of the tournament by beating world number five Elena Rybakina 6-2 2-6 6-4. Ranked 20th, Muchova showed resilience in a tense deciding set to bring an end to Rybakina's 13-match winning run. The Czech player, who finished runner-up at the 2023 French Open, has won her last three meetings against Sabalenka, adding intrigue to their upcoming encounter.
Elsewhere, there was disappointment for British players competing on the WTA Tour. Sonay Kartal came close to a notable victory at the ASB Classic in Auckland but was edged out by world number 13 Elina Svitolina in a dramatic quarter-final. Kartal recovered from losing the first set to push the match into a decider and even served for victory at 5-3 in the final set. However, Svitolina's experience proved decisive as she prevailed 6-4 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-5).
Kartal was bidding to reach only the second tour-level semi-final of her career, while Svitolina, a two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist, continues her pursuit of a 19th WTA title as the top seed in Auckland.
Fellow Briton Fran Jones was forced to retire from her quarter-final match against China's Wang Xiyu due to injury while trailing 6-4 4-3, bringing her tournament to a premature end.
