Four women standing--no sets dropped

Ruthless Rybakina, through to her 4th career Grand Slam semifinal 💯 pic.twitter.com/h2Ei8lkvWZ

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 28, 2026

It probably didn't come as a surprise to serious tennis fans that Elena Rybakina rather easily defeated 2nd seed Iga Swiatek in the Australian Open quarterfinals yesterday. Swiatek has been all over the place since she won Wimbledon, and Rybakina--whose career momentum was interrupted by health issues and coaching issues (don't even get me started on that)--is once again looking like her deadly self. Rybakina made a statement when she won the 2025 WTA Finals, and she has also been making a statement in Melbourne.

When Rybakina is switched on, she controls points and rallies with a crispness and accuracy that can be scary. Against Swiatek, she hit eleven aces and had a 79% first serve win percentage; she defeated Swiatek 7-5, 6-1. Rybankina and Swiatek are now 6-6 against each other. It always seems strange that the 5th seed has won only one major--perhaps that stat will change very soon.

Elina Svitolina, who significantly improved her serve after she returned to the tour following a maternity leave, continues to improve her game. She entered this Australian Open with a 1-3 record against Coco Gauff, and that one win was in the second round of the 2021 Australian Open. In her quarterfinal against Gauff, the Ukrainian star completely dominated, winning it 6-1, 6-2. Gauff hit three winners and made 26 unforced errors. 

In yet another all-USA clash, Jessica Pegula defeated Amanda Anisimova 6-2, 7-6(1). Anisimova, who has been one of the hottest players on the tour during the past year, was out of sorts throughout the match, and made 44 unforced errors. 

And world number 1 Aryna Sabalenka, who has won the Australian Open twice (and was a finalist last year) ended the newsworthy run of Iva Jovic with a 6-3, 6-0 victory.

Here is the semifinal draw:

Aryna Sabalenka (1) v. Elina Svitolina (12)
Jessica Pdgula (6) v. Elena Rybakina (5)

None of these women has dropped a set on the way to the semifinals. 

In the meantime, there were two major upsets in doubles. 7th seeds Anna Danilina and Aleksandra Krunic upset top seeds Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, 6-2, 3-6, 6-0. And 5th seeds Gaby Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani defeated 3rd seeds, 6-1, 7-6(5).

In wheelchair play, Diede de Groot, who is unseeded at this event, will face 2nd seed Aniek Van Koot in the quarterfinals.