Sabalenka and Rybakina to meet in Australian Open final

The last time both AO women's singles finalists reached the decider without dropping a set was Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters in 2004 😮

On Saturday, Sabalenka and Rybakina square off 🍿 pic.twitter.com/dkPWOt9feA

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 29, 2026

Sometimes, in the world of professional tennis, what seems inevitable actually manifests. Such is the case with the 2026 Australian Open women's singles final, which will feature two-time champion, 2025 runner-up, and world number 1 Aryna Sabalenka, and 2025 WTA Finals champion Elena Rybakina. Both have been playing excellent tennis in Melbourne, and--to make it more interesting--this won't be the first time that the two have met in the final. In 2023, Sabalenka defeated Rybakina to win her first Australian Open title.

Neither player has dropped a set, which is quite a stat in itself. However, the chances that a set will be dropped in the final are very high.

In the semifinals, Sabalenka defeated an in-form Elina Svitolina, who was up against classic Melbourne Aryna, and there wasn't a lot that she could do about it. The other semifinal became tense in the second set, when Jessica Pegula raised her game against a somewhat tight Rybakina and forced the 5th seed into a tiebreak. Rybakina won on her fourth match point.

Paths to the final:

Aryna Sabalenka (1)
round 1-def. Rakotomanga Radaonah (WC)
round 2--def. Bai Zhouxuan (Q)
round 3--def. Anastasia Potopova
round of 16--def. Victoria Mboko (17)
quarterfinals--def. Iva Jovic (29)
semifinals--def. Elina Svitolina (12) 

Elena Rybakina (5)
round 1--def. Kaja Juvan
round 2--def. Varvara Gracheva
round 3--def. Tereza Valentova
round of 16--def. Elise Mertens (21)
quarterfinals--def. Iga Swiatek (2)
semifinals--def. Jessica Pegula (6)  

41-year-old Vera Zvonareva impressed greatly in this early phase of her comeback, reaching (with partner Ena Shibahara) the semifinals of the doubles competition. The unseeded team lost to 4th seeds Elise Mertens and Zhang Shuai, who will face 7th seeds Anna Dalinina and Aleksandra Krunic in the final. Dalinina and Krunic defeated Gaby Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani in the semifinals. 

In mixed doubles, the final will feature wild cards Olivia Gadecki and John Peers, who will face Kiki Mladenovic and Manuel Guinard. 

In wheelchair competition, Diede de Groot--unseeded at this tournament--looked like herself again against her friend and doubles partner, Aniek Van Koot, whom she defeated in straight sets in the quarterfinals. It's been a tough post-injury/surgery/rehab path for Diede the Great, but things appear to be looking up for her.