Sabalenka storms to fourth Australian Open final in a row

Aryna Sabalenka kept her cool to storm past Elina Svitolina and reach a fourth Australian Open final in a row.

World number one Sabalenka overcame fluctuations in form and a hindrance call against her in the fourth game of the match to thrash Svitolina 6-2 6-3.

Ukraine’s 12th seed Svitolina had beaten two top-10 players to reach the semi-finals but was no match for Sabalenka’s powerful hitting.

Sabalenka has yet to drop a set this year and is now on an 11-match winning streak.

She will face either Elena Rybakina or Jessica Pegula on Saturday as she bids for a fifth Grand Slam singles title and a third at Melbourne Park.

The 27-year-old will also be searching for some redemption after last year’s final, when she felt she was “not brave enough” in a three-set loss to Madison Keys.

“I cannot believe that,” Sabalenka said of becoming the first player since Martina Hingis in 2002 to reach four consecutive Australian Open women’s singles finals.

Svitolina always faced an uphill battle against Sabalenka, having lost their past five meetings.

Sabalenka’s stats – 29 winners to 15 unforced errors and dropping just 11 points on serve – show how she dominated the play, but more impressive was her mental focus.

An engaging, occasionally volatile figure on court, Sabalenka let her emotions get the better of her in both the Australian Open and French Open showpieces last year.

This year, with Svitolina serving at 2-1 down in the first set, Sabalenka was called for hindrance by umpire Louise Azemar Engzell for grunting during a rally.

The hindrance rule is meant to stop a player from interfering with an opponent’s ability to make a shot, either by shouting, making noise or dropping a ball from their pocket.

Engzell told Sabalenka she “did not make the normal sound” when she hit the ball and subsequently awarded the point to Svitolina.

Sabalenka asked for a video review but, with players unable to hear the audio, could only watch as Engzell replayed the footage and stayed with her decision.

The Belarusian was unimpressed, aiming a sarcastic thumbs down at the umpire and offering a few choice words to her team, but she was able to reset quickly.

Sabalenka subsequently broke Svitolina’s serve and then won four of the next five games to take the first set.

After a dreadful service game handed an immediate second-set break to Svitolina, Sabalenka glared at her team, stomped to her seat and then broke back at the first opportunity.