Aryna Sabalenka has message for Elina Svitolina after not speaking to her at the net following semifinal in Melbourne

Follow us on Google Discover

Aryna Sabalenka is into her fourth consecutive Australian Open final.

In straight sets, Sabalenka defeated Elina Svitolina, 6-2, 6-3.

Aryna Sabalenka is now the — best women’s player of all time

Where are you ranking her?

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

Unsurprisingly, the pair didn’t shake hands at the net after the match.

Svitolina and several other Ukrainians have chosen not to shake hands with Belarusian and Russian players due to the ongoing geopolitical situation.

That’s not to say there’s bad blood between the players, though, as Sabalenka shared her thoughts on Svitolina during her post-match press conference.

Aryna Sabalenka says Elina Svitolina ‘played incredible’ in Australia

“About Elina [Svitolina], I felt like I didn’t have the opportunity to even say, great job,” said Sabalenka.

“I have it now, so great job, great match, great player, amazing tournament.

“Yeah, she played incredible.”

She certainly did, taking down three seeded players in straight sets at the Australian Open.

Elina Svitolina at the 2026 Australian Open

• 2026 Australian Open 1R [WIN] vs Cristina Bucsa, 6-4, 6-1
• 2026 Australian Open 2R [WIN] vs Linda Klimovicova, 7-5, 6-1
• 2026 Australian Open 3R [WIN] vs [23] Diana Shnaider, 7-6, 6-3
• 2026 Australian Open 4R [WIN] vs [8] Mirra Andreeva, 6-2, 6-4
• 2026 Australian Open QF [WIN] vs [3] Coco Gauff, 6-1, 6-2
• 2026 Australian Open SF [LOSS] vs [1] Aryna Sabalenka, 2-6, 3-6

Sabalenka was full of praise for Svitolina during the press conference, but admitted she didn’t speak to her opponent at the net.

“No, no, no, I didn’t. I said thank you to the referee, and that’s it,” she said.

Sabalenka and Svitolina have now played seven times on the WTA Tour.

The Belarusian leads their head-to-head, 6-1.

Aryna Sabalenka and Elina Svitolina’s head-to-head record

Svitolina will be disappointed with the result, but can still be proud of her efforts at the Australian Open.

And, there’s plenty for her to look forward to in 2026…

Elina Svitolina returns to the WTA top 10

Reaching the Australian Open semifinals, Svitolina secured her return to the top 10.

The former world number three sits 10th in the Live Rankings, over 200 points clear of 11th-placed Ekaterina Alexandrova.

Live WTA Rankings

Looking to close in on the top five, Svitolina will return to the court for the two WTA 1000 events in the Middle East next month.

In 2025, Svitolina went 2-2 at the Qatar Open and Dubai Tennis Championships.

• 2025 Qatar Open 1R [WIN] vs Marketa Vondrousova
• 2025 Qatar Open 2R [LOSS] vs Jessica Pegula
• 2025 Dubai Tennis Championships [WIN] vs Anna Kalinskaya
• 2025 Dubai Tennis Championships [LOSS] vs Clara Tauson

Perhaps her run to the semis in Melbourne will give her the confidence to perform better in the Middle East this time around.

The Ukrainian is a former champion in Dubai, winning the first of her four WTA 1000 titles at the 2017 tournament.

Only time will tell how she will perform in Dubai and Qatar this year, but you certainly won’t want to miss any of the action.

The 2026 Qatar Open is scheduled to begin on Monday, February 9.