Elena Rybakina continues to deliver at the Australian Open.
The Kazakh defeated Kaja Juvan, Varvara Gracheva, Tereza Valentova, Elise Mertens, and Iga Swiatek in straight sets to reach the semifinals.
There, Rybakina defeated Jessica Pegula, 6-3, 7-6, to qualify for her third Grand Slam final.
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From a distance, it looks like it’s been smooth sailing for Rybakina down under.
However, that hasn’t necessarily been the case.
Commentating for BBC Radio 5 Live, Annabel Croft revealed what happened between Rybakina and her coach, Stefano Vukov, before her win over Pegula.
Elena Rybakina walked away from Stefano Vukov during ‘extraordinary’ practice session
“It was extraordinary, that practice,” said Croft.
“Because it didn’t end well, and she wasn’t able to hit a forehand in the court.
“Her coach, [Stefano] Vukov, was really, really going at her about the swing and trying to talk to her, and she walked away from him at one point!
“Then he carried on and was trying to show her the swing.
“I have no idea if they went back out onto any other court before they went into this match.
“But when things like that get slightly into your head, and clearly it was in his head as well, that when the pressure is really at its height, maybe that becomes a little bit of a problem.”
Recovering from a tricky practice session, Rybakina beat Pegula to set up an Australian Open final with Aryna Sabalenka.
Croft isn’t sure why nobody picked the Kazakh as a potential winner, given she is now just two sets away from the title.
“I can’t think of anyone saying her name [as a winner], to be honest,” she said.
“It wasn’t until she was sort of creeping through and getting to the quarterfinals, we suddenly thought, hang on a minute, she’s serving rather well, hitting the ball really efficiently from the back of the court.
“When you think she won the WTA Championships beating [Aryna] Sabalenka in the final, back in November. It’s like, why on earth have we ruled her out?”
Rybakina beat Sabalenka to win her first WTA Finals title last November, but trails the Belarusian 6-8 in their head-to-head.
Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka’s head-to-head record
| Match | Winner | Loser | Score |
| 2025 WTA Finals – F | Elena Rybakina | Aryna Sabalenka | 7-6, 6-3 |
| 2025 Wuhan Open – QF | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 6-3, 6-3 |
| 2025 Cincinnati Open – QF | Elena Rybakina | Aryna Sabalenka | 6-1, 6-4 |
| 2025 Berlin Open – QF | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 7-6, 3-6, 7-6 |
| 2024 WTA Finals – RR | Elena Rybakina | Aryna Sabalenka | 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 |
| 2024 Madrid Open – SF | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 |
| 2024 Brisbane International – F | Elena Rybakina | Aryna Sabalenka | 6-0, 6-3 |
| 2023 WTA Finals – RR | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 |
| 2023 China Open – QF | Elena Rybakina | Aryna Sabalenka | 7-5, 6-2 |
| 2023 Indian Wells – F | Elena Rybakina | Aryna Sabalenka | 7-6, 6-4 |
| 2023 Australian Open – F | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 |
| 2021 Wimbledon – 4R | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 |
| 2021 Abu Dhabi Open – QF | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 |
| 2019 Wuhan Open – QF | Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | 6-3, 1-6, 6-1 |
She also lost their one previous Australian Open meeting, in the 2023 final.
Sabalenka fought back from a set down to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Only time will tell who will emerge victorious this time around…
Sabalenka and Rybakina will meet in the 2026 Australian Open final on Saturday, January 31.
Pat Cash thinks Elena Rybakina will feel ‘pretty relaxed’ before the Australian Open final
Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash delivered his verdict on Rybakina’s semifinal win.
“It’s hard to believe she hasn’t dropped a set when you look at the back-end of that second set, it looked a pretty average set,” he said.
“[Jessica] Pegula fought really well.
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“She wasn’t so good the first set and a half, but she hung in there pretty well; that was all she could do at that stage.
“Rybakina will feel a lot better, actually. She will go into the final pretty relaxed.”
During her post-match interview, Rybakina suggested she may go shopping on Friday to try to relax before playing her third major final.
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