On January 21st, the quarterfinals of the Australian Open women's singles competition took place. Aryna Sabalenka, the top seed and defending champion, faced off against 27th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. After a thrilling three-set match, Sabalenka narrowly defeated her opponent with a score of 2-1, achieving an impressive 19-match winning streak at the Australian Open and on hardcourt Grand Slams. This victory marks her third consecutive year advancing to the Australian Open semifinals and her tenth time reaching the semifinals of a Grand Slam event.
Player Profiles:
Sabalenka is ranked world No. 1 and is the top seed for this year's Australian Open women's singles. Her best previous Grand Slam result was winning the Australian Open and US Open titles. At this year's Australian Open, Sabalenka has successfully advanced to the quarterfinals after eliminating Stephens, Badosa, Tauson, and Andreescu.
Pavlyuchenkova is ranked world No. 32 and is the 27th seed for this year's Australian Open women's singles. Her best previous Grand Slam performance was reaching the final of the 2021 French Open, and her best result at the Australian Open was reaching the quarterfinals on three occasions.
Head-to-Head Record:
Sabalenka and Pavlyuchenkova have faced each other a total of three times, with Sabalenka winning one match and Pavlyuchenkova claiming victory in two. Their last encounter was in the third round of the 2021 French Open, where Pavlyuchenkova won in three sets.
Match Recap:
In the first set, Sabalenka broke serve in the fourth game and again in the eighth game, securing the set with a 6-2 victory.
In the second set, Sabalenka suffered two breaks in the third and fifth games. Although she managed to break back in the sixth game, Pavlyuchenkova subsequently broke and held serve to win the set 6-2, forcing a decisive third set.
In the decisive set, both players exchanged breaks in the first four games. In the eighth game, Sabalenka achieved a crucial break and then successfully held serve to win the set 6-3.
Next Round Opponent:
Having successfully advanced to the semifinals, Sabalenka will face Badosa in the next round.