Fri, Jan 30, 2026 page6

• Sabalenka and Rybakina reach Melbourne final

  • AFP, MELBOURNE
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  Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina won yesterday at the Australian Open to reach the final, while Taiwan’s Chen Kuan-shou advanced to the quarter-finals in the junior boys’ singles.

  Belarusian Sabalenka powered into her fourth Australian Open final in a row with a dominant 6-2, 6-3 semi-final win over Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina.

  She is to play Rybakina of Kazakhstan in tomorrow’s final, seeking her third title in Melbourne.

  

  Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka returns to Elina Svitolina of Ukraine during their women’s singles semi-final at the Australian Open in Melbourne yesterday.

  Photo: AFP

  In the second semi, Rybakina beat Jessica Pegula of the US 6-3, 7-6 (9/7).

  “It’s an incredible achievement, but the job’s not done yet,” an emotional Sabalenka said in an on-court TV interview.

  Earlier, Chen eliminated Nikita Bilozertsev of Ukraine 6-1, 6-3 in the third round at the 1573 Arena.

  

  Elina Svitolina of Ukraine reacts during her women’s singles semi-final against Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka at the Australian Open in Melbourne yesterday.

  Photo: AFP

  Chen broke Bilozertsev’s serve twice in the first set to establish a 5-0 lead and went on to win in 1 hour, 14 minutes.

  He is yet to drop a set in his run in Melbourne.

  He faces Keaton Hance of the US in the quarter-finals today.

  Chen, 17, won gold medals in the men’s singles and the men’s team event at the 2024 World School Games.

  Meanwhile, Australian Open chief Craig Tiley said that it was “a fine line” between player promotion and privacy after top stars complained about backstage cameras at the Grand Slam, with Iga Swiatek comparing it to a “zoo.”

  The debate ignited when Coco Gauff was caught on camera repeatedly smashing her racket in the bowels of the stadium following her defeat in the Melbourne quarter-finals on Tuesday.

  The US two-time major winner was unhappy that what she thought was a private moment to vent her frustrations was broadcast for the world to see, with the footage going viral online.

  Several other players leaped to her defense and agreed that they deserved more privacy.

  “The question is: Are we tennis players, or are we animals in the zoo where they are observed even when they poop?” World No. 2 Swiatek of Poland said.

  Tournament director Tiley spoke to the Tennis Channel about the issue.

  “We want to listen to the players, we want to really understand what their needs and what their wants are,” he said. “So that’s the first question we’ll ask, we’ve heard you and whatever adjustments [we] need to make we will make.”

  While television cameras are in places including the player gym, other rooms are off-limits — that includes the locker room, coaches room and recovery rooms, he said.

  “It’s a fine line between the player promotion and event promotion, and where the cameras are,” he said.

  “We’ll continue to review it and make sure the players are comfortable with it, but at the same time we also want to bring the fan and the player closer because we believe as tennis players we can really help lift up their value and also the love the fans have for them,” he said. “It’s a fine line we’ve got to keep walking.”

  Additional reporting by staff writer
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