Elena Rybakina took an important step towards her second Grand Slam title when she overpowered and defeated second seed Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. She advanced 7-5, 6-1 to end Swiatek’s hopes of completing her career grand slam this year.
The immense victory sends Rybakina, the fifth seed and 2023 Australian Open finalist, to her fourth Grand Slam semi-final. It’s been almost four years since the 26-year-old made her first breakthrough by winning Wimbledon in 2022, and while she has won numerous major titles and established herself as one of the best players in the world, she has failed to push herself over the line at the grand slams.
However, Rybakina arrived in Melbourne playing the best tennis of her career after dismantling the court at the WTA Finals last November. The contempt with which she dismissed Swiatek here in set two strengthened her potential to win this tournament.
Rybakina and Swiatek have built one of the most important rivalries in the sport, having competed against each other on so many of the biggest stages. While Swiatek is the more talented and overall superior player, this is a match that Rybakina enjoys. Her destructive serve, the best in the world, neutralizes Swiatek’s peerless return skills and she robs Swiatek of time with her easy, destructive ball speed from either wing. This is reflected in their countless tight matches, with the mutual score now even at 6-6.
The service difference was again the story here. Rybakina didn’t even serve spectacularly well in the first set, scoring only 41% of the first serves. But she won 93% of the back points and only conceded one point. While Rybakina moved quickly through her service games to reach 6-5, Swiatek served poorly under significant pressure on the scoreboard. Late in the set, Rybakina’s aggression put pressure on Swiatek to take the initiative and the Pole played an error-strewn service game to surrender the set.
After securing the opening set, Rybakina relaxed and played with total freedom until the end. She was almost unplayable, firing aces at key points and taking the ball from both wings with total clarity, suffocating Swiatek with her aggression. There was no way back for the Pole, who again had to endure the grim, familiar experience of being knocked off the field by Rybakina.
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