Elena Rybakina stormed to her first Australian Open final with a 7-6(4) 6-3 win over Victoria Azarenka on Thursday, wearing the twice champion down in a cagey first set before dominating to close out the match.
Wimbledon champion Rybakina will next meet the winner of the match between fifth-seeded Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka and unseeded Pole Magda Linette, who play in the second semi-final of the night session at Rod Laver Arena.
In a match of wild momentum swings, Rybakina held her nerve when it counted, staying strong as 24th-seeded Belarusian Azarenka foundered in a messy first-set tiebreak then dropped serve twice to fall 5-2 behind in the second set.
The 22nd-seeded Rybakina was broken as she served for the set but Azarenka double-faulted to give up three match points in the next game, allowing the Kazakh to close out an emphatic win.
Medvedev stunned by wildcard Walton in French Open first round
Quick and effective: Sabalenka races into French Open second round
Miami says Lionel Messi dealing with ‘overload,’ fatigue in hamstring
French showman Monfils bids adieu to Roland Garros after loss to Gaston
Injury rules Spurs' Kudus out of Ghana's World Cup squad
