In the semi-finals, Rybakina, ranked 25th in the WTA, defeated the neutral athlete Victoria Azarenka (WTA 24th), who won this tournament in 2012 and 2013, 7-4 (7:4), 6-3.
As you know, Ribakina reached the semi-finals by beating Latvia’s number one Alon Ostapenko (WTA 17th) 6-4, 6-2 in the quarter-finals.
Rybakina had not advanced past the third round at the Australian Open until this year. Last season, the Kazakh won the Wimbledon championship, winning her first “Grand Slam” trophy.
In the final, 23-year-old Rybakina’s opponent will be the fifth-seeded neutral athlete Arina Sabalenka (WTA 5th) or the Polish Magda Linete (WTA 45th). This semi-final match will also take place today.
The first “Grand Slam” tournament of the 2023 season will be held in Melbourne on the hard surface until Sunday.