Aryna Sabalenka cruises past Elina Svitolina to reach Australian Open final

Aryna Sabalenka swept to her fourth successive Australian Open final with a 6-2 6-3 win over Ukrainian Elina Svitolina on Thursday in a semi-final overshadowed by geopolitical tension. Top-seeded Belarusian Sabalenka will bid for a third crown at Melbourne Park in four years and fifth Grand Slam title overall against the winner of the late semi-final between Jessica Pegula and Elena Rybakina at Rod Laver Arena.

"I just cannot believe that. It's an incredible achievement but the job is not done yet," world number one Sabalenka said on court. "I'm super happy with the win. She's such a tough opponent and has been playing incredible tennis the whole week."

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, for which Belarus has been a staging ground, Russian and Belarusian players have been banned from representing their nations at the Grand Slams and tour events.