It may have taken her three long years, but Elena Rybakina is back in the Australian Open final.
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The world No.5 from Kazakhstan packed too much punch early in Thursday night’s women’s semifinal against Jessica Pegula before prevailing in a battle against her own nerves late to triumph 6-3 7-6(7) in one hour and 40 minutes.
“Really happy with the win today,” Rybakina said. “In the second set it was a very tough one, but I’m happy it went my way. I think I’ve improved throughout the whole tournament.
“I think for me it’s important that I started this tournament maybe not at my best form, but throughout the tournament it improved, and I played better each match.”
Rybakina will face Aryna Sabalenka – who beat her in three sets for the AO 2023 title – to decide who will take home the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup.
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Rybakina was made to sweat by the plucky Pegula, who saved three match points while serving at 3-5 down in the second set.
Rybakina tightened noticeably, then did so again when she almost frittered away a 4-2 edge in the tiebreak.
Pegula claimed four of the next five points – capped by an overhead smash – to create a set point of her own, which would have squared the match.
As she suddenly lost scoreboard control, Rybakina admits her mind went back to the second round at AO 2024 when she succumbed to Anna Blinkova in an epic 22-20 third-set tiebreak, the longest in Grand Slam history in total points.
On that occasion, Blinkova claimed victory on her 10th match point after saving six of Rybakina’s.
“It was really really stressful,” Rybakina said. “I had an epic tiebreak here a couple years ago. I lost it.
“I think it was the longest (any) woman (has) played, and a little flashback came.”
But fittingly, it was Rybakina’s thunderous power which got her home.