Rybakina Repels Pegula, Sets Up Australian Open Final Rematch vs. Sabalenka

By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, January 29, 2026
Photo credit: Lintao Zhang/Getty

Elena Rybakina rode resounding strikes—and endured escalating drama—to return to the Australian Open final.

Rybakina ripped a backhand return down the line converting her fourth match point in closing a 6-3, 7-6(7) conquest of Jessica Pegula in tonight’s Australian Open semifinals. 

“It means a lot. Thank you so much for coming and watching us play—it was such a battle,” Rybakina told Rod Laver Arena fans afterward. “It was an epic second set and I’m really glad I managed to win it. 

“Jessica played so well in the second set. She fought to the end. I’m just super happy to be in the final.”

Rybakina more than doubled Pegula’s winner total—31 to 14—and hit six aces with no double faults scoring her 19th win in her last 20 matches. Rybakina has beaten nine straight Top 10 opponents in that superb span.

A hard-fought win propels Rybakina into Saturday’s final against world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Earlier, two-time AO champion Sabalenka swept 12th-seeded Elina Svitolina, 6-2, 6-3, to become the first woman since the legendary Hall of Famer Martina Hingis in 2002 to advance to four consecutive AO finals.

This AO final is a rematch of the 2023 AO final, which Sabalenka won 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to capture her maiden Melbourne championship.

“It was a great battle we played,” Rybakina said of her rematch with Sabalenka. “I think just in the end she played a bit better. 

“She won that match—very deserved—I want to enjoy, that’s for sure, the final. Hopefully I’m gonna serve better today and that will help me, but we’ll see.” 

In their last meeting, Rybakina saved two set points in the 10th game then powered through a perfect tiebreaker sweeping Tiebreak Tiger Sabalenka 6-3, 7-6(0) to capture her maiden WTA Finals championship in Riyadh last November.

Overall, Sabalenka leads their head-to-head series, 8-6, with eight of their 14 matches going the three-set distance.

At the WTA Finals, Rybakina completed a dominant undefeated Riyadh run raising the Billie Jean King title trophy, registering her 11th consecutive victory—and collecting a WTA record champion’s check of $5.235 million.

“You literally smashed me out of the court,” Sabalenka told Rybakina afterward. “Very well done. I’m happy to see you play your best tennis. Nice comeback at the end of the season.”

Facing maiden AO semifinalist Pegula, Rybakina played with both power and poise.

After the fifth-seeded American fought off three match points in the ninth game of set two, Rybakina twice failed to serve out the match as her forehand failed her at times. Still, Rybakina showed stiff resolve erasing two points in the tiebreaker as she rallied from 4-5 down winning four of the last six points. 

“Pretty proud, no matter the situation was,” Rybakina said. “I was winning and then of course it got very tight. I still stayed there. I was fighting for each point. 

“The match started pretty well compared to the previous matches I played. Overall  a lot of positives I take.” 

Tonight, Rybakina opened with a love hold then beat Pegula in a crosscourt forehand rally for break point in the second game. Pegula, who missed just one first serve in the game, bumped a short backhand into net as the Kazakh broke for 2-0.

Flummoxing the 5’7” American with high-bounding successive second serves to the backhand, Rybakina backed up the break to stretch her lead to 3-0 after 10 minutes.

“That was tough. Obviously having set points, knowing that I was able to stay in there and kind of start turning the match at times and start playing a lot better towards the end, you know, just in time to give myself a chance, but yeah, that was tough tonight,” Pegula said. “Honestly, I’m disappointed in my level. I felt like I didn’t play very well until maybe the very end, and even at the end it was still kind of shoddy. I missed a couple balls I had a lot of chances often.

“I felt like both of us were a little back and forth at times. She was just playing a little bit cleaner than I was.”

On a cool evening creating slower conditions in Melbourne Park, Rybakina’s electric serve powered her red-hot start. Stamping her second love hold, Rybakina went up 4-1 after just 16 minutes of play.

The sixth-seeded Pegula banged some body serves holding to narrow the gap to 3-5. 

When Pegula sailed yet another second-serve return she squished her vanilla visor down over her face in mock horror.

On her second set point, Rybakina pinned Pegula in the corner with a heavy forehand that blasted a backhand winner crosscourt closing a strong opening set in 32 minutes.

Though she served only 48 percent, Rybakina was nearly untouchable on second serve in the set winning 11 of 14 second-serve points. Pegula tried stepping inside the baseline to take that kick serve on the rise, but could not make any inroads. Rybakina stretched her service games held streak to 13 going back to her 7-5, 6-1 quarterfinal dismissal of No. 2-seeded Iga Swiatek.

The bad news for Pegula: Rybakina was dominating despite the low first-serve percentage. The worse news: Fierce frontrunner Rybakina was riding a streak of 23 consecutive victories when winning the opening set.

The 2024 US Open finalist fired an ace holding to start the second set.

Two games later, Pegula played a proactive point, worked her way to net and had an open expanse of space down the line. Instead, the American played a backhand volley right back at Rybakina, who rifled a backhand pass down the line for break point. Rybakina ripped a forehand return breaking for 2-1 after 45 minutes.

A disconsolate Pegula slumped her shoulders a bit knowing full well that break could prove fatal given Rybakina had not faced a break point all night.

Running around her backhand, Pegula drove a forehand return deep off a second serve for her first break point of the night. Pushing Rybakina wide, Pegula drew an errant backhand registering her first break—and snapping the Kazakh’s streak of 14 consecutive holds—to level at 2-all.

Coach Mark Merklein told Pegula to sit on Rybakina’s crosscourt forehand knowing she’s not very comfortable playing that stroke down the line. 

“You know she’s going there, Jess,” former Florida all-American Merklein said. “You can stay in that corner some, you know it’s there.”

Shrugging off the break, Rybakina blasted a backhand with such force it nearly knocked Pegula backward as she rattled out the break back for 3-2.

“Keep serving big,” Coach Stefano Vukov told Rybakina.

The 6’ Kazakh took that advice to heart, hammering an ace out wide as she held at 30 for 4-2.

Slamming her fourth ace out wide, Rybakina went up 5-3.

The finish line was in sight, but Pegula kept fighting.

When Pegula steered a two hander down that line that strayed wide, Rybakina had match point. Pegula denied it with a deep drive. On her second match point, Rybakina dragged a forehand down the line wide. Crushing a crosscourt forehand return winner brought Rybakina a third match point, but she missed another forehand long.

Spinning an ace down the middle, Pegula stood tall saving three match points and holding in the longest game of the match for 4-5.

Stepping into the court, Pegula pumped her best backhand return of the night down the line going up Love-30 in the 10th game. A tight Rybakina missed successive forehands and suddenly Pegula had the break and was back in it at 5-all.

That was a temporary reprieve. Pegula played a poor drop shot then inexplicably targeted the Rybakina backhand, which is her stronger wing. Rybakina drilled deep drives breaking back for 6-5 as Pegula dropped to a squat and pounded her blue Yonex racquet off the court in frustration at opportunity squandered.

 Testing Rybakina’s more vulnerable forehand wing, Pegula drew three forehand errors in a four-point span, including a sailed forehand, as she broke back to force the tiebreaker.

The 2022 Wimbledon winner went up the mini break at 4-2 in the tiebreaker. Pegula responded winning four of the next five points, including throwing down a smash for set point at 6-5. Though Pegula seemed to be breaking down the Kazakh’s forehand, Rybakina answered when she needed it most. 

Rybakina ripped a forehand to save the first set point then drew a running forehand error from the American to erase a second set point and level 7-all. 

Ultimately Rybakina’s two most resounding shots—the serve and backhand—closed the show. Rifling her sixth ace gave Rybakina a fourth set point. This time, she made no mistake slashing a backhand return down the line to end a 100-minute match that started with straight forward declaration and ended with high drama.