Tiebreak Tiger Sabalenka Roars Into 13th Straight Major QF in Melbourne

By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, January 24, 2026
Photo credit: Australian Open Facebook

In Grand Slam sudden death, Aryna Sabalenka continues coming to life.

World No. 1 Sabalenka powered through her Open Era record 20th straight major tiebreaker conquering Canadian Victoria Mboko 6-1, 7-6(1) to reach her 13th consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open.

Afterward, tiebreak tiger Sabalenka cited two reasons for her success in the extra session: She focuses fiercely and feels opponents, aware of her omnipotence, fade a bit in breakers.

“I’m just trying to play point by point,” Sabalenka told ESPN’s Kris Budden. “You guys keep talking about it, I feel opponents see it and go into the tiebreaker a little bit off so that benefits my game.

“[Mobko is] Top 20 and definitely going to be Top 10. There’s many matches to watch of her and I’ve been following her game so I kind of knew her game style. I was just trying to go in and put as much pressure as I could and stay mentally strong and I won.”

Sabalenka not only won, she has not lost a set this season raising her record to a perfect 9-0.

Brisbane champion Sabalenka will play 18-year-old American Iva Jovic, whom Novak Djokovic declared is a future No. 1, for a semifinal spot.

The 29th-seeded Jovic tore through 10 games in a row thrashing 94th-ranked veteran Yulia Putintseva, 6-0, 6-1 in a 53-minute beat-down. Jovic converted six of 12 break points and quadrupled Putintseva’s winner output (17 to 4) to charge into her maiden major quarterfinal.

How tiebreak tough is Sabalenka?

The top seed fended off Anastasia Potapova in two tiebreak sets in the third round and has not lost a Grand Slam tiebreaker since the 2023 Roland Garros semifinals against Karolina Muchova.

It’s a conundrum for opponents, who aim to apply pressure by pushing the big-hitting Belarusian into the extra session only to see Sabalenka turn tiebreaker to heartbreaker.

Today’s first meeting between the pair was really a tale of two very different sets.

A few bird feathers floated onto Rod Laver Arena court during the warm-up and served as a visual metaphor for the match.

Sabalenka soared through seven straight games snatching a 6-1, 4-1 lead only to flutter at initial closing time, fail to convert three match points serving at 6-1, 5-4 and see the 19-year-old Mboko battle back.

Facing a world No. 1 for the first time in her maiden major fourth round, Mboko started strong earning two break points in the first game only to see Sabalenka hold.

Deadlocked at 1-all, Sabalenka found her range and rhythm, began rocking her groundstrokes and close net with vigor as she blew through the first set. 

Overall, Sabalenka won 10 of 11 trips to net—a stat that should make her co-coach and former doubles world No. 1 Max Mirnyi proud—and she came forward at critical stages.

Attacking net, Sabalenka blocked a backhand volley winner sealing the opening set with a love hold.

After a tight opening game that saw her save two break points, Sabalenka streaked through five straight games to snatch a one-set lead.

The 2025 AO finalist delivered the finishing shot with command in the opener. Sabalenka smacked 15 winners—nine more than the Canadian—and just four errors in the 31-minute first set.

Sabalenka streaked through seven games in a row for a 6-1, 2-0 lead. Despite a couple of double faults, she held for 3-1. When Mboko double faulted off the top of the tape, Sabalenka stretched the lead to 6-1, 4-1.

“I’ve been in so many situations where sometimes I’ll have a slower start. She played really great tennis in the first set, serving well, great ball striking,” Mboko said. “I think I started to get used to her I’d say pattern of play in a way or like her pace of the ball and just tried to run with it. Trying to find my rhythm as the match went on also was important for me.

“Yeah, I was pretty close in the second set. She was serving really well. It was difficult to return her balls. And yeah, I mean, she upped her level at the end of the day.”

Credit Montreal champion Mboko, the first Canadian woman since Genie Bouchard in 2015 to reach the AO fourth round, for digging in and rallying from Love-30 down to hold for 3-4.

“She’s incredible, that’s for sure. But the tricky thing about playing the first match, don’t get me wrong I like to play the first match, but the tricky part, at some point the sun goes right into your serve point,” Sabalenka said of her second-set lapse. “It’s kind of like tricky. It’s become not easy. You can break the serve.

“That’s what actually happened. Two breaks that she got, it was on the side when I was facing the sun. Yeah, I didn’t deal that good with the serve. She done incredible job serving on that side. That’s the tricky part. I knew she’s going to be fighting. I knew she’s going to be trying. She kind of like has nothing to lose. She showed incredible tennis in those moments when she broke my serve.”

Serving for the quarterfinal at 5-4, Sabalenka went up 40-15 only to see Mboko drill a flat forehand down the line to save the first match point. Sabalenka missed a backhand long on match point No. 2 then floated a forehand long on her third match point.

Across the net, Mboko was growing in confidence cracking her flat forehand return to break back for 5-all. Mboko whipped a wide ace holding for 6-5 and rattling her Wilson racquet as she walked to the her court-side seat.

Pushed to deuce in the 12th game, Sabalenka scalded successive strong serves to force the tiebreaker.

The tiebreaker tiger fired a forehand winner down the line, slammed an ace, blasted a backhand winner then dialed up a diagonal forehand winner racing out to a 6-0 lead.

On her fifth match point, Sabalenka stung a forehand to close and raise her AO record to 32-6. 

If Sabalenka can summon the dynamic tennis she showed opening—and closing—today’s match she will be very tough to stop from a fourth consecutive AO final.