Aryna Sabalenka defeated Karolina Muchova to reach the final of the Brisbane Open where she will defend her title against Marta Kostyuk.
Published on January 10, 2026
Defending champion Aryana Sabalenka defeated Karolina Muchova 6-3, 6-4 to win the Brisbane International and reach the final of the Australian Open tune-up tournament for the third year in a row.
In Sunday’s title match, the Belarusian will face Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk, who beat world number six Jessica Pegula 6-0, 6-3 for her third consecutive top-10 win after defeating Amanda Anisimova and Mira Andreeva in the last two rounds.
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World number one Sabalenka has been in similar form in her first tournament of the season, beating reigning Melbourne Park champion Madison Keys in straight sets in the quarter-finals to set up a match against Muchova on Saturday.
Things were expected to be more difficult against Muchova, known for her inventive brand of tennis and racking up a 3-1 career head-to-head record against Sabalenka, with wins in their previous three meetings.
Sabalenka overcame that statistic to take full control of the semi-final clash with a break in the second game, showing deft touch and strength from the baseline to take the first set, which she finished with a huge backhand winner.
The four-time Grand Slam winner, eyeing a third Australian Open trophy as the tournament opens at Melbourne Park on January 18, suffered a further setback in the next set but fought back to lead 5-4 to wrap up the win on serve.
“I am very happy to end the match with a very close tie at the end of the second set.
“She’s a great competitor and I knew that if I gave her that chance in the last game, she would take it and it would be a little difficult to play. I’m very happy that I got this win.”
There were three Americans in action in the Brisbane men’s tournament semi-finals, where Brandon Nakashima beat Aleksandar Kovacevic 7-6(4) 6-4 while compatriot Alex Michelsen beat Russian top seed Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 6-2.
At the Auckland Classic, Alexandra Ila of the Philippines saved a match point to defeat China’s Wang Xinyu 5-7, 7-5, 6-4. Next up for Wang is Elina Svitolina, who beat Eva Jovic 7-6(5) 6-2 in the other semi-final.
Top seed Lorenzo Musetti defeated Andrey Rublev 6-7(3) 7-5 6-4 in the last four to reach the final of the Hong Kong Open. In the second semi-final, Alexander Bublik defeated Marcos Giron 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 to set up a title clash with Musetti.