Aryna Sabalenko is the new champion of the Australian Open, the fifth favorite from Melbourne, who won the trophy after the final with Olena Rybakina (4-6, 6-3, 6-4). At the end of the match, the athlete from Belarus thanked those who helped her win her first Grand Slam title.

Emotional Aryna Sabalenko with the Australian Open cup in her hands

“First of all, sorry for my English, I’m still shaking. It is a great motivation and inspiration for me to receive the trophy from Billie Jean King. I couldn’t have asked for more and thank you.

Rybakina is a great player and I congratulate her. I hope we will meet many more times from now on, maybe even in other Grand Slam finals. Congratulations to my team, you are incredible, you have done such a good job.

Thanks to everyone who made this tournament possible, the kids with the ball, the rackets, my family, my team. This is the craziest team on the track. Last year I went through a lot of ups and downs. You deserve this trophy more than I do. It’s more about you than me. i love you

Thanks to the fans for the extraordinary atmosphere they create in the stands. I can’t wait to come back next year and hope to play better tennis because I already won the title” – Aryna Sabalenkoquoted by Eurosport.

Know:

• For Aryna Sabalenko, it was the first Grand Slam final. Previously, the best results of the Belarusian athlete were the semifinals at Wimbledon (2021) and the US Open (2021, 2022).

• For Aryn, this is the 12th title in her career. The athlete from Belarus also won in Wuhan, New Haven (2018), Zhuhai, Wuhan, Shenzhen (2019), Linz, Ostrava, Doha (2020), Madrid, Abu Dhabi (2021) and Adelaide 1 (2023).

• For Olena Rybakina, it was the second Grand Slam final. Previously, the athlete representing Kazakhstan won Wimbledon-2022.

• Thanks to the results in Melbourne, Sabalenko will move up to No. 2 in the WTA rankings (the position she held in August 2021). On the other hand, Rybakina will make an impressive jump to 10th place (a career best).

Aryna Sabalenko, the way to the Australian Open 2023 title

Round I: 6-1, 6-4 against Tereza Martinkova (74 WTA)

Second round: 6-3, 6-1 against Shelby Rogers (51 WTA)

Round III: 6-2, 6-3 against Elise Mertens (32 WTA)

Best result: 7-5, 6-2 against Belinda Bencic (10 WTA)

Quarters: 6-3, 6-2 against Donna Vekic (64 WTA)

Semifinals: 7-6(1), 6-2 against Magda Lynette (45 WTA)

Final: 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 against Elena Rybakina (25 WTA).

Olena Rybakina – Arina Sabalenko: 0-4 in official matches

2023 Australian Open: 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 for Sabalenka

2022, Dubai (exhibition tournament): 0-6, 6-1, 10-6 at Rybakin

2021, Wimbledon: 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 for Sabalenka

2021, Abu Dhabi: 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 for Sabalenka

2019, Wuhan: 6-3, 1-6, 6-1 for Sabalenka.