Serve bot Elena Rybakina advances to maiden Australian Open semi-finals after acing past Jelena Ostapenko in the Australian Open 2023
Kazakh tennis star Elena Rybakina reached her first semifinals in the Australian Open after defeating Jelena Ostapenko in straight sets.
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Elena Rybakina, Jelena Ostapenko
Kazakhstan player Elena Rybakina continued her tremendous run in the 2023 Australian Open on Tuesday. In her quarterfinal match against Jelena Ostapenko, Rybakina outplayed the Latvian 6-2, 6-4 securing her place in the semifinals. This is going to be the first semifinal showing of the Russian-born Kazakh Down Under.
The 2022 Wimbledon champion maintained her momentum after defeating World No. 1 Iga Swiatek last week. For No.17 seed Ostapenko, Rybakina needed 1 hour and 19 minutes to show her the exit route. The quarterfinal win is Rybakina’s first one against the 2017 French Open winner who had dominated her in the past two meetings.
Once again, Rybakina dominated her opponent through her exceptional serve. The 23-year-old slammed 11 aces during the match rendering Ostapenko’s defense feeble. Ostapenko on the other hand failed to match Rybakina’s firepower.
Elena Rybakina continues her exceptional form in the Australian Open
“I am super happy to be in in the semifinal for the first time,” said Rybakina after the match. “It was an amazing atmosphere,” she continued. “Of course, I was nervous, especially in the last game but not as nervous as before the match so I’m super happy that I managed my emotions and I played really well today,” Rybakina further added.
The Kazakh also overcame the erratic weather. “The conditions were different, but then we expected that it can happen in Australia. You never know,” Rybakina said about the weather accompanying the match. “In the morning, one weather, then in a few hours it changes so you have to be ready always. There is beauty in this sport. Everybody needs to adapt and I think I did really well from the beginning of the match,” she continued.
On her path to the second Grand Slam title, Rybakina will face either Jessica Pegula or Victoria Azarenka in the semifinals. Pegula is the highest seed remaining while Belarusian Azarenka is a two-time champion in Melbourne. But given the form Rybakina is riding on, nothing is impossible for her in the coming days.
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