Belarusian top seed Aryna Sabalenka delivered perhaps her finest performance against her greatest rival, defeating Kazakh seed No. 3 Elena Rybakina 6-4, 6-3 in the semi-finals of the Miami Open presented by Itau on Thursday night – a commanding straight-sets dismantling of the player who had beaten her in the Australian Open final just two months ago.
Sabalenka moves to her second consecutive Miami final, where American seed No. 4 Coco Gauff awaits on Saturday and the Sunshine Double is one win away.
The Belarusian has now won 22 of 23 matches this season, the best record on tour, and is the fourth player this century to reach the final at each of her first four events of a season, joining Martina Hingis (2001) and Serena Williams (2002 and 2003). She is also the first player to reach consecutive Miami finals as world No. 1 since Serena Williams between 2013 and 2015.
One win away from the Sunshine Double – Indian Wells and Miami in the same season – Sabalenka would become the fifth woman to achieve it and the first since Iga Swiatek in 2022. She has not dropped a set in any of her five matches at this tournament.
Sabalenka : “she’s pushing me to the limit”
It was Sabalenka’s most complete performance of the fortnight. She broke four times in 80 minutes, was broken back twice with no consequence. She served with authority, winning 83 per cent of first-serve points to Rybakina’s 57 per cent, a figure well below the Kazakh’s usual standards. Nine aces to two underlined the difference on serve.
“I’m obviously super happy with the level I played, Sabalenka said. Happy to get this win in straight sets. I played really incredible tennis. I really think that today was exceptional level for me. Nothing I could do better. And I really hope that I can produce this level each time I play on court.”
In the first set the pattern was established early – Sabalenka broke to lead 3-1, Rybakina broke back to level, then Sabalenka broke again to take the set. In the second, she pounced immediately, racing to 4-0 before Rybakina found some resistance. It was too late. Sabalenka closed it out with a forehand winner.
“I really enjoy our rivalry,” Sabalenka said after the match. “She’s an incredible player, always pushing me to the limit. With her, you have to bring your best tennis, and that’s why I was able to pull out such great tennis today.”
Gauff awaits on Saturday
Asked whether she could remember playing better, she was direct. “I really think that today was exceptional level for me. Nothing I could do better. And I really hope that I can produce this level each time I play on court.”
The win moves Sabalenka to 10-7 in her head-to-head with Rybakina. It was their third meeting of 2026 alone, following Rybakina’s win in the Australian Open final and Sabalenka’s reply in the Indian Wells final.
Gauff awaits on Saturday, their head-to-head level at 6-6. Their most recent meetings came in the 2025 French Open final, which Gauff won. Sabalenka won at the WTA Finals in Riyadh later that year.
Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus, seed No. 1) defeated Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan, seed No. 3) 6-4, 6-3 in the semi-finals of the Miami Open presented by Itau 2026 on Thursday, March 27. Sabalenka advances to her second consecutive Miami final with a record of 22-1 in 2026. She will face Coco Gauff on Saturday, one win away from completing the Sunshine Double.