Australian Open 2023: Aryna Sabalenka claims first Slam title - results
Sabalenka came from a set down to defeat Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in a thrilling women's singles final in Melbourne.
Tennis
Aryna Sabalenka is a tennis Grand Slam singles champion.
The fifth seed from Belarus defeated Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in a thrilling Australian Open final in Melbourne on Saturday (28 January).
The victory moves her up to a career-high two in the world rankings.
"I felt really good playing here and I had goosebumps when everyone was cheering for us. I am looking forward to coming back next year," said Sabalenka, 24, as she held the trophy.
"It was a good year for me and hopefully next year I am going to have the same result and (do) even better."
Elena Rybakina vs Aryna Sabalenka
Big-hitting Sabalenka beat Magda Linette in the semi-finals and kept up her record of not dropping a set during the tournament.
Rybakina had been similarly impressive, defeating world number one Iga Swiatek and fellow Slam winners Jelena Ostapenko and Victoria Azarenka, on her run to the final.
And it was the Kazakh player who secured the first break of serve to lead 2-1 before her opponent broke back to level at 4-4.
And Rybakina broke again to leave 5-4 before holding serve to love to take the opening set.
Sabalenka, who served five aces and five double faults in the first set, had to save two break points in the opening game of the second set.
And she racked up the winners as she broke Rybakina's serve to lead 3-1 before taking the set 6-3 to force a decider.
Rybakina came through a tough service game to lead 3-2, but could not withstand Sabalenka's pressure for much longer as the Belarusian converted her third break point of the game to go into a 4-3 lead.
There were understandable nerves as the 24-year-old from Minsk served for the title but, when Rybakina sent a forehand long on match point number four, she fell onto her back and cried tears of joy.
After several near-misses, many had doubted whether she had the temperament to win a Slam having made the semi-finals at the last two US Opens and Wimbledon 2021.
Now she, Swiatek and Rybakina look set to battle out future majors in the absence of Ashleigh Barty, Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka.
Where to watch the 2023 Australian Open men's final on Sunday (29 January)
Viewers in Australia can watch the Australian Open on the Nine Network, the free-to-air broadcaster. The Nine network is broadcasting across its various channels.
In Europe, you can catch the tennis action live on Eurosport. ESPN has the rights in the U.S. where action is also livestreamed on ESPN+.
Highlights can also be found on the official AO YouTube channel.