A pre-Christmas arrival with boyfriend and team in tow hints at just how serious Aryna Sabalenka takes this No.1 business and how much a maiden Brisbane International title would mean as she plots a path to a third straight Australian Open trophy.
Nowhere is the 26-year-old more at home than on a hard court and the dual-toned blues of the Australian summer events have proved especially fruitful.
After two Melbourne Park triumphs and an Adelaide title two years ago, Sabalenka is on the cusp of a second straight Brisbane final where she could add a 16th hard-court title to a career tally of 18.
Bidding to block her path is the youngest player in the draw, eighth seed Mirra Andreeva, a straight-sets winner over former world No.2 Ons Jabeur in the quarterfinals..
The big screen again?! @SabalenkaA is a menace!#BrisbaneTennis pic.twitter.com/goyiLw72mo
— Brisbane International (@BrisbaneTennis) January 3, 2025
While the 17-year-old is far less experienced, the semifinals are far from unfamiliar territory.
Last year she reached her biggest semifinal when she saw off an ill Sabalenka in the Roland Garros semifinals – after two previous defeats on clay to her. She later clinched her first WTA trophy in Iasi, Romania and was a finalist in Ningbo.
“She’s a great player. We played an exhibition in Abu Dhabi, so I got to know her a little bit better,” Sabalenka said following her 6-3 6-4 victory over Marie Bouzkova on Friday night. “She’s a nice person, great player, always great battles against her … Aggressive player, serving well, moving well, hitting the ball quite clean so yeah it’s going to be a great battle against her.”
> READ MORE: Dimitrov books sixth Brisbane semifinal appearance
Reigning champion Grigor Dimitrov is the highest-remaining seed in the men’s draw following the overnight boilover Reilly Opelka sprung on top seed Novak Djokovic.
The Bulgarian has won more matches than another man at the Queensland Tennis Centre and added Jordan Thompson to that list for a second time on Friday after the Australian retired with a right leg injury early in the second set.
The second seed will have his work cut out if he is to reach a fourth Brisbane final when he meets dangerous world No.28 Jiri Lehecka.
The 23-year-old Czech owns a 2-1 record over Dimitrov and was as clinical in his win over Chilean Nicolas Jarry in the quarterfinals as he was in the first round over third seed Holger Rune.
> READ MORE: Opelka foils Djokovic in quarterfinal boilover
Opelka and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard both stand more than two metres and possess among the biggest serves in the sport.
Few had the two unseeded players pencilled in to face off in the top-half semifinal but after Opelka’s high-octane defeat of 24-time major champion Djokovic and Mpetshi Perricard’s defeat of Czech Jakub Mensik they will battle for the first time for a place in Sunday’s decider.
The American, Opelka, landed in Brisbane having tumbled to world No.293 after hip surgery for a benign tumour and two wrist surgeries, but made the most of his protected ranking to spoil Djokovic’s hopes of a 100th career title 7-6(6) 6-3.
“I watched Novak become the greatest in that two-year period off,” he said. “A lot of times you ask yourself what would Novak be doing in my situation … I stayed the course even when I was in a cast and on crutches and just hope I have another chance.”
> READ MORE: Teen queen Andreeva marches in semis, Kalinina stops Birrell
Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina has endured her share of injury and consistency struggles since she reached world No.25 in May 2023 but after saving a match point against local wildcard Kimberly Birrell on Friday, she closed to within one win of her third WTA final.
In an all-unseeded semifinal, the 27-year-old faces 107th-ranked qualifier Polina Kudermetova for the first time. The younger sister of former world No.9 Veronika Kudermetova won her sixth straight match in Brisbane when she defeated American Ashlyn Krueger.
In the women’s doubles final, Andreeva backs up after her singles semifinal alongside Diana Shnaider, with whom she won an Olympic doubles silver medal last year, against Australian Priscilla Hon and Anna Kalinskaya.