Miami: World number one Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina on Wednesday booked a blockbuster semi-final at the Miami Open in a rerun of their Melbourne Grand Slam decider.
Defending champion Sabalenka held off big-hitting 45th-ranked American Hailey Baptiste 6-4, 6-4. World number two Rybakina beat fifth-seeded American Jessica Pegula -- runner-up to Sabalenka last year -- 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.
They will return Thursday at Hard Rock Stadium -- home of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins -- to fight for a place in the final. Rybakina beat Sabalenka in a nail-biting Australian Open final in January -- the world number one’s only defeat in 2026 -- but the Belarusian avenged it with victory in the Indian Wells final this month.
“We’ve been playing a lot of matches, recently actually, and all of them have been a battle, all of them been a show,” Sabalenka told the Tennis Channel. “I’m super-excited facing her.” Sabalenka is now two wins away from completing the “Sunshine Double” of Indian Wells and Miami.
Baptiste, playing her first WTA 1000 quarter-final, failed to convert three break points in Sabalenka’s first two service games. Sabalenka finally broke Baptiste when the American double-faulted on set point.
Sabalenka gained an early break in the second, but Baptiste broke back and held confidently to level at 4-4. But as she served at 4-5 to stay in the match, the American opened with three straight double faults. Sabalenka pounced, converting her second match point with a blistering return.
“She really pushed me,” Sabalenka said. “The rhythm, the heaviness of her shots is incredible. I’m super happy that I was able to hold the pressure and to get the win.”
She’ll now face a familiar foe in Rybakina, who shrugged off a slow start to post her fifth straight win over Pegula -- a streak that includes a semi-final victory at the Australian Open and a quarter-final win at Indian Wells.
Pegula, who won last month’s WTA title in Dubai, broke twice to jump to a 4-0 lead and took the opening set in 35 minutes.
But Moscow-born Kazakh Rybakina was finding her rhythm and broke for a 4-2 edge on the way to forcing a third set, gaining control of the decider with an opening break.
“She started playing well, and I was a bit rushing and frustrated, but I’m happy that I managed to bounce back and turn it around in the second set,” said Rybakina, who is seeded third despite rising to No. 2 in the world for the first time this week.
In the men’s draw, 28th-seeded Arthur Fils of France saved four match points on the way to a 6-7 (3/7), 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (8/6) victory over 22nd-seeded American Tommy Paul. Fils trailed 6-2 in the third-set tiebreaker, saving four straight match points before prevailing in two hours and 49 minutes.
