Sabalenka Overpowers Jovic in Scorching Melbourne Clash

In the furnace of Rod Laver Arena, where temperatures edged toward 100 degrees Fahrenheit, Aryna Sabalenka met the unyielding drive of 18-year-old Iva Jovic. The World No. 1, eyes fixed on extending her reign down under, absorbed the American’s early barrage with the patience of a champion twice crowned here. What unfolded was a 6-3, 6-0 masterclass in under 90 minutes, propelling her to the 14th Grand Slam semifinal of her career and eliminating one of four remaining American women in the draw.

Sabalenka had arrived undefeated in sets this tournament, a path shared by only Serena Williams in 2016 and Ashleigh Barty in 2022 among top seeds over the past decade. Jovic, fresh off her first Top 10 victory against Jasmine Paolini in the third round and a Round of 16 demolition of Yulia Putintseva, carried the momentum of a dream run into her Grand Slam quarterfinal debut. The teenager’s flat groundstrokes tested the Belarusian’s defenses from the baseline, but Sabalenka’s heavy topspin forehands began to carve openings as the heat sapped energy from both.

First set withstands the fire

Sabalenka struck first, breaking Jovic with a precise inside-in forehand that pinned the American deep, racing to a 3-0 lead on the pacey hard courts. Jovic responded with an eight-minute hold to narrow it to 3-1, her crosscourt backhands forcing Sabalenka into longer rallies under the relentless sun. Another marathon game at 4-2, stretching nearly nine minutes with four deuces, kept the teenager in striking distance, her hunger evident in every desperate lunge.

The World No. 1 powered through her service games with ease, holding for 5-2 as her one–two pattern—wide serve into a deep inside-out forehand—disrupted Jovic’s return positioning. Tension peaked in the ninth game, an 11-minute epic laced with five deuces, three set points, and three break points that had the crowd on edge. Sabalenka clinched it after exactly one hour, her 21st winner of the set—a backhand down-the-line—punctuating the hold and shifting the arena’s pulse.

Bagel crushes the resistance

With the opener secured, Sabalenka dialed up the pressure in the second set, mixing slices and drop shots to pull Jovic forward and expose her footwork in the heat. She won 88 percent of her net points, converting five of six approaches that turned defense into quick points on the spacious Melbourne surface. Jovic summoned break points in the final game, but the champion saved the second with an ace before sealing the match with her seventh, the ball firing down the line.

This bagel wasn’t mere dominance; it reflected Sabalenka’s read on her opponent’s youth and tenacity, forcing errors with varied depth and angles. The American’s spirit flickered, but the physical toll proved too much, her flat shots losing sting as the match clocked under 90 minutes total.

The future is bright. Congrats on a career-best Grand Slam run, Iva! pic.twitter.com/1WrstsiAb9

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 27, 2026

Numbers fuel the semifinal surge

Sabalenka’s efficiency gleamed in the stats: zero sets dropped this fortnight, extending her streak to eight straight hard-court Grand Slam semifinals—a run matched only by Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis since 1988. She unleashed 31 winners against Jovic, 21 in the first set alone, capping match point with precision while limiting unforced errors to 17; her tournament-leading 143 winners underscore a campaign of controlled power. On serve, she claimed 83 percent of first-serve points (30 of 36), her kick serves gaining extra bite from the dry conditions.

Next awaits No. 12 seed Elina Svitolina, who dropped only three games to take down Coco Gauff in 59 minutes for her first Australian Open semifinal. Sabalenka leads 5-1 lifetime against the Ukrainian, taking the last four, including hard-court battles where her aggression overwhelms steady defense; against Gauff, it’s a even 6-6 rivalry laced with recent wins on this surface. For live updates, follow the Australian Open: Scores, Draws, and Order of play.

Sealed with an ace 😎@SabalenkaA | #AO26pic.twitter.com/5pt3i42O2z

— wta (@WTA) January 27, 2026

Jovic’s quarterfinal bow elevates her trajectory, a career-best showing that vaults her toward the Top 50 and signals the next wave crashing against veterans like Sabalenka. As the draw narrows on these sun-baked courts, the champion’s blend of mental steel and tactical variety positions her for a potential third title, the heat forging rather than fracturing her resolve.