Aryna Sabalenka defeats Madison Keys and qualifies for the Brisbane semi-finals

Aryna Sabalenka beat Australian Open champion Madison Keys in a repeat of last year’s Australian Open final, as the world number one continued her Grand Slam preparations this year by reaching the semi-finals at the Brisbane International.

Belarus’ Sabalenka will be bidding to win her third Australian Open title later this month, after winning back-to-back wins in 2023 and 2024 before losing to Keys in three sets in last year’s final.

The 27-year-old, a four-time Grand Slam winner, maintained her strong start to the year with her third straight win in straight sets, conceding just 13 games in the six sets she played.

Defending champion Sabalenka, who beat Keys in Indian Wells last March, said: “I know I lost to her in Australia, and that is of course the big motivation to go out and get the win.”

“But I never stay in the past and I never remember things from the previous match. My approach is like it’s a new match, no matter what happened in the past, I have to go out there and play my best tennis.”

Sabalenka, who defeated American Keys 6-3, 6-3, will meet Karolina Muchova for a place in the Brisbane final after the Czech player defeated world number five Elena Rybakina 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

Muchova, seeded 20th, held her nerve in a tight decider to end former Wimbledon champion Rybakina’s 13-match winning streak.

Muchova, a 2023 French Open runner-up, has won her last three matches against Sabalenka.