Aryna Sabalenka is closing in on a fourth straight Grand Slam final and a potential Wimbledon showdown with fierce rival Iga Swiatek as she gears up for Thursday’s last-four clash against Amanda Anisimova.
Sabalenka did not drop a set at the All England Club in the first four rounds but had to survive an almighty scare to see off 104th-ranked Laura Siegemund in the quarter-finals.
The world number one was twice a break down in the deciding set before prevailing 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in nearly three hours.
The 27-year-old Belarusian is bidding to reach her first Wimbledon final when she takes on American 13th seed Anisimova in baking temperatures at the All England Club.
Sabalenka won last year’s US Open to collect her third major, but suffered agonising defeats in the finals of this year’s Australian Open and French Open.
Now she is facing an opponent who has won five of their eight meetings, though Sabalenka came out on top at Roland Garros last month.
Anisimova, who beat Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach the semi-finals, was ranked below 400 when she returned from a mental health sabbatical at the beginning of the 2024 season.
Now the 23-year-old has matched her best-ever Grand Slam singles result, equalling her run to the last four at the 2019 French Open, and next week will jump into the top ten for the first time.
“I definitely think this surface suits her game really well,” Sabalenka said. “That’s why she’s playing so well so far. She’s serving well, she’s hitting quite clean and heavy shots.
“We just played recently at the French Open. I had to work really hard to get the win. I mean, it’s going to be very aggressive tennis, I think.”
Anisimova described herself and Sabalenka as “big hitters who like to “go at it against each other”.
