Aryna Sabalenka has lost all three of her previous grand slam semi-finals but says this year's Australian Open feels different after powering her way into the last four on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old fifth seed triumphed 6-3 6-2 over Donna Vekic to secure a berth in the semi-finals where she will face unseeded Pole Magda Linette.
Sabalenka won the Adelaide International title prior to the Melbourne Open, meaning she has won her past nine matches without dropping a set.
Wednesday's win improved Sabalenka's grand slam quarter-final record to 4-0, but her major semi-final record is a different story, currently 0-3, despite winning the first set in all three.
Sabalenka made the US Open semi-final last year where she lost to top seed and eventual winner Iga Swiakek. The Belarussian also made the semis at Flushing Meadows in 2021, going down to unseeded Canadian Leylah Fernandez, while she lost her 2021 Wimbledon semi-final to eighth seed Karolina Pliskova.
"I feel a little bit different," Sabalenka told reporters. "I think that I lost those three semi-finals just because I wasn't really calm on court.
"I was overdoing things. I really wanted to get this slam. I was rushing a lot. I was nervous a lot. Screaming, doing all this stuff.
"Right now, I'm a little bit more calm on court. I think I really believe that this is the only thing that was missing in my game. If I can keep that focus and that calm on court, I can get through it.
"I just feel like I have more believe in myself. I feel like this is the huge difference."
The powerful Sabalenka utilized her forehand brilliantly against Vekic with 38 winners, while she kept her cool, saving 12 of 14 break points.
When asked how she is staying focused, she added: "I'm just trying to look at the situation from the top, to see, for example I'm up with a break, and even if she's going to break me back, nothing bad going to happen. You are just going to keep serving well.
"I'm just trying to look at the situation from the top, try to relax myself, try to think what I have to do."
Sabalenka's run to the Australian Open last four sets up the opportunity of a first-ever all-Belarussian grand slam final, with compatriot Victoria Azarenka into the other semi-final, where she will face Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.
"I really want it to happen," she said. "I know that Vika will do everything she can to make it happen. I will do everything I can to make it happen.
"That's going to be history. That's going to be just unbelievable and tough to realise that this is actually happening.
"It's just going to be huge. This is going to help other kids to understand that they can do well in this sport, they can be top players."
'Gladiator' Andy Murray could still prolong career, says Diego Schwartzman
Andy Murray is a "gladiator" and his love for tennis means he could yet prolong his career, according to former world number eight Diego Schwartzman.
Murray has endured a difficult few years with injuries, undergoing surgery on both hips in 2018 and 2019.
The three-time major champion has repeatedly said he is approaching the end of his career, revealing in February that he does not "plan on playing much past this summer".
Murray is currently preparing for what will likely be his final appearance at the French Open, having sat out five of the last six tournaments at Roland-Garros.
Schwartzman, however, feels Murray's love for the game could lead to him playing on for longer than anticipated.
"His life is tennis and I think he enjoys it. I think this is his legacy," Schwartzman – who won his only tour-level meeting with Murray in Antwerp in 2021 – told Stats Perform.
"No matter what you do, your age or how you are doing, if you really love the sport and you love what you do, you can do it and you can push hard for as many years and as many tournaments as you want.
"He's a fighter, a gladiator, and he's been doing the same since he was very young, and for us also, sharing tournaments and sharing moments, he has the passion out there.
"So, it's good to see these kinds of guys because tennis always needs guys who love the sport, and this is the one for sure."
Murray would surely have added to his one US Open title and two Wimbledon crowns if not for the presence of the 'big three' of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. The Scot has lost five grand slam finals to Djokovic and one to Federer.
Schwartzman says the importance of preparation is the main thing he learned from being on tour with those three greats, though he refused to say who was the greatest of all time.
"I know them very well, playing them on court, outside of the court," the Argentine added. "The good thing for me and many guys who share the tournaments with them is how differently they prepare the tournaments.
"How differently they do things with food, with practice, with everything. It's crazy.
"I think, okay, 'in one small way he's the best to do this side of the game', and then the other one is the best [at another aspect], so it's not my thing, who the GOAT is."
Haddad Maia and Keys into Strasbourg quarter-finals
Beatriz Haddad Maia and Madison Keys have both progressed to the quarter-finals of the Internationaux de Strasbourg.
American Keys, seeded fourth, surged clear of China’s Wang Xinyu in a dominant second set to prevail 7-5 6-0, only being broken once in the match.
Haddad Maia, meanwhile, fought back from losing the first three games to defeat Emma Navarro 6-4 7-6 (7-1) in a keenly contested battle.
Second seed Haddad Maia will face Liudmila Samsonova in the last eight, while Keys will take on either Ekaterina Alexandrova or Magda Linette at the WTA 500 event.
Top seed Marketa Vondrousova and two-time tournament winner Elina Svitolina are among the other players due to play later on Wednesday.
Data Debrief: Haddad Maia shows resilience
The battling win for Haddad Maia lasted two hours and 16 minutes, with Navarro pushing the Brazilian all the way.
Navarro forced 17 break points on Haddad Maia’s serve across the two sets and converted six of them, but still fell to defeat.
Haddad Maia now leads the head-to-head against Navarro 2-1, having also beaten her at the Madrid Open last month as part of her run to the last eight in Spain.
Murray knocked out of Geneva Open as Hanfmann books Djokovic clash
Andy Murray was denied a meeting with Novak Djokovic at the Geneva Open as Yannick Hanfmann completed a 7-5 6-2 win over the Scot on Tuesday.
Murray's first-round clash with Hanfmann was suspended due to rain on Monday, with the three-time grand slam champion 7-5 4-1 down.
He had earlier fumed at umpire Greg Allensworth as pollen rained down on the court in Switzerland, questioning why play had not been stopped.
The rain may have frustrated Hanfmann's victory pursuit on Monday, but it only provided a temporary reprieve for Murray as the players returned to complete the match the next day.
Hanfmann held his nerve through his final two service games to book a meeting with Djokovic for Wednesday.
In Tuesday's other early match, four-time grand slam quarter-finalist David Goffin was beaten in straight sets by Nicolas Moreno De Alboran.
The likes of Denis Shapovalov and Tallon Griekspoor are also in action in Switzerland on Tuesday, with Taylor Fritz and Casper Ruud joining Djokovic in entering for the second round on Wednesday.
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