MELBOURNE: Victoria Azarenka and Aryna Sabalenka will attempt on Thursday to set up an all-Belarusian final at the Australian Open, and in doing so give organizers a headache.
Two-time Melbourne champion Azarenka faces Elena Rybakina in the first women’s semifinal on Rod Laver Arena, with Sabalenka up against Poland’s unseeded Magda Linette after that.
Should Azarenka and Sabalenka progress to Saturday’s final, it will be the first time two Belarusian players have contested the championship match at a tennis major.
“I really want it to happen,” said Sabalenka, the fifth seed who is yet to drop a set in 2023 after winning the Adelaide International earlier this month.
“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.”
It could pose a challenge, however, for organizers of the first Grand Slam of the year.
Players from Russia and Belarus are competing at the Australian Open as independents under a neutral white flag because of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
The flags of Russia and Belarus — a key Moscow ally — are banned at Melbourne Park.
Surprise-package Linette and Moscow-born Kazakh Rybakina will have no interest in Belarusian history lessons.
Sabalenka is the highest-ranked player left in the women’s draw at fifth in the world and is favorite to win her first Grand Slam.
But she will be wary of 45th-ranked Linette, who has already accounted for four seeds on her surprise journey into the last four.
The 33-year-old Azarenka is chasing a hat-trick of titles at Melbourne Park, 10 years after she won her second, but knows she similarly has her work cut out against the dangerous Rybakina.
The 22nd-seeded Rybakina has a huge serve and won Wimbledon last year.
She was awarded no ranking points for it because of Wimbledon’s ban on Russian and Belarusian players last year, otherwise she would have been in the top 10 now.
The 23-year-old defeated top seed and world number one Iga Swiatek in the fourth round.
“She’s a very good, solid player. Her ranking obviously doesn’t tell the full story,” said Azarenka, seeded 24.
“Very powerful. Big serve. She’s in the semifinal, so she’s obviously playing amazing,” Azarenka added.
Sabalenka on cusp of Australian Open crown and all-Belarusian final
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Sabalenka on cusp of Australian Open crown and all-Belarusian final
- Players from Russia and Belarus are competing at the Australian Open as independents under a neutral white flag because of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine
Drake Maye aims to do what Tom Brady couldn’t with the Patriots: win a playoff game in Denver
FOXBOROUGH, Mass.: Drake Maye has a chance to accomplish something not even Tom Brady did with the Patriots.
Maye is hoping to beat the Broncos in the AFC championship game in Denver on Sunday and lead New England to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2018. The Patriots have never won a playoff game in Denver — losing all four tries, with Brady going 0-3.
“Just the AFC championship, the chance to go to the Super Bowl. That’d be huge,” Maye said. “Another road environment that’s had success in the past. … I know it would be a big-time win.”
The Patriots advanced to their 14th AFC championship game in the last 25 years on Sunday when they beat the Houston Texans 28-16 in Foxborough. Denver beat Buffalo 33-30 to reach the conference title game.
New England and Denver both finished 14-3 in the regular season, but the Broncos won the tiebreaker for home-field advantage because they had a better record against common opponents: Denver beat the Raiders twice this season but the Patriots lost to them.
That loss — to the worst team in the NFL in the first game of the Mike Vrabel era — sent New England into one of the most inhospitable environments in the league. In addition to the high-energy crowd, the Patriots will also have to contend with a low-oxygen environment that they won’t have a chance to acclimate to.
“Kind of what we’ve been doing on the road all season long,” said Maye, who has guided the Patriots to an 8-0 road record this season. “They’ve got a great team, so we’re going to have a tough challenge. But I’m looking forward to getting out there. And getting a chance to possibly celebrate on an away field would be pretty special.”
The last team to go undefeated on the road with a new head coach was the San Francisco 49ers under George Seifert in 1989; they won the Super Bowl.
“Coach has always been saying, ‘Road warriors,’” Maye said. “So, we’re trying to find that one more time and finish out strong what we’ve done this year.”
The Broncos are 18-5 in home playoff games all-time. But they’ll will be without starting quarterback Bo Nix, who broke his ankle near the end of the divisional round victory over Buffalo. Instead, the offense will be led by former Patriot Jarrett Stidham, who hasn’t thrown a pass since 2023.
That’s why New England opened as a 5½-point favorite — the biggest road favorite ever in a conference championship game. The line has since moved to Denver plus-4½.
“We always feel as though no matter what anyone else has to say, we still have something to prove,” said cornerback Marcus Jones, who returned an interception for a touchdown against Houston. “We’re trying to always prove ourselves right and not trying to prove other people wrong. That’s kind of the philosophy we’ve had for a long time.”
Win or lose, the Patriots could have trouble getting back to New England: A major snowstorm is expected to dump a foot or more of snow on the area.
Vrabel said the team is prepared if it can’t leave Denver on Sunday night.
“We have multiple plans of what could go on based on the weather. something that they’re familiar with here,” he said. “I mean, there’s things I can control, that I can’t control.”
