Ukrainian tennis player Marta Kostyuk defeated world number six Jessica Pegula of the United States 6-0, 6-3 in Brisbane to reach the WTA 500 final. The 16th-seeded Ukrainian completed the semi-final win over the fourth-seeded Pegula in 56 minutes on the Australian hard courts.
The victory was Kostyuk's second in six career meetings against Pegula. Her previous win over the American came in the semi-finals of the San Diego WTA 500 tournament in 2024.
Kostyuk will face world number one and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in the Brisbane final. Sabalenka advanced to the title match by defeating Carolina Muchova in her semi-final contest. Kostyuk has lost all four of her previous matches against Sabalenka.
Marta Kostyuk Top 10 Record and Tour Finals
The win over Pegula marked Kostyuk's third consecutive victory against WTA top 10 players. She reached the semi-finals in Brisbane by knocking out Amanda Anisimova and Mirra Andreeva in the earlier rounds. Kostyuk now holds 12 career wins over top 10 opponents.
This will be the fourth Tour-level final of Kostyuk's career and her first since April 2024. In her last final appearance, she lost the cup fight to Elena Rybakina.
Elina Svitolina vs Mirra Andreeva Fourth Round
In other Ukrainian tennis news, 12th seed Elina Svitolina will face eighth seed Mirra Andreeva in the fourth round of the 2026 Australian Open on January 25. The match is scheduled for Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne as the second match of the night session, starting no earlier than 12:00 Kyiv time.
The winner of the fourth-round contest will advance to the quarter-finals to play either Coco Gauff or Carolina Muchova. This will be the second career meeting between Svitolina and Andreeva, with Andreeva leading the head-to-head record 1-0 following a 7-5, 6-3 quarter-final win at Indian Wells last March.
Svitolina enters the match on an eight-game winning streak in official tournaments this season after claiming the title in Auckland. Reaching the quarter-finals would match her personal best performance at the Australian Open, a stage she has reached three times previously.
Svitolina and Andreeva Paths to the Fourth Round
Svitolina reached the fourth round by defeating Krystyna Buksha of Spain 6-4, 6-1 in the first round and Polish player Linda Klimovichova 7-5, 6-1 in the second round. She then beat neutral player Diana Schneider 7-6, 6-3 in a third-round match that featured nine service breaks, relying on her experience to make fewer errors and close out the victory.
Andreeva, an 18-year-old neutral player who is ranked world number seven, has never advanced past the fourth round at the Australian Open. She opened her tournament with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 win over Donna Vekic, followed by a 6-4, 6-0 win against Maria Sakkari of Greece and a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Romania's Elena-Gabriela Ruse in the third round.
Earlier this season, Andreeva reached the quarter-finals in Brisbane before losing in two sets to Kostyuk, and later won the Adelaide title by beating Canada's Mboko in the final. Sport.ua noted that despite her top 10 ranking and busy schedule, Andreeva at times lacks emotional stability.
Australian Open Match Predictions and Betting Odds
Bookmakers give a slight advantage to Andreeva because she holds a higher ranking and is 13 years younger than Svitolina. However, Sport.ua reports Svitolina will have very high motivation for the match, and its betting preview tipped the contest to last over 21.5 total games at 1.76 odds.
Ukrainian Junior Players Australian Open Schedule
The 2026 Australian Open 1/8 singles finals and junior tournament first-round matches begin on Sunday, January 25 in Melbourne. Four Ukrainian teenagers will begin their campaign in the junior singles 1/32 finals alongside Svitolina's senior match.
Sixth seed Nikita Belozertsev plays qualifier Aaro Gabet on Court 14 in the first match of the session, not before 01:00. Antonina Sushkova meets Zhang Qian Wei on Court 8 in the third match, not before 04:00. Qualifier Polina Sklyar faces Teresa Germanova on Court 12 in the third match, not before 04:00. Sofia Belinskaya plays wild card entry Emily Chen on Court 6 in the fifth match, not before 07:00.
Ukrainian players will also compete in the junior doubles 1/32 finals on Court 14 on January 25. Nikita Belozertsev pairs with Jamie Mackenzie against wild cards Ymerali Ibrahimi and Cooper Pouch in the fifth match, not before 07:00. Polina Sklyar teams up with Aishi Das to face sixth seeds Mariella Tamm and Zhang Rui'en in the sixth match, not before 08:30.