MELBOURNE: Aryna Sabalenka will look to join a select group of players to win three straight Australian Open titles this month but the big question ahead of the year's first Grand Slam is can anyone stop the Belarusian from tightening her grip on the women's game?
The 26-year-old world number one is the red-hot favourite at Melbourne Park, where another victory would give her a fourth major title and widen the gap in the rankings to Poland's Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff of the United States.
Sabalenka, who started her season by winning an 18th career WTA title in Brisbane on Sunday, has reached at least the semi-finals at nine of her last 12 Grand Slams, a run which included the addition of the US Open crown to her trophy cabinet.
That kind of form has earned comparisons with Serena Williams, who got to the final four at 10 Grand Slams between 2014 and 2017 during a run when the American great won six of her 23 major titles.
"Definitely, I've got some confidence at the Grand Slams," said Sabalenka, who can become the first woman to capture three successive Australian Open titles since Switzerland's Martina Hingis achieved the feat from 1997-1999.
"I know I'm capable of so many things, that I'm able to hold that beautiful trophy. It's good to know that. But there's still (some) way to go. A lot of things have to be done.
"You have to focus on improving yourself every day, do your best, and hope for the best. That's my mentality going into the Australian Open."
After being replaced by Sabalenka as world number one at the end of last season, Swiatek has no shortage of motivation heading into the Melbourne Park major.
The Pole held the top spot for 125 weeks during two spells from the 2022 season and while the clay courts of Paris continue to offer her the best chance of adding to her five major titles she is already showing strong form in Australia.
A Melbourne semi-finalist in 2022, Swiatek, 23, delivered some strong individual performances in the United Cup mixed team competition, taking Poland to the final last weekend.
"I'm very satisfied with my game," said the world number two, who served a month-long suspension late last year over a doping violation.
"I was able to overcome difficult moments by maintaining a high level of tennis for a long time. This is what all players seek, so it's nice to feel like this already in the first week of competition."
Swiatek came up short in her bid to lead Poland to victory at the United Cup after she lost in straight sets to American Gauff, who hailed the win over the Pole as one of the best performances of her career.
Gauff's sole Grand Slam title came at Flushing Meadows in 2023 and she underlined her hardcourt credentials by beating both Sabalenka and Swiatek en route to winning the WTA Finals in November.
"I think after the way she finished (last season), she's going to be really interesting to see," said Australia's former women's doubles world number one Rennae Stubbs.
"I believe she has absolutely put her hands up to be one of the favourites for the Australian Open."
Last year's tournament highlighted the depth of the women's game with China's Zheng Qinwen enjoying an inspired run to the final and the Olympic champion will be fresh for another tilt at the title after opting out of warm-up tournaments.
Melbourne's blue courts have often favoured big hitters like Zheng and there are few women on the tour who pack a punch like Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion.
Rybakina, who lost to Sabalenka in the 2023 Australian Open final, has bolstered her team by adding Novak Djokovic's former coach Goran Ivanisevic and has already started to reap the rewards with dominant displays in the build-up to the Jan. 12-26 Grand Slam.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka should also be in the mix, providing she overcomes the abdominal issue that scuttled her Auckland title bid.
Jasmine Paolini was the surprise package of the 2024 season with runner-up finishes at the French Open and Wimbledon and the ever-smiling Italian will hope she can be third-time lucky in the tournament dubbed the "Happy Slam." - Reuters