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Elena Rybakina breezes past Ostapenko to reach maiden Australian Open semi-finals.
Last year's Wimbledon Champion, Elena Rybakina, is through to her first Australian Open semifinals and second Grand Slam semifinal appearance after fending off Jelena Ostapenko in straight sets of 6-2 6-4.
Rybakina broke Ostapenko to start the first set, in addition to several winners to lead 3-1. With a heavy downpour, the play was suspended for about 10 minutes at 3-1 40-30 to Rybakina's advantage.
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She resumed recording a lot of winners (11 and counting) proving too good for Ostapenko and won the set 6-3 in 31 minutes.
In the second set, Ostapenko had several great returns paying off with a 0-2 lead, but the Kazakhstan top player saved multiple break points and holds for 2-2. She continued playing the big points better and breaks again for a 3-2 lead.
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Ostapenko hit her best return of the match when a match point down. However, Rybakina wouldn't let go of her lead and finished off the set to complete the straight-set win.
The reigning Wimbledon Champion proved too good for Ostapenko, having 11 aces and 24 winners. She is now one win from making her top 10 debuts, where she should be No. 6 if her Wimbledon points were counted.
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Rybakina has proven at this tournament that her Wimbledon win was by no means a fluke.
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