Sabalenka and Bencic will take on each other in the fourth round of the 2023 Australian Open on January 23.
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Aryna Sabalenka and Belinda Bencic’s fourth-round match at the 2023 Australian Open will be a thrilling contest between the two reigning champions of Adelaide. The fifth seed at the Melbourne Major, Sabalenka, has had an outstanding start to the year. Without dropping a set, she began the season by taking home her 11th career title at the Adelaide International 1. The Belarusian entered the first Slam of the year in this excellent form. She advanced quickly into the round of 16, giving up just 14 games in the process. In her third-round match on Saturday, Sabalenka thrashed Elise Mertens, her former doubles partner, 6-2, 6-3, extending her winning streak to seven games.
Bencic this year had a similar trajectory. The Swiss won the seventh championship of her career at the Adelaide International 2 by defeating players like Garbine Muguruza, Caroline Garcia, and Daria Kasatkina. Her return to the top 10 of the global rankings, which hadn’t happened since October 2021, was boosted by it. With straight-set victories in each match, the gold medalist from the Tokyo Olympics has now advanced to the fourth round of the Australian Open, giving her a perfect 7-0 start to the year. Camila Giorgi, a powerful hitter, was expected to be a challenging opponent for her in the third round, but the 12th seed defeated her easily, 6-2, 7-5.
| Sabalenka vs Bencic | Match details |
|---|---|
| Date | January 23, 2023 |
| Surface | Hard courts |
| Tournament | Australian Open |
| Stage | Fourth Round |
| Time (India) | 5:30 am (tentative) |
| Time (Australia) | 11 am (tentative) |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Elise Mertens | 6-2, 6-3 (W) |
| Shelby Rogers | 6-3, 6-1 (W) |
| Tereza Martincova | 6-1, 6-4 (W) |
| Linda Noskova | 6-3, 7-6 (W) |
| Irina-Camellia Begu | 6-3, 6-2 (W) |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Camila Giorgi | 6-2, 7-5 (W) |
| Claire Liu | 7-6, 6-3 (W) |
| Viktoriya Tomova | 6-1, 6-2 (W) |
| Daria Kasatkina | 6-0, 6-2 (W) |
| Veronika Kudermetova | Walkover (W) |
In the head-to-head matchup, Sabalenka and Bencic are tied at one each. In 2018, Sabalenka destroyed Bencic 6-3, 6-2 in their first-ever encounter at New Haven. But the Swiss got their comeuppance in their very next match, triumphing in Dubai in 2019 with a valiant 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(7) victory.
| Tournament | Winner | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 New Haven | Aryna Sabalenka | 6-3, 6-2 |
| 2019 Dubai Open | Belinda Bencic | 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 |
Sabalenka and Bencic will take on each other in the fourth round of the 2023 Australian Open on January 23.
Australia – Nine and Stan Sport
Canada – TSN and RDS
India – Sony Sports Network
UK – Eurosport
USA – ESPN Network
The matches of both men’s and women’s can be live-streamed on demand on the Tennis TV app and website.
