It was always expected that a Polish player would contest the semi-finals of the women’s singles Australian Open this year, but perhaps not this one. Two rounds after world No 1 Iga Świątek and Hubert Hurkacz, the men’s 10th seed, were defeated in consecutive matches, the unlikely run of Magda Linette continued as the unseeded 30-year-old reached a grand slam semi-final for the first time in her career, defeating former No 1 Karolína Plíšková 6-3, 7-5 to advance.
In the semi-finals, Linette will face Aryna Sabalenka, the fifth seed, after Sabalenka survived a bruising opening set against Donna Vekić before opening her shoulders and winning 6-3, 6-2.
