Aryna Sabalenka's Opponent Refuses to Shake Her Hand After Australian Open Semi

There was no handshake at the net between Aryna Sabalenka and her opponent following a semi-final match at the 2026 Australian Open.

This week, the first Grand Slam of the season will be decided in Melbourne, Australia, with the semi-final matches taking place on Thursday and Friday.

In the men's draw, defending champion Jannik Sinner will take on 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic. Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz will face Alexander Zverev for a place in Sunday's final.

On Thursday, the women's singles semi-finals took place inside Rod Laver Arena, with Sabalenka taking on Elina Svitolina and Jessica Pegula up against Elena Rybakina.

World number one Sabalenka had to dig deep as Svitolina proved to be a tough test for the Belarusian.

The Ukrainian was unbeaten in 2026 after winning the ASB Classic in Auckland before the Australian Open.

Sabalenka, meanwhile, won the Brisbane International title earlier in the month.

In the end, Sabalenka proved too good as she won 6-2, 6-3, sealing her spot in Saturday's final.

After the match, there was no handshake between Sabalenka and Svitolina, which did not come as a surprise.

Aryna Sabalenka will have the chance to win the 2026 Australian Open on Saturday. Image: Getty

Why was there no handshake between Sabalenka and Svitolina?

Back in 2022, Svitolina made it clear that she would not shake hands with Russian and Belarusian players while her country remains under attack.

Speaking ahead of the 2023 French Open, Svitolina said: "I think the tennis organisations have to come out with a statement that there will be no handshake between Russian/Belarusian and Ukrainian players.

"I don't know if it's maybe unclear for people. I already said multiple times that until Russian troops are out of Ukraine and we take back our territories, not going to shake hands."

She added: "I have clear statement. I don't know how more clear I can be."

Elina Svitolina's perfect start to 2026 came to an end on Thursday. Image: Getty

Svitolina played Sabalenka in the quarter-final of that year's Roland Garros, and as expected, there was no handshake between the pair.

The Ukrainian was booed but said afterwards: "I was expecting that and it was not a surprise for me."

Meanwhile, speaking at the time, Sabalenka said: "I think she didn't deserve all these boos. I'm giving such a big respect to her what she's doing after giving birth. It's impressive and I'm really impressed by what she's doing. I give big respect to her.

"I'm not supporting war. I don't want my country to be involved in any conflict. I said it many times, and you know where I stand, you know. You have my position. You have my answer. I answered it many times. I'm not supporting the war."