Aryna Sabalenka wins second straight title in Brisbane, continues Australian domination

Only one week in and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka has already lifted her first trophy of 2026, defeating Marta Kostyuk in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3, to win the WTA 500 title in Brisbane on Sunday.

Kostyuk had been on a tear this week, taking out three Top 10 players in a row—No. 3 Amanda Anisimova, No. 9 Mirra Andreeva and No. 6 Jessica Pegula—in straight sets en route to the final.

But Sabalenka hadn’t lost a set all week, not even losing more than four games in any set, and she continued that pattern on Sunday—after the two traded breaks early on, she broke again to close out the first set, grabbed one more early break in the second set and the two held from there until it was over.

It’s the 22nd WTA title of Sabalenka’s career—and, having also won in Brisbane last year, the fifth tournament she’s won multiple times, alongside the Australian Open and US Open (twice each) and Madrid and Wuhan (three times each).

Sabalenka also continued her recent domination of the Australian season, now winning five of the last seven events—and 38 of the last 40 matches—she’s played Down Under.

SABALENKA IN AUSTRALIA SINCE START OF 2023: 38-2

• 4-0 at 2023 Adelaide (won title)
• 7-0 at 2023 Australian Open (won title)
• 4-1 at 2024 Brisbane (runner-up)
• 7-0 at 2024 Australian Open (won title)
• 5-0 at 2025 Brisbane (won title)
• 6-1 at 2025 Australian Open (runner-up)
• 5-0 at 2026 Brisbane (won title)

The only two losses came to Elena Rybakina in the 2024 Brisbane final and to Madison Keys in the 2025 Australian Open final.

After a week off from tournaments this coming week, Sabalenka will head to the Australian Open as the favorite for the title.

And if recent history is anything to go by, she’s a safe bet to at least reach the final—in addition to her recent domination in Australia, she’s also been dominant at the hard-court majors, reaching the final at all six of them since the start of 2023, and winning four of them (she finished runner-up to Coco Gauff at the 2023 US Open and to Keys at the 2025 Australian Open).