Elena Rybakina: Kazakhstan's ice-cool Moscow-born Melbourne finalist

Peter STEBBINGS Fri, 30 January 2026 at 4:17 am UTC·3 min read Born in Moscow but playing for Kazakhstan, Australian Open finalist Elena Rybakina once said that "I don't live anywhere, to be honest". One place she does feel very much at home however is the tennis court, and particularly Melbourne's hard courts.Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The big-serving 26-year-old faces world number one Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday's title decider, a rematch of the 2023 final. On that occasion the Belarusian fought back to win in three sets and deny Rybakina a second Grand Slam crown, the Kazakh having triumphed on the grass at Wimbledon a few months earlier. Since Russia...