Australian Open semi-finals preview

With the first Grand Slam of the year in full swing, only four men and four women remain in the race to be named this year’s Australian Open winners.

Three of the world’s top-10 male players have made it to the semi-final, with a big surprise contender in world number 21, Ben Shelton, throwing his hat in the ring to win his first Grand Slam.

For the women, the top two in the world, Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Świątek, find themselves on opposite sides of the draw against two contenders ranked outside of the top 10.

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Jannik Sinner (1/16) vs Ben Shelton (8/1)

Jannik Sinner produced an immaculate display in the quarter-final to dispatch world number eight Alex de Minaur in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 and 6-1. This dominant performance from the world number one has earnt him favourite status ahead of his semi-final clash with the 21st-ranked player, Ben Shelton.

Shelton has only reached one semi-final in a Grand Slam before, which came on home soil in the US Open in 2023, losing in straight sets to Novak Djokovic. Shelton will put up a fight but it’s pretty hard to overlook Sinner who goes for his second consecutive Australian Open title, as well as his second consecutive Grand Slam having picked up the US Open title at the end of last year.

Novak Djokovic (8/13) vs Alexander Zverev (13/10)

Djokovic looks back to his best having beaten youngster Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-final, tennis’ favourite intergenerational rivalry. Novak goes for his 11th Australian Open title, as if to prove to the naysayers of this year that there’s life in the old dog yet.

That said, this looks the closest contest of all the semi-finals, as Djokovic has a serious challenger in world number two Alexander Zverev. Operating in a particularly difficult generation of tennis players, Zverev hasn’t managed to get his head in front yet in a Grand Slam, having reached the semi-final twice in this tournament over the last 10 years, most recently last year going two sets up only to lose the following three to Daniil Medvedev.

Djokovic will likely prevail, but odds of 8/13 aren’t the most attractive.

Aryna Sabalenka (2/7) vs Paula Badosa (13/5)

Aryna Sabalenka certainly hit her form last year, sweeping up two of the Grand Slams on offer, and goes for her third successive victory in the Australian Open this year. Heading into this clash with Paula Badosa, the world number 11, Sabalenka will be confident in her ability on the surface to make it to the final yet again.

Sabalenka is deserving of her short odds given her recent history in the tournament and losing just one set in her five matches so far. However, Badosa managed to get the better of American wonderkid and world number three Coco Gauff in the quarter-final in straight sets.

It’s never easy to go against a two-time Australian Open winner, but at odds of 13/5, Badosa could cause another upset on her journey to the final.

Madison Keys (4/1) vs Iga Świątek (1/6)

Despite her short odds, Iga Świątek has only ever reached the semi-final once in her past six attempts in Australia, with her prowess coming into its own on the clay surface in France, on which she’s managed four French Open titles. Her odds are more reflective of her opponent, Madison Keys, who is the current world number 19.

Keys has reached the semi-final in Australia twice since her debut in 2012 and looks the stark outsider in this clash. With no experience in winning Grand Slams, having reached one final in her career, this should be pretty straightforward for Świątek.