MELBOURNE, Jan 17 — Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka fought off serving issues to defeat Denmark’s Clara Tauson 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 and reach the second week of the Australian Open.

The world number one faced a tough challenge in a match lasting over two hours on Rod Laver Arena but maintained her quest for a third consecutive title in Melbourne.

Sabalenka struggled with her serve throughout, especially early in the match when Tauson broke her in the opening game. Despite this, Sabalenka stayed focused, breaking back and winning the first set after a tense tiebreak.

The second set followed a similar pattern, with Sabalenka securing a key break at 4-4 and surviving two break points to close out the match after 2 hours and 6 minutes.

Next up for Sabalenka is either Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva or Poland’s Magdalena Frech as she continues her bid for a rare hat-trick of Australian Open titles, a feat last achieved by Martina Hingis in 1999.