WTA Finals 2025 champ takes centre stage on Margaret Court Arena.
2023 runner-up Elena Rybakina opens her account at the Australian Open 2026 against Kaja Juvan of Slovenia in the Round of 128 on Tuesday. The Kazakh starlet won the season-ending WTA Finals to cap off an impressive campaign last year, and will look to add another Grand Slam trophy to her list of accolades. For Juvan, an opener on Margaret Court Arena presents a platform where she has nothing to lose. Can the underdog give the No. 5 seed a thing or two to worry about?
When we look at this match-up, it is a face-off between the World No. 5 and World No. 100. Rybakina has 392 wins and 163 losses in her professional career. On the other side, Juvan has played fewer matches in total (386) than the number of victories registered by her 26-year-old counterpart. During the latter part of 2025, Rybakina secured championship runs in Strasbourg, Ningbo and Riyadh. She is a former Wimbledon champion who lost in the pre-quarterfinals to eventual champion Madison Keys at the Australian Open last year.
According to the tennis betting odds on BetMGM, Elena Rybakina is the favorite to win this encounter at -2000. Kaja Juvan’s pre-match odds of +950 place her at a disadvantage on the moneyline. Here’s how we are betting on Elena Rybakina vs Kaja Juvan at the Australian Open 2026, including our best bets, supporting odds and a set-score prop for bigger prices.
Tournament & Round: Australian Open 2026, Round of 128
Surface: Outdoor Hard Court
Format: Women’s Singles, Best of Three Sets
Date & Start Time: January 20, 13:30 Local (Approx.)
Given below are the latest odds for Elena Rybakina vs Kaja Juvan from the top sportsbooks. We are looking at the match money line, game handicap and total games, plus some set betting markets where available.
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Interestingly enough, the last time these two players stood across the net was at this very tournament, two years ago. Rybakina dropped just three games on the day, and went on to reach the summit clash that year. In Brisbane, the World No. 5 reached the quarterfinal stage where she lost to Karolina Muchova. Consequently, Juvan was humbled by American Caty McNally in straight sets at Hobart.
Rybakina served an uncharacteristic seven double faults during her loss last week. But if she can settle into a rhythm and find her strike zone, the unseeded Slovenian does not have the weapons to contend with Rybakina. After all, Juvan won just 37% first serve return points and converted well under 50% break points in 2025. We are predicting a possible scoreline of 6-2 6-3 or better for Rybakina, making <17.5 at -104 a best bet.
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Elena Rybakina Recent Form
Brisbane International 2026: Quarterfinal
WTA Finals 2025: Winner
Pan Pacific Open 2025: Semifinal
Ningbo Open 2025: Winner
Wuhan Open 2025 Quarterfinal
Kaja Juvan Recent Form
Hobart International 2026: Qualifying
Jiangxi Open 2025: Round of 16
Guangzhou Open 2025: Round of 32
Japan Open 2025: Qualifying
US Open 2025: Qualifying
Elena Rybakina vs Kaja Juvan Head to Head Record
Elena Rybakina leads the head-to-head against Kaja Juvan by 1-0. At the Australian Open in 2023, the Kazakh powerhouse dominated her lower ranked opposition in the Round of 64. She did not face a single break point, and won 88% points on her first serve out on John Cain Arena. This is set to be their second meeting at the same event and surface.
Event
Round
Winner
Score
2023 Australian Open
Round of 64
Elena Rybakina
6-2 6-1
How to Watch Elena Rybakina vs Kaja Juvan at the Australian Open 2026?
The Australian Open 2026 can be viewed live on a variety of streaming platforms and TV channels across the world. This includes Tennis Channel, Stan Sport, ESPN International, TSN, beIN Sports, SuperSport, Canal+, Sony Sports, Eurosport and TNT Sports – depending on where you are watching from.
Date
January 20, 2026
Time
13:30 Local (Approx.)
Tournament
Australian Open 2026, Round of 128
Surface
Outdoor Hard Court
Court
Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne
TV/Streaming
Tennis Channel, Stan Sport, ESPN International, TSN, beIN Sports, SuperSport, Canal+, Sony Sports, Eurosport, TNT Sports
A passionate sports fan through and through, I am currently pursuing my MA in Global Sports Journalism. I specialise in tennis and football writing at The Playoffs News, and I have prior experience working at EssentiallySports and Sportskeeda. Born and raised in Bengaluru, India, sport was my safe space right from my childhood. After trying my hand at multiple sports and representing my educational institutions in cricket, badminton and table tennis, I found sports media to be my calling.
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