Aryna Sabalenka continued her remarkable dominance on Australian soil with a clinical 6-4, 6-3 victory over Marta Kostyuk in the Brisbane International final on Saturday, claiming her 22nd career WTA title and sending an ominous warning to her rivals ahead of the Australian Open.

The world No. 1 needed just one hour and 17 minutes to dispatch Kostyuk, capping off a flawless week in which she did not drop a single set en route to defending her Brisbane crown. The performance was vintage Sabalenka: powerful, precise, and utterly commanding from start to finish.

With this triumph, Sabalenka etched her name further into the history books. She became only the third woman to successfully defend the Brisbane title, joining an elite group that includes Serena Williams and Karolina Pliskova. Perhaps more significantly, her 22nd career title moved her past compatriot Victoria Azarenka for third place on the list of most WTA Tour titles among active players, trailing only Venus Williams and Iga Swiatek.

The statistics from the final tell the story of Sabalenka's supremacy. She won an impressive 81 percent of her first-serve points and faced only three break points throughout the entire match, a testament to her serving prowess and ability to control rallies on her terms. Kostyuk, despite her fighting spirit, simply had no answer for the relentless pressure applied by the top seed.

Sabalenka's love affair with Australia shows no signs of cooling. Her record in the country over her past 40 matches stands at an extraordinary 38-2, a run of form that has coincided with her emergence as the dominant force in women's tennis. Since capturing her first Australian Open title in 2023, she has made Melbourne Park her personal fortress, and few would bet against her extending that reign when the first Grand Slam of the year begins on January 18.

The Brisbane title defense serves as the perfect preparation for Sabalenka's quest for a historic third consecutive Australian Open championship. Should she achieve that feat, she would join an exclusive club of players who have completed such a remarkable three-peat at Melbourne Park.

For Kostyuk, the defeat will sting, but the Ukrainian can take solace in another strong week of competition. Reaching a final against the world's best player is no small achievement, and her performances suggest she remains a dangerous opponent capable of troubling the elite.

As Sabalenka departs Brisbane with another trophy in hand, the message to the rest of the tour is clear: the world No. 1 is playing some of the best tennis of her career at precisely the right moment. Her combination of raw power, improved consistency, and newfound composure under pressure makes her the overwhelming favorite for the Australian Open.

The hard courts of Melbourne await, and Aryna Sabalenka arrives with momentum, confidence, and history firmly within her sights. For her competitors, stopping the Sabalenka juggernaut appears a more daunting task than ever.