The women's doubles draw at the 2026 Australian Open has reached the semifinals, guaranteeing a new champion after the defending pair's exit. Four teams advanced through tense quarterfinal matches in Melbourne. Key upsets and strong performances defined the path to the final four.
The Australian Open doubles competition in Melbourne entered its decisive phase on January 28, 2026, with the semifinals lineup confirmed following quarterfinal victories. Reigning champions Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, the top-ranked duo, were ousted by seventh seeds Aleksandra Krunić and Anna Danilina in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-0 match. Krunić and Danilina, representing Slovakia and Kazakhstan, secured 70% of their first-service points and delivered a third-set bagel, mirroring their dominance in prior three-set encounters at the tournament. This marks their second straight win over Siniakova and Townsend, having previously met in the Roland Garros quarterfinals last year, where the pair advanced to the final before losing to Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini.
In another quarterfinal, Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani prevailed over Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko 6-1, 7-6 (5) in Margaret Court Arena. The rekindled partnership, last competing together in 2023 at events like Roland Garros and Madrid, has won all Melbourne matches in straight sets. They broke opponents four times, landed 82% of first serves, and captured 43% of return points on first serves, building on momentum from Stefani's runner-up finish at the 2025 WTA Finals with Timea Babos.
Elise Mertens and Shuai Zhang, ranked No. 6 and No. 15 in doubles, advanced by defeating Eri Hozumi and Fang-Hsien Wu 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. The pair, who teamed up once in 2025 at the Miami Open and a few times in 2024, notched five aces to one and secured four breaks in the match.
Vera Zvonareva and Ena Shibahara rounded out the semifinalists with a 6-4, 6-7 (3), 7-5 win over Australian hopefuls Talia Gibson and Kimberly Birrell. Zvonareva, 41, returned from a long layoff late last year and recently reached the Canberra final with Shibahara this month.
The semifinals pit Krunić and Danilina against Dabrowski and Stefani, while Mertens and Zhang face Zvonareva and Shibahara, promising fresh contenders for the title.
