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Pegula 3-6 3-5 Rybakina* Big serve down the T, desperate loopy return that looks awkward, forehand winner punished to the corner; 15-0. Kicking serve, backhand return long; 30-0. And though another loopy return doesn\u2019t get the same treatment, at 30-15 a service winner raises two game points \u2026 the first saved when Pegula lands a return on the line, then sweeps a forehand winner towards the corner. For all the difference it makes, an ace down the T taking Rybakina to within a game of the final, with the sense she\u2019s got loads left.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Pegula 3-6 3-4 Rybakina To serve an ace out wide from the advantage court requires a ridiculous amount of power and timing \u2013 and Rybakina did it twice in the last game, making it look so easy you wonder why doesn\u2019t do it every time. At 15-all, an inside-out backhand to one corner opens the space for a forehand down the line into the other, and this match is speeding to a conclusion now. Pegula, though, forces her way to 30-all, then a forehand-volley combo earns game point, quickly converted, but can she retrieve the break? The chances do not look good.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Pegula 3-6 2-4 Rybakina* Pegula sticks in the first rally of the game and Rybakina goes long with a backhand down the line; an ace out wide follows, underlining the relative difference in strength. A netted backhand then offers 30-15, another ace out wide raises two points for consolidation and just as the game looks secure, Rybakina overhits a forehand having worked the opportunity to finish the rally; 40-30, and a bit of pressure. But a long return releases it, and this is almost over.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Pegula 3-6 2-3 Rybakina An error then a winner on return make 0-30, Pegula then forced to find a brilliant shot from the back when another fine return gets to her faster than ideal. But it only postpones the pressure, another superb point raising two opportunities to break again. A big serve and overhead negates the first, but a backhand which clips the line and skids converts the second, and I\u2019m afraid there\u2019s a significant class differential in operation here; Pegula can play better, but ultimately there\u2019s not loads she can do against an opponent superior in the most important areas.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Pegula 3-6 2-2 Rybakina* Mentally, Pegula hasn\u2019t recovered from Rybakina\u2019s dominant start, and is struggling to deal with her forehand coming under attack; her coach is trying to reassure her that she knows the tactic and can cope by giving herself space, but she won\u2019t let herself believe it. Still, she gets to 30-all from 30-0 as the Kazakh seeks to endorse and has a look at a second serve; she doesn\u2019t give it the treatment she should, but an error from Rybakina hands over break-back point \u2026 converted when she stops in the rally long enough to benefit from the error. Might that be a momentum switch? Er, probably not, but you never know.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Pegula 3-6 1-2 Rybakina At 15-0, Rybaina forces Pegula to play another shot thanks to a running forehand down the line and it\u2019s netted, then a further netted forehand takes us to 30-all. Pegula isn\u2019t enjoying this \u2013 you can see her getting down on herself with every error \u2013 and even when a fine backhand switches momentum in the next rally, a miserable volley allows Rybakina to go down the line, and the stretch-volley again hits the net. Then, serving at break-point down, Pegula lands one right in the slot, the ball power-glided into the corner for a winner, and I\u2019m afraid this match is passing her by.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Pegula 3-6 1-1 Rybakina* Every time Pegula talks to her box, she lets us know she\u2019s not happy; her coach is constantly trying to reassure her she can win, a perspective she doesn\u2019t seem to share. With good reason, Rybakina responding to a 0-15 deficit with a glorious backhand winner then a volley at the net \u2013 having approached cross not line, a dangerous tactic showing her confidence. She holds to 30 but never looked under threat.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Pegula 3-6 1-0 Rybakina Even as Pegula makes 40-0, there\u2019s the sense that it\u2019s taking everything she\u2019s got, while Rybakina has plenty in reserve. She holds to 15, but can she make an impression on return?<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Share<\/a>Elena Rybakina wins the first set against Jessica Pegula 6-3<\/p>\n Pegula 3-6 Rybakina* Between games, Pegula\u2019s coach told her to get her legs under her instead of lunging at the ball \u2013 currently, she\u2019s hitting off balance, rushed by her opponent\u2019s power, when she might step back to give herself a little more time. At 15-all, Rybakina delivers a service winner, her next effort is also too good, raising two set points \u2026 but a leaping backhand winner from Pegula ups the pressure. For all the difference it makes, a forehand winner larruped cross-court cementing the advantage.<\/p>\n Elena Rybakina prepares to fire off a forehand. Photograph: Edgar Su\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.10 EST<\/p>\n *Pegula 3-5 Rybakina It really feels like, after a weird period with slams won by all manner of player, women\u2019s tennis is on the cusp of a golden age. Sabalenka and Swiatek already have 10 between them, Gauff has two, Osaka four, Rybakina one, and Anisimova is coming, Andreeva too. There are going to be some serious tussles over the next five years and I\u2019ve not a clue how they\u2019ll shake out but, in the meantime, Pegula holds to 30, forcing the Kazakh to serve for the first set.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Pegula 2-5 Rybakina* More like it from Pegula, a gorgeous backhand cross breaking the sideline for 0-15. But a forehand winner gives Rybakina 30-15 and from there she secures another straightforward hold, the authority in her play a delight to behold. She\u2019s a game away from the first set.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Pegula 2-4 Rybakina Pegula nets a backhand for 15-all and for now at least, it feels like she\u2019s playing not competing, reacting not dictating. I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s nerves or just how well Rybakina is playing, but the Kazakh dominates the next rally to make 15-30, Pegula telling her box she can\u2019t do anything before hitting long to donate two double-break points. She saves both, though, then nails her best serve of the match so far, down the T and unreturned, then Rybakina sends a backhand long, but there\u2019s nevertheless a big difference between the way the two are playing.<\/p>\n Jessica Pegula plays a backhand return to Elena Rybakina. Photograph: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.54 EST<\/p>\n Pegula 1-4 Rybakina* Rybakina makes it seem so easy \u2013 her power is so natural, almost lazy. Unlike Sabalenka, she never looks like she\u2019s trying to hit it harder than anything\u2019s been hit before, the speed of her ball more about timing than physicality. She holds to love and as long as she serves like this, she\u2019ll be very hard to beat.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Pegula 1-3 Rybakina there were signs in that last game that Pegula is growing into it, but also signs that she can do all the growing she likes and it won\u2019t matter. And the next game offers more of the same, Rybakina finding a terrific backhand winner at 30-0 to make things interesting, before failing to attack the kind of second serve Sabalenka would\u2019ve liquidised. And when Pegula goes wide, at 40-30 she has another go at a second delivery, again failing to attack it, and the American is on the board.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Pegula 0-3 Rybakina* This is a very useful start from Rybakina, effortlessly emphasising her points of difference to make 30-0. And though a better shot from Pegula, deep into court, rushes her into netting, she quickly raises two game points and looks to have secured the first, only for a decent get to force her into volleying \u2026 and again, she nets. Ooooh, and look at that! Out of nowhere, Pegula hooks a forehand winner from centre to corner, making deuce \u2013 she\u2019ll need more of those \u2013 but a further unforced error donates advantage, and a return into the net means Rybakina consolidates her break.<\/p>\n Elena Rybakina eyes the ball as she prepares to serve to Jessica Pegula. Photograph: Jaimi Joy\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.53 EST<\/p>\n *Pegula 0-2 Rybakina The power differential is apparent immediately, Pegula forced to play several shots to still find herself down 0-30; Rybakina has started really well and gets close with a flat forehand return, which is just long, then again. But when Pegula wafts one of her own that sails over the baseline, she must face break point, finding a decent serve only to swat a backhand into the net when it\u2019s returned well. Stop me if you\u2019ve seen this one before.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Pegula 0-1 Rybakina* Rybakina\u2019s serve looks in good working order, her ball toss nice and high, and she nails three first deliveries in making 40-0. And the one second go she has to take is no less devastating, down the T and almost an ace, then cleaned up via forehand.<\/p>\n Jessica Pegula stretches to make a forehand to Elena Rybakina. Photograph: Quinn Rooney\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.42 EST<\/p>\n Rybakina to serve, ready \u2026 play.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n In a way, this second match is a facsimile of the first, except Pegula is better than Svitolina and Rybakina isn\u2019t as good as Sabalenka \u2013 with both playing perhaps as well as they ever have. Rybakina, in particular, might\u2019ve hit a new level in recent months, her improved consistency underpinning her natural power; if she plays well, she\u2019ll win, but Pegula has the skill and smarts to stop her from doing that.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Coming up next: Jessica Pegula (6) v Elena Rybakina (5).<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sabalenka is an absolute joke. Her hitting was, as it always is, sensational, but what\u2019s changed over the years is her ability to deliver power and precision under pressure. Mentally, she\u2019s much more even, never getting too high or too low \u2013 once upon a time, the hindrance call might\u2019ve hindered her \u2013 and she\u2019s reinventing women\u2019s tennis in real time.<\/p>\n Aryna Sabalenka displays her power in a forehand return. Photograph: Ella Ling\/ShutterstockShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.22 EST<\/p>\n Sabalenka tells Jelena Dokic that she can\u2019t believe she\u2019s reached the final without losing a set \u2013 I can\u2019t say I believe her \u2013 and she\u2019s super-proud of the achievement, but the job isn\u2019t finished yet.<\/p>\n Svitolina is a difficult opponent who\u2019s been playing great tennis, so she\u2019s glad to be through. She\u2019s been watching her play, so felt she had to step in and put pressure back on her, so again, she\u2019s happy to have recorded a great win.<\/p>\n The only other woman to reach four consecutive finals is Martina Hingis nearly 30 years ago, and how asked how proud her 10-year-old self would be, she feels the emotion of the occasion and of a life going exactly as desired; the answer she and Dokic decide upon is \u201cextremely\u201d.<\/p>\n Between now and the final, she and her boyfriend \u2013 who\u2019s been enjoying the sun by the looks of things \u2013 are watching Homeland and only on season two, so that\u2019s the plan.<\/p>\n Aryna Sabalenka signature on a tv camera following her semi-final victory over Elina Svitolina. Photograph: Joel Carrett\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.15 EST<\/p>\n Aryna Sabalenka (1) beats Elina Svitolina (12) 6-2 6-3<\/p>\n *Sabalenka 6-2 6-3 Svitolina Svitolina, still unable to solve the riddle of how you beat an opponent superior to you in all aspect and superior to anyone who\u2019s ever played the game in some; she goes long for 15-0, another error ant it\u2019s 30-0 \u2026 but a moon ball, played as a recovery-shot, falls long; 30-15. Naturally, Sabalenka responds with an ace down the T, raising two match points, the first of them snatched with first serve and two murderous forehands. A performance brilliant in its relentless, remorseless predictability and the world no 1 is into the final again.<\/p>\n A smiling Aryna Sabalenka responds to the crowd\u2019s applause. Photograph: Dar Yasin\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.06 EST<\/p>\n Sabalenka 6-2 5-3 Svitolina* Can Svitolina force Sabalenka to serve for it? She races to 40-0, but a double has the crowd sighing, another fault elicits the same reaction, and though the next serve lands in, it\u2019s a soft one, eventually converted into 30-40. The next return, though, drops long, meaning Sabalenka will now serve for the match and a place in a fourth consecutive final.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.00 EST<\/p>\n *Sabalenka 6-2 5-2 Svitolina When you watch Sinner and Alcaraz play anyone but each other, there\u2019s the sense that they\u2019ll play as well as the situation demands of them; they know no one can hurt them. And Sabalenka moves with the same aura, certain that only she can beat herself which, even if it\u2019s not true, gives her a psychological advantage over opponents trying to work out a way to get at her. But as I type, errors hand over 0-30, then at 30-all, a backhand winner from Svitolina, a second serve given due punishment, raises break-back point. This is the match right here \u2013 there may not be another chance \u2013 and you can only laugh when Sabalenka swats a forehand winner down the line like it\u2019s nothing \u2013 for avoidance of doubt, it is not nothing \u2013 to make deuce. And from there, she closes out to go a game away.<\/p>\n Aryna Sabalenka fires off a return to Elina Svitolina. Photograph: Edgar Su\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a005.00 EST<\/p>\n Sabalenka 6-2 4-2 Svitolina* Down 0-15, Svitolina will be relieved to see a return fly long, but she\u2019s soon back under pressure \u2026 so leaps into a forehand winner down the line; shot. But a backhand that drops fractionally long reminds us how difficult it is to play Sabalenka, the pressure to hit long or be cut short lingering through every point. Svitolina does, though, struggle to 40-30, then they zetz at each other from the back, a 15-stroke rally ending when she flaps one long, looking to get out of a point she\u2019s more likely to lose the longer it goes. And when a double follows, the match passes before her eyes, Sabalenka ramming home her advantage with a decent return then a backhand winner to the opposite corner. This is, as we feared, almost over.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Sabalenka 6-2 3-2 Svitolina Yeah, time\u2019s up. Sabalenka stomps through a love hold, and you fear for Svitolina when she serves after change of ends.<\/p>\n Aryna Sabalenka watches her backhand return. Photograph: Joel Carrett\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.54 EST<\/p>\n Sabalenka 6-2 2-2 Svitolina* Down 0-15, Svitolina plays a really good and controlled point; \u201cit\u2019s your arena, Aryna,\u201d shouts a hilarious man in the crowd. And she\u2019s showing why, disciplined hitting taking her to 15-40 and simply astonishing hitting, to one corner then the other, seizing back that break. Sabalenka isn\u2019t perfect, but beyond the titles she hasn\u2019t finished winning, she has changed our conception of the possible for evermore.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n *Sabalenka 6-2 1-2 Svitolina The problem Svitolina has is she didn\u2019t change anything, Sabalenka just lost focus for a game, having won the first set. But she\u2019s back into it now, a love hold underlining that reality. I\u2019d not be remotely surprised to see her break back in the extremely near future.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sabalenka 6-2 0-2 Svitolina* Suddenly, the energy in the arena changes. A terrific get from Svitolina allows the unforced error which follows, making 30-0 then, at 40-0, another dead net cord turns a poor shot into a winner; again, the apology has us choking up, and thus is the break endorsed.<\/p>\n Elina Svitolina fires off a forehand to Aryna Sabalenka. Photograph: Joel Carrett\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.42 EST<\/p>\n *Sabalenka 6-2 0-1 Svitolina I still remember the feeling the first time I saw Sabalenka play \u2013 I\u2019d never experienced anything remotely like it, quite a sensation given I\u2019d been watching this thing of ours for upwards of 35 years at the time. The thrill of seeing a ball assaulted in that way sustain even now though, as I pontificate, a loose game sees her donate 30-40 without demanding anything of Svitolina, then she swings a backhand long, and this is other side of the coin I just described: in our sport, with great power comes great vulnerability, every big shot fractions from being a poor shot.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Aryna Sabalenka takes the first set against Elina Svitolina 6-2<\/p>\n Sabalenka 6-2 Svitolina* An overhit forehand gives 0-15, then a pair of balls down the middle, when Svitolina had time to put Sabalenka on the bike, is punished with a hooked forehand winner. From 0-30 we move to 0-40 and three set points, the first saved when Svitolina hits deep \u2013 that might be her key to success \u2013 because again, the response is poor. A friendly net cord saves the second opportunity, the apology moving and heartfelt, but an unconscionable backhand, dematerialised flat, acute, and cross-court, secures break and set. Sabalenka is devastating.<\/p>\n Aryna Sabalenka prepares to fire off a forehand on her way to winning the first set in her Australian Open semi-final against Elina Svitolina. Photograph: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.31 EST<\/p>\n *Sabalenka 5-2 Svitolina At 30-0, Svitolina lands a backhand close to the baseline, exactly the kind of shot she needs to find more often \u2013 she can\u2019t match the power, but she can combat it with nagging accuracy. Then, at 40-15, she gets to enjoy a second serve, belting back a winner down the line, and when Sabalenka comes in to close out the game a forehand on to the tootsies takes us to deuce. This is better from Svitolina, and she goes for a backhand down the line next rally \u2026 only to clip the top of the net. Contextually, that, like the netted drop in her last receiving game, is a chance spurned, and from there, Sabalenka closes out the hold, scoreboard pressure mounting.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sabalenka 4-2 Svitolina* Down 0-15, Svitolina lands the outermost fibre of the ball on to the outermost fibre of the T for a an ace; Sabalenka looks at the evidence on the screen with deep disgust. We wind up at 30-all, and a terrific point from the world no 1 underlines her superiority, a comfortable putaway at the net after dominant clouting from the back raising a point for the double break. But Svitolina saves it when a return falls long \u2013 that was a chance for Sabalenka \u2013 but then on advantage, she again mistreats a second serve to restore deuce. Svitolina, though, survives another second serve \u2013 and each one really feels like death sentence \u2013 to again raise game point, converted via ace. She\u2019s still in the set, just.<\/p>\n Elina Svitolina bashes a backhand to Aryna Sabalenka. Photograph: Hollie Adams\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.28 EST<\/p>\n *Sabalenka 4-1 Svitolina At 15-all, Sabalenka doesn\u2019t hit the corner with an approach and is passed very nicely, then Svitolina comes in and in mid-court, has so much unreachable space into which she can hit, opting instead to try a drop \u2026 which she nets. That feels like a big moment, turning 15-40 into 30-all, and from there the consolidation is secured.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sabalenka 3-1 Svitolina* Oh! Sabalenka hit a loopy forehand with grunt, then when she thinks it\u2019s going out, emits a slightly different grunt of disappointment immediately after, it stays in, and the umpire calls her for hindrance \u2013 which seems harsh. She\u2019s as delighted by this as you\u2019d expect, asking for a review before eventually dismissing things with a wave of the hand; 0-15. A longer rally then ensues, Sabalenka trying a variety of noises as she dominates the exchange and eventually winning the point when Svitolina swipes wide; naturally she then approaches the chair wondering exactly what kind of pitch, tone and reverberation is permitted; no vocal coaching is forthcoming. But have a look! Sabalenka drops, Svitolina chases, and somehow, racket just above the surface, she steers a sensational, impossible winner cross-court. But she\u2019s fully extended just keeping pace, forcing her way to 40-30 only for a second serve to receive the treatment \u2026 then again when she makes advantage. And after Sabalenka saves a further game point, she again climbs into a second serve, eventually hammering a forehand winner down the line, and from there she secures the break, her power and accuracy too much. I can\u2019t lie, I\u2019m hoping she repairs back to the chair for further grunt philosophy, but she\u2019s too professional these days.<\/p>\n Aryna Sabalenka shares her opinion with the umpire. Photograph: Joel Carrett\/AAPShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a004.17 EST<\/p>\n *Sabalenka 2-1 Svitolina Sabalenka storms to 40-0, a backhand winner, thunked down the line when off balance, the the highlight. Her ability to hit winners from anywhere is like nothing we\u2019ve seen before in the women\u2019s game, and the hold is secured to 15.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sabalenka 1-1 Svitolina* But while she\u2019s staying patient in pursuit of the break, can Svitolina hold? Sabalenka dominates the first rally of the game, but it\u2019s quickly 15-all, then a netted return is followed by a tame double for 30-all. And from there, Svitolina closes out, the point which secures it a prototype of sorts, blocking back the power then responding well to a drop with a precise pick-up to the corner.<\/p>\n Elina Svitolina fires off a forehand to Aryna Sabalenka. Photograph: Jaimi Joy\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a003.57 EST<\/p>\n *Sabalenka 1-0 Svitolina (*denotes server) A forehand winner down the line and Svitolina is into the match; she needed that because even if Sabalenka holds, she\u2019s unlikely to win this match from behind. And when Sabalenka tries a drop, she races in \u2026 only to flick her riposte long, a missed opportunity. But she does make 15-30 and, when an inside-out backhand falls wide, has two break points; early drama coming up. An inside-out forehand that breaks the sideline confiscates the first, then a sensational backhand angle, from the corner flying flat and acute cross-court to again break the sideline for a winner does likewise with the second. Svitolina knows there are going to be plenty of those, those being ludicrous winners only Sabalenka can hit, and that she has to stay patient; from deuce, the hold is secured.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Sabalenka to serve, ready \u2026 play.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n You can\u2019t argue with Svitolina\u2019s run to the last four. She\u2019s beaten Shnaider, Andreeva and Gauff \u2013 who, admittedly, had her absolute worst day \u2013 without losing a set, won in Auckland before that, and won\u2019t ever have felt better about her game. I\u2019m excited to see what her plan is, because we can be sure she\u2019ll have one.<\/p>\n Elina Svitolina waves to the crowd whilst Aryna Sabalenka poses with a ball kid. Photograph: Hollie Adams\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a003.59 EST<\/p>\n Here come our players. Svitolina looks nervous, Sabalenka businesslike.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n These two have played six times, Sabalenka winning five; Svitolina\u2019s win came on clay, in 2020.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Chances are, Sabalenka takes it in two, however well Svitolina plays. But we\u2019ve all seen her break or melt down and, though it happens far less often these days, when you know it\u2019s in you, you know the possibility exists.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n There are, more or less, two ways of beating Sabalenka: the Wawrinka approach, used to beat Djokovic and Nadal in grand slam finals, which involves going for everything, or keeping the ball in play and waiting for errors or the chance to hit winners. I don\u2019t think Svitolina has the power or flow to take the first option, so it\u2019ll have to be the second, but aggressively pursued.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Why don\u2019t the people love me? <\/p>\n \ud83d\udde3 “I find it a little bit disrespectful!”<\/p>\n Novak Djokovic took issue with a reporter’s question about him “chasing” Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. \ud83e\udd37\u200d\u2642\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/ox7CrrtpJQ<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 BBC Sport (@BBCSport) January 28, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Svitolina, meanwhile, morphed into a different player after giving birth and following Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, fired with all the love and hope now she\u2019s competing for others as well as herself. She\u2019ll need to serve well, and off the ground, keep Sabalenka moving \u2013 not just side to side, but forward and backwards. If she can, then she\u2019s a chance, but it\u2019ll take the match of her life.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n I say Keys suddenly decided she could win, but actually, there was nothing sudden about it. Rather, it was the culmination of years of defeats, no-shows and collapses, prompting soul-searching, coach-changes and the terror of unfulfilled potential. The change was sudden, but the process was painstaking.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n G\u2019day and welcome to the Australian Open 2026<\/a> \u2013 day 12!<\/p>\n It\u2019s not often you wake up on a dingy and cold winter\u2019s morning mentally rubbing your hands together but, indubitably, this is one such occasion.<\/p>\n