Elena Rybakina again reminded why she should be considered one of the most dangerous tennis players in the world. In the group stage match of the WTA Final Championship in Riyadh, the sixth racket of the world from Kazakhstan beat the second, Iga Swiatek. And she did it effectively: 3:6, 6:1, 6:0. The Polish woman started strong, as usual, but Rybakina managed to turn the tide of the game and literally destroyed her opponent in the second and third sets.

Rybakina’s bad start

At first everything went according to the usual scenario for their duels. Swiatek led 3:0 within a few minutes – she served powerfully, forced Rybakina to make mistakes, and took the ball tightly. Nothing went well for Elena: a broken forehand, unforced errors, a missed break point. It seemed that the Polish player would again prove who the leader was here – after all, before this season she had already beaten Rybkina four times on hard and clay.

Rybakina tried to come back – she took service games, included powerful crosses, but Swiatek kept the pace. 6:3 — Iga took the first set and seemed confidently heading towards her fifth victory in a row over Elena.

Rybakina switched on a different speed and made a “steering wheel”

In the second set, it seemed like a completely different Rybakina came out. The former Russian added more aggression, improved her serve and began to press from the baseline. Already in the first game, Iga could not maintain the rhythm – she made a mistake in length, and there was a break. Elena took six out of seven rallies in a row, and Szwiatek simply fell apart. By the middle of the set, it became clear that the initiative was entirely with the representative of Kazakhstan. The Polish woman’s mistakes multiplied, but Rybakina acted calmly and accurately. 6:1 – and the match started again.

Elena Rybakina / Photo: © Matthew Stockman / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

If in the second set Rybakina simply dominated, then in the third she destroyed her opponent. Iga did not win a single game. Rybakina served flawlessly – aces, sharp crosses, tight shots under the line. Swiatek couldn’t cope and looked more and more confused with each game. The finale of the game was an ace on the second serve. 6:0. Elena didn’t just win, she did it in a way that only four tennis players in the world had managed before: to win a set to zero against Swiatek.

“I’m glad I improved with every play”

After the match, Rybakina looked calm – as if everything was going according to plan.

“It’s always very difficult to play against her because she puts out so much intensity on the court. It seemed to me that she started the match well, but I slowed down a little. I immediately lost the break on serve, so it was difficult. But in the second set I improved, my serve improved, and I’m really glad that I improved and played better with each rally. I am very pleased with my game and thank you very much for your support.

In recent weeks I have been playing very well and I am glad that, firstly, I improved with each match, and the result followed suit. And here I try to pay attention to the little things. This is a great opportunity to play against the strongest opponents. I’m very excited about my next match and hope to maintain the same level of intensity and play,” Rybakina said in an on-court interview.

For Elena, this is already the second victory in the group stage – earlier she beat Amanda Anisimova (6:3, 6:1). Now she has 11 victories over tennis players from the top 2 of the WTA rankings – the same number as Elina Svitolina. According to this indicator, only Venus Williams (29) is higher among active players. The victory over Swiatek was Rybakina’s 40th on hard court this season – only Iga herself had achieved such a result before. In addition, Elena became the fifth tennis player who managed to take a set to zero against Swiatek.

Thanks to this victory, Rybakina topped her group at the WTA Finals and, after Anisimova’s victory over Keys, advanced to the semifinals from first place. The Kazakh tennis player of Russian origin has an excellent chance of winning the prestigious title. In Riyadh, Elena shows championship-level tennis – calm, powerful and confident. And if she keeps up the same form, the tournament may have a new queen.