Elena Rybakina has been in blistering form since her heartbreaking loss to Anna Blinkova in the second round of the Australian Open this year. The tiring match saw the longest tiebreak ever played in women’s tennis history in the second set, with forty-two points played.
She has since made it to four finals in the five tournaments that she has played, not counting Indian Wells where she withdrew before her first match. Rybakina has won two of these finals, at Abu Dhabi and Stuttgart. Despite some injury concerns, she has been one of the most consistent players on the WTA tour and she believes she can continue the sensational form into the French Open. The Kazakh fancied her chances to win the title in Paris during a press conference held after her final at Stuttgart, where she ousted Marta Kostyuk in straight sets.
After cruising past the Ukrainian Kostyuk to her first clay court title of the season, Elena Rybakina oozed confidence as she said to the press that she had all the chances to win her maiden clay-court grand slam.
There is a lot of great players, tough opponents. But I know if I feel fresh, if I'm physically ready, healthy, I'm playing my game, of course I have all the chances to win Grand Slam on any surface. Elena Rybakina told the press
The French Open has witnessed a one-sided domination on the women’s side, with Iga Swiatek winning three of the last four editions. It has been a similar scenario to what has been happening on the men’s side for the last two decades. With the Polish world number one still being the favorite to win the title at the sole clay court slam, Rybakina received a huge confident boost in Stuttgart where she clawed past Swiatek in the semifinal, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.
Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina lead the race to the WTA Finals event
One of the most prestigious tournaments on the WTA tour is the WTA Finals, which happens towards the far end of every season. It is a very exclusive event, with only the eight best players of the year being granted entry.
This year, despite not winning the first grand slam in Australia, Iga Swiatek leads the race, closely followed by Elena Rybakina. Aryna Sabalenka, who won the Australian Open, is in third and has been having a dry run with no titles following her Grand Slam triumph.
Rybakina improved her position by winning the Stuttgart Open title, gaining 500 ranking points. She now trails Swiatek by less than 200 points. If the two of them continue their rampage into the French Open, they will almost certainly confirm their spots in the WTA Finals, which will be held in Riyadh between the 3rd and the 10th of November.
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