Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka have now played each other 12 times. Sabalenka has the head-to-head lead, but oddly, the players have traded wins (and losses) over their last seven matches. During the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open, it was seemingly simply Rybakina's time.
Sabalenka never seemed comfortable as Rybakina dominated from the beginning. She was hitting the ball crisply and kept the WTA No. 1 easily off-balance. So much so that the Belarusian began attempting shots, such as drop shots, that she would not otherwise do.
She was lost, and the Kazakhstani wasn't going to let her back in the match. The shock was that Sabalenka wasn't beating herself. She landed a higher percentage of her first serves, for instance. The problem was that when Rybakina did land a first serve, Sabalenka could do nothing with it. In set one, the Belarusian didn't win a point on the Kazakhstani's first serve.
Elena Rybakina in excellent form in beating Aryna Sabalenka at the Cincinnati Open
After a delay between sets, when both players went into the locker room, Sabalenka tried to make a comeback. She won her first service game and appeared more focused. But then things reverted to the norm, and Rybakina won the next three games. She simply needed to hold serve to move into the Cincy semis, which she did to take the second set 6-4.
After reaching No. 3 in 2023, Elena Rybakina struggled through 2024 when she withdrew or retired from double-digit tournaments. One might have wondered if her love for the sport was gone. She fired her long-term coach and then rehired him to start 2025. Things seemed to be a mess.
But now she is back in the WTA top 10, and she has the power to be dangerous for the rest of the year. She could also make up a lot of points. Her semifinal appearance at the Cincinnati Open is her best yet. She has never made it past the third round at the upcoming US Open, and only reached round two last year.
She will next play Iga Swiatek in the semifinals. That should be a fantastic match as both players are in excellent form. The winner has a definite chance to take the title in Cincinnati.