Last-second winner! Rybakina strikes the final blow to open the gates of Riyadh

The WTA Tour is back in Tokyo this week, with numerous stars battling for the championship, alongside a silent but intense “last push” for a year-end Finals berth. Kazakhstan’s Rybakina advanced to the semifinals by beating Mboko 6-3, 7-6(4) straight sets, clinching the final singles quarterfinal spot for this season’s WTA Finals.

Just over two weeks ago, Rybakina’s chances to qualify for the year-end Finals were slim. Before the Wuhan Open began, she was trailing Andreyeva by 500 points in the race for the championship. After reaching the quarterfinals in Wuhan, she cut the gap to 400 points, meaning she needed to win one WTA 500 title and reach another semifinal in the next two tournaments to surpass her rival. This challenge tested both her mental strength and technical skills severely.

Making her debut in Ningbo, Rybakina captured the title with an impressive four-match winning streak, defeating top players Yastremska, Tomljanovic, Paolini, and Aleksandrova. In the final against Aleksandrova, she came back from a set down to claim her second title of the year and further narrow the points gap with Andreyeva.

Arriving in Tokyo, Rybakina admitted in an interview that she felt slightly fatigued but vowed to give her all in this “final battle” for the year-end qualification, needing to reach the quarterfinals to achieve her goal. Her first opponent was former US Open runner-up Fernandez, who had just won the Osaka Open last week and was in great form. However, the Kazakh player outperformed her to win in straight sets. At the final hurdle stood 19-year-old Canadian rising star Mboko, whom she had faced in the Montreal semifinals in August, where Mboko saved match points to win. This made the match a “revenge” battle for Rybakina. Ultimately, she dominated with powerful serves and baseline attacks, winning the high-pressure match and dramatically overtaking at the finish line to secure the last year-end Finals spot.

In 2023, Rybakina became the first Kazakh singles player to appear at the WTA Finals, and this year marks her third consecutive appearance. This is not only a continuation of her honor but also the best reward for her hard work throughout the season. This ticket embodies her sweat, regrets, victories, and aspirations from the past year. This season, she won two WTA 500 titles in Ningbo and Strasbourg, and also reached the semifinals at three WTA 1000 events: Dubai, Montreal, and Cincinnati.

As a representative of the power-hitting style in women’s tennis, Rybakina’s game revolves around strength, speed, and pressure. Her chosen racquet, the YONEX VCORE 100, delivers enhanced spin and faster ball speed, helping her convert every swing into a threatening shot while providing enough control and forgiveness.

Rybakina, along with Pegula, Keys, and Paolini, forms the YONEX contingent that holds half of the singles quarterfinal spots at this season’s WTA Finals, which will take place from November 1 to 8. Fans eagerly await these players to create an exciting new chapter as the season concludes.

(Text by Wang Fei, Photos courtesy of Visual China)