The Kazakhstani needs just one more win to take the lead in the world rankings. She didn’t let Naomi Osaka hold her up for long.
Kazakhstani Elena Rybakina is just one win away from jumping to No. 1 in the world tennis rankings. The 27-year-old advanced to the quarterfinals at the U.S. Open in New York with a commanding 6-1, 6-4 victory over former tournament champion Naomi Osaka (Japan). There, she will face the resurgent Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen of China.
Rybakina entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed behind Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka; Americans Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula are also among the quartet vying for the tennis throne. Rybakina, who reached the quarterfinals for the first time at the season’s final Grand Slam tournament, has the best chances. She is the only player this week who has it in her own hands to climb to the top of the rankings.
Rybakina clearly dominant against Osaka
Rybakina gave Osaka—who triumphed in New York in 2018 and 2020 and drew attention with her extravagant outfits before her matches—barely a chance. After just over an hour, the Australian Open champion converted her third match point and remained undefeated in sets through her fourth match of the tournament.
She’ll next face Zheng, who defeated Poland’s Iga Swiatek 7-5, 6-3 after another comeback. The former world No. 4, who had fallen far behind in the rankings after elbow surgery and had to fight her way into the main draw through qualifying, was already down 0–5 in the first set but then turned the match around.
In the previous round, she had also trailed 0–5 in the decisive set against Madison Keys of the U.S. before managing to turn the tide. “I guess coming back from a 0–5 deficit isn’t just luck—that’s all I can say,” said Zheng, who admitted that she first had to get used to the massive Arthur Ashe Stadium.
