Elena Rybakina entered Monday’s match having lost her last four meetings with Iga Swiatek.
That streak is over.
WTA Finals: Scores | Draws | Order of play
Rybakina rallied past the No. 2 seed 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 in 1 hour and 37 minutes to improve to 2-0 at this year’s WTA Finals and take sole possession of first place in the Serena Williams Group. The victory puts her within reach of a semifinal berth in Riyadh, as she’ll officially advance past the round-robin stage if Amanda Anisimova defeats Madison Keys later in the day.
Rybakina’s win extends a dominant stretch of play not just in Riyadh, but across the entire Asian Swing. She’s won each of the last eight matches she’s contested, and 10 of the last 11, with the lone loss coming against world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Perhaps even more impressive, she also became just the second player to beat Swiatek in 2025 after dropping the opening set, a feat previously accomplished by Keys at the Australian Open.
Swiatek is now 54-2 this season after winning the first set, while Rybakina improves to 8-15 when losing the opening set this year.
More to come…
