WHAT HAPPENED: When Elena Rybakina, who plays for Kazakhstan, took the women’s singles crown at Wimbledon in 2022, she was a relative unknown. Now aged 24, the big-hitting baseliner is famous for her booming serve—and is number one on the women’s tour for aces, having hammered 396 this year alone.
On Monday, Rybakina hit just four in a straight-sets win over Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine, but she was impressive nonetheless.
Kostyuk, ranked No. 39 in the world (to her opponent’s No. 4), beat Rybakina in the sole match they’ve played, in Adelaide this year. While their straight-sets contest was spirited, Rybakina was able to even that score today, beating Kostyuk 6-2, 6-1.
As is her way, Rybakina was able to rely on her serve to get out of tricky games. Apart from that factor, the players looked remarkably similar—quick, quiet and remarkably athletic, with Kostyuk sliding into splits to get her racquet on Rybakina’s deep, angled shots.
But the favored player took an early lead and never looked back, closing out the first set, 6-2, in under an hour.
As the clock hit 60 minutes, and with Rybakina ahead in the second set 3-0, Kostyuk called for a medical timeout, resulting in treatment to her right quad. Taped up, she hit an ace to open the game and was finally able to hold her serve.
But Rybakina kept her focus, kept her opponent scrambling from side to side, and took the second set, 6-1.
WHAT IT MEANS: Rybakina looks to have favorable weather ahead, at least on paper, to make the second week of the US Open for the first time.
The surging Karolina Muchova, who also breezed into the second round, is the only other Top 10 seed in their quarter of the draw after No. 8 Maria Sakkari. But the road looks rockier during the second week, with No. 1 seed Iga Swiatek looming at the top of their draw.
Asked after the match if there’s a player she fears, Rybakina laughed. “Only myself,” she replied. “But hopefully the rest of the match[es], I’ll play like this.”
MATCH POINT: Despite her ranking—and success elsewhere—Rybakina has yet to see top results at a US Open. Her best result was a Round 3 match in 2021, which she lost to Simona Halep.
