Tennis loves a good narrative, with the sport always eager to thrust hyperbolic titles onto its title-winners.
When Elena Rybakina claimed her maiden Grand Slam crown at Wimbledon in 2022 and followed it with a final appearance at the 2023 Australian Open, the likes of Chris Evert, Patrick Mouratoglou and even Jessica Pegula were among those to christen the Kazakhstani as part of an emerging "Big 3" in women's tennis alongside Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek.
From Roland Garros in 2022 through the same event in 2023, that trio won all five major titles. But the talk of a dominant triple threat was short-lived; parity was re-established in the women's game as first-time major winners Marketa Vondrousova and Coco Gauff snapped up the Wimbledon and US Open titles, respectively, to close the season.
Sabalenka, Swiatek and Rybakina charted distinct paths from there, with Sabalenka owning the world No. 1 ranking since October 2024, Swiatek dipping as low as No. 8 before her resurgent Wimbledon triumph in 2025, and Rybakina dropping to No. 12 as she spent four months outside the Top 10 last year.
But after Rybakina's title triumph at the 2026 Australian Open, a run that went through Swiatek in the quarters and Sabalenka in the final, the trio once again owns the top three spots in the WTA rankings.
"I always believed that I [could] come back to the level I was," Rybakina said after Jennifer Capriati presented her with her 12th tour-level trophy. "Of course, we all have ups and downs. I think everyone thought maybe I will never be again in the final or even get a trophy, but it's all about the work."
In a rematch of the 2023 Aussie Open final, won by Sabalenka in three sets, this time it was Rybakina still standing after a heavyweight fight that went the distance. The power punchers traded haymakers on serve and from the baseline on Saturday in Melbourne, with Rybakina using a late flurry to emerge a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 winner. Sabalenka had seized control with a five-game run from 4-4 in the third set, only for the Kazakhstani to snap back with five straight games of her own.
A single break decided each of the opening sets, with Rybakina's break in the opening game of set one holding up before Sabalenka broke through in the final game of the second.
The world No. 1 had not faced a break point since that opening game, but after fighting through one to hold for 3-0 in the deciding set, she succumbed to big hitting from Rybakina on return. With the match on her racquet, the Kazakhstani made no mistake down the stretch, closing out the win with her sixth ace.
"She goes for her shots without any doubt," Sabalenka said of her opponent post-match. "I still had opportunities, but the level was incredible. I feel like she just played more aggressive."
While Sabalenka—champion at four of the previous seven hard-court majors and a finalist or better in five of the past six Slams overall—was the Australian Open favorite, Rybakina has been the WTA Tour's hottest player since the end of Wimbledon last summer. She has posted the most match wins in that span and claimed the WTA Finals title in November by notching five Top 10 wins, beating Swiatek in round-robin play and Sabalenka in the Saudi Arabia final.
"When you get some wins, big wins against top players, then you start to believe more," Rybakina said of her turnaround. "You get more confident. That was the kind of way."
At the start of the 2026 Australian Open, returning finalist Sabalenka sat more than 2,600 points above Swiatek atop the WTA rankings, with nearly 2,000 points more separating the Pole from Gauff at No. 3. Rybakina was ranked No. 5, more than 500 points adrift of Gauff.
Following the Melbourne major, the previously hyped Big 3 once again owns the top three rankings places: Sabalenka has further separated herself with a more than 3,000-point gap from No. 2 Swiatek, but Rybakina's title leaves her on the Pole's heels at No. 3, matching her career high.
Talk of a Big 3 has not proven prescient, with the tremendous depth of the WTA Tour preventing stretches of sustained dominance. But if the 26-year-old Rybakina continues in her current form, she could soon end up with a smaller number and an even bigger moniker: world No. 1.
Asked if she already felt like the best player in the world, and whether the top spot in the rankings was an immediate goal, Rybakina gave nothing away in a modest reply.
"Yeah, I have big goals. Of course, time will show, but definitely we will keep on working, and hopefully I achieve my goals," she said.
"I'm going to keep on working. Let's see what's going to happen."
The Kazakhstani prefers to let her game do the talking.
