Cincinnati (AFP) – Elena Rybakina defeated top seed Aryna Sabalenka 6-1, 6-4 on Friday to knock the defending champion out in the quarter-finals of the WTA and ATP Cincinnati Open. Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon winner, claimed a fifth victory in her 12-match personal rivalry with the world number one. The victory was revenge for a loss to Sabalenka on Berlin grass two months ago.
Rybakina will play in a semi-final against Iga Swiatek, who defeated Anna Kalinskaya 6-3, 6-4. Third-seeded reigning Wimbledon champion Swiatek dominated to break fresh ground at one of the only two 1000-level tournaments where she has failed to reach a final. Rybakina was helped by 11 aces as she upset Sabalenka to achieve her first Cincinnati semi-final.
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“I’m happy with the serve. It was the key today,” Rybakina said. “I served really well. If she had been serving well it would have been a totally different match. It was also intense from the baseline. I just hope to continue like this.” Rybakina has won her last three matches against Swiatek, all played this season. The Kazakh held her nerve in the second set as Sabalenka delivered a pair of love games, with Rybakina saving a pair of break points with aces to lead by a set and 5-3.
Swiatek needed 93 minutes and five match points to get past Kalinskaya and earn revenge for a loss she took in February 2024 in a Dubai semi-final. The former world number one finally moved into the Cincinnati final four on a steamy day after the 34th-ranked Kalinskaya saved four match points in the penultimate game. But third seed Swiatek, enduring 30 Celsius temperatures, finally prevailed to advance to her fourth 1000-level semi-final of the season.
“We need to get used to the heat with how the world is changing,” the winner of six Grand Slams said. “It’s getting worse and worse, I guess.” Swiatek, who broke on three of 11 chances in the match, said the contest was “much different” from her loss last season against Kalinskaya. “I just played my game. It was not easy but I’m happy that I stayed solid and kept my intensity,” she said. Swiatek heads into the semi-finals with 47 wins and the Wimbledon title in hand this season.
© 2024 AFP
