Elena Rybakina claimed her first Australian Open title by defeating world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a thrilling final on Saturday. The Kazakh fifth seed trailed 3-0 in the decisive third set, but mounted a comeback to secure a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 victory. This win avenges her loss to the two-time champion in the 2023 Australian Open final.
The Cincinnati Open Confrontation
Rybakina, 26, has a history of captivating moments on the court. During the Cincinnati Open in August 2023, she dominated Jelena Ostapenko in a three-set Round of 32 victory. Amid the match, with Rybakina down a set, cameras captured her firmly addressing her coach, Stefano Vukov: “If I need something, I’ll ask.”
Vukov has guided Rybakina since 2019, contributing to her 2022 Wimbledon triumph. Fans celebrated the exchange on social media, with one observer noting, “Elena is lowkey SASSY,” and another adding, “She was like no no no, let me cook a bit.” The moment highlighted her independent spirit during high-stakes play.
Standing Up to WTA Scheduling Issues
Rybakina has also voiced frustrations on behalf of players. That same week in 2023, heavy rain at the Canadian Open in Montreal delayed her quarterfinal and semifinal matches, forcing her to play until 3 a.m. against Daria Kasatkina, whom she defeated. She couldn’t sleep until 5 a.m. before her semifinal loss to Liudmila Samsonova.
After the defeat, Rybakina expressed her exhaustion: “I feel destroyed just because of the scheduling and the whole situation. I’m not really happy about it, but yeah, it is what it is. Unfortunately, players cannot do much in these situations. The decision is not really ours. The weather was not helpful.”
She criticized the WTA leadership as “weak” and “unprofessional,” stating, “It’s the first time and hopefully the last time because I think it’s been a little bit unprofessional… Leadership is a little bit weak for now, but hopefully something is going to change because this year it was many situations which I cannot really understand.”
