Elena Rybakina come back on the court at the WTA Finals in Riyadh where, in the first match of her round robin, she was defeated in straight sets by Italian Jasmine Paolini. The Italian player proved to deserve this stage by defeating the 2021 Wimbledon champion with the final score of 7-6(5), 6-4.
However, it should be emphasized that the Kazakh – despite the long period of inactivity – proved to be in good form, showing excellent signs from a physical and mental point of view, especially in view of 2025.
Before the challenge against the Italian tennis player, Rybakina had shared interesting words about her season, during which the Kazakh champion suffered from insomnia and allergies.
“It’s not easy to start again after this break. But I’m happy with the work we’ve done in the last two weeks. Of course, maybe I’m not 100%. Yes, I can’t wait and I’m happy to be healthy now and start playing. This year I had sleep problems, insomnia, allergies. When you have such a rhythm, it’s not easy to stop. But after I got used to a little rest, I would say. It was really nice,” she said.
The Kazakh also said: “I don’t have any expectations. Just fight, have fun. The most important thing for me is to stay healthy, yes, to be ready for the preseason and start from scratch for next year. The level is definitely not at its best. Actually I came without too many expectations. I want to have fun. I want to see where I am, what my level is now by playing against the best players.”
In the second match of the Purple Round Robin, Elena will face Qinwen Zheng, who was defeated by the new WTA No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. The Belarusian defeated the young Chinese player four times in four matches played, then won the title on three occasions this year: at the Australian Open, the US Open and the WTA 1000 Wuhan.
