Elena Rybakina is back at the WTA Finals for the third year running after making a last-gasp effort to qualify. The former Wimbledon champion went on a heroic run towards the end of the season, lifting the title in Ningbo and then reaching the Tokyo semi-finals to book her spot in the year-end championships.
However, Rybakina sparked backlash when she withdrew from the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo after reaching the semi-finals and securing her WTA Finals place, with two former players suggesting that she should have taken to the court. But the world No. 6 has now given an update ahead of her first match in Riyadh, admitting she wasn’t feeling her best.
Rybakina has had the least time to rest coming into the final tournament of the season compared to the other seven singles players. The Kazakh played her last match in Tokyo just eight days ago before pulling out, citing a back injury.
Ahead of the WTA Finals, the world No. 6 has revealed that she’s been struggling with jet lag. But she will put everything aside as she bids to win the season-ending tournament for the first time in her career.
“It wasn’t an easy trip, that’s for sure. A bit of jet lag. I had a couple of days off,” Rybakina said on Friday.
“I would say, of course, not the freshest, but I think when the competition starts, it doesn’t matter, you try to do your best. Yeah, we will see what’s going to happen.”
The recent Ningbo Open champion is just happy to have made it to Riyadh after coming from behind to secure the eighth and final place at the WTA Finals.
Rybakina added: “Of course, it’s a great result because when I came to Asia, I knew of course there is still a lot of players who can qualify.
“Then when just last few tournaments left, of course I knew that I need to win a lot of matches in a row. You never know what’s going to happen each day. I tried to do my best. I played against tough opponents, the ones I lost before. I’m pretty glad that last few weeks went successful for me. Happy to be here. Ready to make last push this week.”
Rybakina has been drawn in the ‘Serena Williams Group’ alongside Iga Swiatek, Amanda Anisimova, and Madison Keys. Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, and Jasmine Paolini are in the ‘Steffi Graf Group’. The two group winners will advance to the semi-finals.
But some aren’t happy with her recent decision to pull out of Tokyo after reaching the semi-finals and booking her place at the WTA Finals.
Speaking on the Nothing Major podcast, retired American tennis star Steve Johnson said: “I don’t know. Make the semis and then just pull the rip cord like ‘I’ve made it. Screw you all’.”
“I would rather have her go out there and just lose one and one. Pulling out is hard to do. Like, it’s really impressive, first of all, to make it. She knew she had to make a semifinal to reach the Finals, she did it.
“And then she beat two players who had beaten her earlier this year. As soon as she beat Mboko, I feel like she just walked off the court, went right to the doctor’s office, and said, ‘Thank you, I’m done, I’ll see you guys never’.”