World No. 2 Elena Rybakina continued her strong run at the Canadian Open tennis championships, defeating American Ann Li 6:2, 7:5 in the third round, reports infohub.kz.
After a month-long break from competitive play, Rybakina had already beaten Australian Daria Kasatkina in her opening match, and now overcame the 26-year-old American known for her powerful attacking style. The two had never met on court before, so the Kazakhstani played without prior reconnaissance, immediately seizing the initiative and leading 4:1 with two breaks.
Li managed to break back, but Rybakina responded in kind. The first set ended 6:2, with Elena hitting no aces, compensating with sweeping combinations and precise shots down the lines.
The second set was more closely contested. Rybakina dropped her serve in the eighth game but broke back in the ninth, and then again at 5-5. Serving for the match, the Kazakhstani converted her first match point, wrapping up the encounter in 1 hour 30 minutes. Final score: 6:2, 7:5; aces 2:0; total points won 70:54.
Rybakina's opponent in the round of 16 will be determined in the match between Australian Maya Joint and Russian Liudmila Samsonova.
In a parallel match, Kazakhstani Anna Danilina and Serbian Aleksandra Krunic failed to avenge their Wimbledon loss to the Estonian-Mexican duo of Ingrid Neel and Giuliana Olmos. After 1 hour 47 minutes, Neel and Olmos won 6:4, 7:5, once again proving that rankings don't always decide the outcome in tennis.
The Canadian Open tennis championships trace their history back to 1881, when the first men's precursor tournament was held. Women's competitions began 11 years later. In even-numbered years, the women's tournament takes place in Toronto and the men's in Montreal. Since 2011, the hard-court events, part of the US Open Series, have been held concurrently.
The current WTA-1000 tournament in Toronto is officially called the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers. The prize money is $7.4 million.
Over the years, winners have included such stars as Americans Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Jennifer Capriati, Monica Seles, Serena Williams, German Steffi Graf, Swiss Martina Hingis, Belgians Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters, Frenchwoman Amelie Mauresmo, and others.
Defending champion Victoria Mboko is missing this year's home tournament due to injury. In the 2025 semifinals, the Canadian defeated Elena Rybakina 1:6, 7:5, 7:6 (7:4), and in the final beat Japanese Naomi Osaka 2:6, 6:4, 6:1.