Kazakh tennis player Elena Rybakina failed to seize a unique opportunity to top the WTA rankings, withdrawing from her quarterfinal match at the WTA 1000 tournament in Cincinnati (USA) against Poland's Iga Swiatek due to injury or illness, reports infohub.kz.
The chance to overtake current tour leader Aryna Sabalenka opened after the Belarusian's shocking exit in the round of 16. To rise to the top spot, Rybakina needed to reach at least the final of the tournament.
Current WTA rankings: Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) remains the leader with 8,575 points, while Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan) holds second place with 8,141 points.
Earlier in the tournament, Rybakina defeated American Taylor Townsend (94th), Polish Magdalena Frech (41st), and Russian Diana Shnaider (14th).
Despite the setback in Cincinnati, Rybakina still has excellent chances to take the lead in the upcoming season, as at the next major tournament – the 2026 US Open – Sabalenka will have to defend a huge number of ranking points from last year's title.
Earlier, Kursiv reported that Kazakhstan's No. 1 Elena Rybakina (2) defeated Russian Diana Shnaider (14) in straight sets 6:4, 6:4 to reach the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Open-2026 in the USA. For a place in the semifinals, our tennis player was set to face her recent Toronto final opponent Iga Swiatek (5) from Poland.
The current WTA-1000 Cincinnati Open is the 80th edition. The oldest tournament in the USA has never changed its venue. The competition is held on outdoor hard courts in Mason, a suburb of Cincinnati (Ohio). The prize money for the women's Cincinnati Open-2026 is $7.43 million.