WTA Finals: Elena Rybakina expects 'difficult' match against Aryna Sabalenka

The Kazakh star was beaten 7-6(4), 3-6, 6-1 by world No 7 Zheng Qinwen in her second round robin match at the WTA Finals in Riyadh on Monday.

Rybakina fought back from a 1-4 deficit before losing the opening set on a tiebreak and she recovered from a break down to win the second set. In the deciding set, Rybakina was broken twice by her 22-year-old Chinese opponent.

The world No 5 will not progress to the semi-final stage as she also lost her first round robin match to Jasmine Paolini.

In her third and final match, Rybakina will face world No 1 Sabalenka, who has already qualified for the last four after straight-set wins over Zheng and Paolini. The winner of the contest between Zheng and Paolini will join Sabalenka in the semi-finals.

Following her defeat to Zheng, Rybakina was positive about her performance despite the defeat ending her qualification hopes.

"Yeah, today was a longer match and I think I had some chances also in the first set," the 25-year-old said in a post-match interview.

"I was always down but then in the tiebreak, just a couple of better points and then it would've been easier, but overall I played again from beginning till the end this tough match, three sets.

"Not the result I wanted of course and definitely in the third set, physically I was already very tired and didn't feel the greatest, but overall it's a good one for me."

The 2022 Wimbledon champion also outlined her intention to provide a stern test for Sabalenka.

"She's been playing really well this year and she has a lot of confidence and it's going to be a difficult one definitely," Rybakina added.

"But I feel that even today I played better than the last match, so hopefully against her I can try to push myself a little bit more and we see how it goes. She's No 1 now, so I want to enjoy and make it a bit difficult for her too."

Prior to the WTA Finals, Rybakina had not played since the US Open over two months earlier as she took a break to recover after a season plagued by health issues.

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