NEW YORK – Women’s tennis has a new world number one, but she is not satisfied with just the pinnacle of the sport this week in New York. Elena Rybakina took first place from Aryna Sabalenka on Wednesday at the US Open, with a quarterfinal victory over China’s Zheng Qinwen, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4. Three days later, Rybakina will face Sabalenka at Arthur Ashe Stadium in the final, with a chance to win. He will also be able to fight away from the trophy he has had for the last two years. Born in Moscow but representing Kazakhstan, making her the first tennis player from the country to reach the top of the rankings, Rybakina, 27, has been in the top five for years. Earlier this season she inched towards the pinnacle of tennis after defeating Sabalenka to win the Australian Open. He then won the Stuttgart Tennis Grand Prix on clay in April. She has the second-most wins on the WTA tour this year with 48, behind Jessica Pegula’s 50. She remains focused on winning. It is curious to take the number one ranking in the middle of a Grand Slam tournament. The best players are programmed to celebrate one thing, and one thing only, at a Major. “It’s a great achievement, and I feel like you’ll appreciate it and think about it even more when you finish your career,” Rybakina said at a news conference, when asked about the milestone. “…It’s nice to say, every time you finish, ‘Okay, I won these tournaments, I’ve been number one, it’s amazing’. But right now, it’s great. You never know how long you’re going to stay. I want to win the titles that are still in the tournaments, so all my thoughts are just on the next match.” Rybakina’s new ranking elevates her to the top of a tour whose leadership she has not always aligned with. In February 2025, the WTA banned her coach, Stefano Vukov, from training and credentialing for a year following an investigation that found Vukov had engaged “in abuse of authority and abusive conduct” toward Rybakina, including “compromising or attempting to compromise (her) psychological, physical or emotional well-being.” Vukov has denied violating the WTA code, and Rybakina has repeatedly stated that Vukov’s conduct toward her has never been abusive. Vukov’s suspension was lifted in August 2025 after an appeal. He is still their coach and has been on the court during their games in New York. Rybakina was a mostly stable force in a season of relative instability atop the tour standings. After winning the year’s first Grand Slam in January, the major-winning club admitted two new members as the old (well, older) guard looked on. Mirra Andreeva won the French Open at age 19 and Linda Nosková won Wimbledon at age 21. If Sabalenka does not win the US Open, she will record her first year since 2022 without a Grand Slam title. Coco Gauff, who won the 2023 title, had her sights set on her third major championship before Rybakina knocked her out in the semifinals. World No. 3 Jessica Pegula, whom Sabalenka defeated for the right to face Rybakina, is still seeking her first Grand Slam title after spending years as one of the most consistent players at the top of the game. Iga Świątek, the group’s most decorated champion with six majors, is heading toward the end of a difficult year that included a coaching change and a loss to Zheng in the fourth round of the US Open. Sabalenka, Gauff, Świątek and Rybakina all had significant periods of instability in 2026, but none were as evident as Sabalenka’s, given how demonstrative she is and how untouchable she seemed as the top player just a few months ago. She spent 99 weeks as world No. 1 after stunningly surpassing Świątek in 2024. After losing the Australian Open final against Rybakina in January, Sabalenka won the Sunshine. Double and seemed almost invincible. Then, the problems began. She lost to then-world No. 32 Hailey Baptiste on clay in the quarterfinals of the Madrid Open, and the wheels came off after that. Sabalenka reached only two quarterfinals in her next six events. She lost two matches in which she lost at least one set 6-0: one in a quarterfinal disaster to Diana Shnaider at the French Open, another to Pegula at the Berlin Open on grass. Sabalenka gained some revenge on Rybakina for the Australian Open loss in March, when she beat her in a thrilling third-set tiebreaker at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. They have been in each other’s orbit all year. Now, as Rybakina rises to the top, Sabalenka will be there to remind her that in tennis there is always another prize to be won.
