Elena Rybakina clinched her first win of the clay season by beating Diana Shnaider in straight sets at the Stuttgart Open.
Rybakina, seeded first at the WTA 500 tournament, defeated Shnaider 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the quarterfinals.
The Kazakh star has enjoyed an incredible season so far, having won her second Grand Slam title at the Australian Open before securing a career-high ranking of second in the world.
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During the Sunshine Double, Rybakina reached the final of the Indian Wells Open and the semifinals of the Miami Open.
With a flawless first win in Stuttgart, her clay swing is off to a promising start, but the 26-year-old admitted there is much to improve on.
Elena Rybakina reacts to her first clay-court victory of 2026
Speaking in her on-court interview after overcoming the Russian, Rybakina said: “Well, it was my first match on clay and first match I played against Diana.
“She’s a lefty, so it was a little bit tricky and yeah, happy with the win definitely, but still a lot of things to improve, but also I’m super happy to be back, thank you so much, everyone.”
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Asked how she keeps her cool all the time, Rybakina responded: “Well, I’m trying to control myself.
“That’s for sure, and of course, when you make some easy mistake you get frustrated, but I’m trying to focus on the next point just to forget the mistake as soon as possible.
“Overall I’m a pretty calm person, so it helps also on the court, and yeah, it’s just the personality.”
Elena Rybakina’s results during the clay season over the years
Though the surface arguably suits her game the least, Rybakina has earned her highest win percentage on clay.
She has recorded a win rate of 73% on the dirt, greater than her totals of 71% on hard court and 72% on grass.
Rybakina has struggled at Roland Garros over the years, however, having only managed to reach the quarterfinals, a result she achieved in 2021 and 2024.
In 2023, Rybakina won the biggest clay-court title of her career, emerging victorious at the Italian Open.
She advanced past defending champion Iga Swiatek via a walkover in the quarterfinals en route to the crown.
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