The WTA Finals are well underway in Riyadh with the world’s top players in action for the final event of the year.
Elena Rybakina snuck in through the back door to make the finals, and she is now clearly going to try and show what she’s all about in Saudi Arabia.
Amanda Anisimova was praised by Coco Gauff earlier this year, but yesterday, she had absolutely no answer to Rybakina’s brilliance as she succumbed to a heavy defeat.
Rybakina richly deserved her win against the world number four and the player bang in form going into this event, with the Kazakhstani now looking to kick on even further.
What really surprised Elena Rybakina after beating Amanda Anisimova
It does appear as though Rybakina has timed her run of form to perfection this season, with the end-of-year finals now firmly in her sights.
After beating Anisimova she confessed that she was in the mood against the American but also admitted there were some things that surprised her about the victory.
She said in her on-court interview: ““Happy with my serve. Amanda’s a great player & tough opponent. I knew I had to serve well. Today, everything worked out. I’m very happy with the way I played. Hopefully, I can continue serving like this.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect that I would put so many balls in. Just because it’s the 3rd day for me.. The first few practices, everything was flying way too much, but thankfully, things went right today.”
Next up, Rybakina will face Iga Swiatek, with Anisimova coming up against Australian Open champion Madison Keys, with both players needing to win.
Rybakina can win the WTA Finals
With a single win in the group stages, Rybakina will now fancy her chances of reaching the semifinals and she has the big match experience to kick on.
Rybakina is a former Wimbledon champion and is coming into this tournament in some form, having qualified late in the day for the competition.
As they say, form is temporary and class is permanent, with every emphasis now placed on getting out of the round robin stage by Rybakina at this event.
Beating Anisimova in her current form is no mean feat, and now the American badly needs a victory when she faces off against Keys in the coming days.
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