Iga Swiatek reveals what she needs to do to beat Elena Rybakina ahead of their quarter-final match in Qatar

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Iga Swiatek is searching for a fourth consecutive Qatar Open crown this week in Doha.

The Polish WTA star made her return to tennis this week, having taken a short break following her tough defeat in Melbourne.

Swiatek lost to Madison Keys in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, 7-5, 1-6, 6-7, failing to convert a match point that would’ve seen her qualify for the final.

Returning for the Qatar Open WTA 1000 event, Swiatek beat Maria Sakkari in straight sets to advance to the last 16.

It was there that she suffered a big scare, as she dropped her first set in 1,086 days at the Qatar Open to Czech youngster Linda Noskova.

Swiatek battled back in a three-set thriller to win, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, to book her spot in the Doha quarter-finals.

Her quarter-final opponent, Elena Rybakina, eased into the last eight earlier on Wednesday, as Swiatek now reveals what she’ll need to do to secure the win when they face off later this week.

Iga Swiatek admits she will need to be at ‘100%’ to beat Elena Rybakina at the Qatar Open

During her on-court interview, Swiatek reflected on her tough three-set win over Noskova.

“For sure, every match against Linda [Noskova] is always super tough and this was another one,” she said.

“I’m proud that I was solid until the end but it wasn’t easy, especially with her serve that was kind of perfect, so I had to take my chances.”

Noskova’s serve was impeccable throughout their third round encounter as she hit a tournament-high 16 aces.

Swiatek was able to weather the storm, advancing to the quarter-finals, where she is more than aware of the task at hand.

“Elena [Rybakina] is a really experienced player and one that you need to be 100% against if you want to win,” she said.

“For sure, I’ll use my experience and also the last match we played.

“It’s good to watch, but it’s not going to be easy, it’s going to be a tough battle.”

What happened when Iga Swiatek played Elena Rybakina in the 2024 Qatar Open final?

As Swiatek alluded to, the pair faced off in the final of last year’s Qatar Open tournament.

The Pole didn’t drop a set on her way to the final, where she took on the Kazakh star who was searching for her third career title at the WTA 1000 level.

It wasn’t to be, however, as the dominant 23-year-old secured just her second victory over Rybakina with a 7-6, 6-2 win.

Over the years, the 2022 Wimbledon champion has proved to be one of Swiatek’s toughest match-ups on the WTA Tour, winning four of their seven career meetings.

• 2025 United Cup – Iga Swiatek beat Elena Rybakina in two sets
• 2024 Stuttgart (SF) – Elena Rybakina beat Iga Swiatek in three sets
• 2024 Doha (F) – Iga Swiatek beat Elena Rybakina in two sets
• 2023 Rome (QF) – Elena Rybakina beat Iga Swiatek in three sets
• 2023 Indian Wells (SF) – Elena Rybakina beat Iga Swiatek in two sets
• 2023 Australian Open (4R) – Elena Rybakina beat Iga Swiatek in two sets
• 2021 Ostrava (QF) – Iga Swiatek beat Elena Rybakina in two sets

More seeds fall in treacherous Qatar Open

Tuesday saw several top seeds exit the Qatar Open, as the likes of Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff both suffered shock defeats in Doha.

Ahead of the quarter-finals, just three top ten seeds remain, as the best players in women’s tennis struggle to find form in the Middle East.

American star Jessica Pegula is the only other top-ten player remaining in the draw, having secured wins over Elina Svitolina and Daria Kasatkina to advance to the quarter-finals.

Ekaterina Alexandrova, who beat Sabalenka in the second round, awaits Pegula in the quarters on Thursday.

Players will try to recover in Doha before the quarter-finals begin on Thursday, February 13.