Elena Rybakina kept up her dominant form at the WTA Finals with an easy win over alternate Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Madison Keys pulled out through injury, meaning Alexandrova got the chance to play, with first alternate Mirra Andreeva also choosing not to play.
Rybakina was hailed by Amanda Anisimova earlier in the group stages, with the Kazakhstan player winning all three of her group matches in Riyadh.
Rybakina made great strides to break into the WTA Finals and now it would appear she’s not happy with merely making up the numbers.
Laura Robson explains what she found surprising about Elena Rybakina against Ekaterina Alexandrova
Rybakina is a quality player but she’s surprised even her biggest fans, with her group featuring Swiatek and Anisimova who are both in solid form.
That hasn’t fazed the former Wimbledon champion though and after choosing her to be a dark horse in the tournament, Robson had praise for her again.
However, there was a surprise element of the performance, with Rybakina seemingly struggling over the finish line, hitting a number of double faults when serving for the match.
Robson told Sky Sports Tennis: “I think we can see how dangerous Alexandrova can be with that performance but she just wasn’t consistent enough to deal with how sharp Rybakina was, having played two games already, she was serving really well.
“Taking that into account, it was so surprising to see her throw in a few double faults towards the end, it was out of character for her and she will want to quickly move on from that. Certainly, she’s now a very dangerous player through to the semifinals.”
What Tim Henman said about Elena Rybakina
It would seem as though Henman is also a big fan of the resurgent performer and he believes the player will have been happy to get out of the match with a straight sets win.
Henman was also watching for Sky Sports Tennis and he couldn’t undervalue the fact that Rybakina can now preserve her energy ready for the semifinal.
He said: “She had the uncertainty with who her opponent was going to be but when she got out there she was great. The big first serve got Rybakina out of trouble and she’s through in straight sets, she’s already through to the semis so she will be delighted to get through quickly and avoid any three-set drama.
“She looks confident, her ball-striking looked amazing from start to finish, there was no panic and it was emphatic from start to finish.”
Who Rybakina plays in the semifinals is anyone’s guess, with Coco Gauff, Arna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula all vying for a last four berth.
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