Rybakina claws back from double break down to outlast Samsonova in Toronto
Elena Rybakina fought back from a double break down in the third set to beat Liudmila Samsonova 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in Toronto, reaching her fifth WTA 1000 quarter-final of the season and extending her winning streak over the Russian to three matches.
Elena Rybakina, Toronto 2026 | © Zuma / PsNewz
Kazakh No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina recovered from a double break down at 0-3 in the third set to beat Russian Liudmila Samsonova 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in the round of 16 of the National Bank Open on Sunday, reaching her fifth WTA 1000 quarter-final of the season.
The win was Rybakina’s third in a row over Samsonova, narrowing their head-to-head to 4-3 in the Russian’s favour after Rybakina trailed 4-2 in the series entering the tournament.
Rybakina described the turnaround as one of the toughest tests she has faced this year. “I knew it would be a very tough match,” she said. “It’s always a battle against Liudmila. It’s really tough to find words now, I’m so tired but I’m super happy. I was just trying to focus a point at a time. She’s also an aggressive player. If I don’t step in, she might be the first one. I’m super happy to be in the next round.”
Rybakina : “Slowly I see the results”
Asked afterward what had made her such a consistent presence at the biggest events this season, Rybakina pointed to steady progress with her team rather than any single breakthrough. “I won’t say that I was really consistent,” she said. “It wasn’t the result I wanted on grass, and then on clay I also wasn’t that successful on the big ones. But I think we’re doing a good job with the team. We did a good preparation. Slowly I see the results. I see improvement from match to match. I’m super happy. It gives motivation to work more and hopefully go as deep as possible in each tournament.”
Samsonova, ranked No. 70, had beaten Australian Maya Joint 7-5, 6-7 (3), 6-2, No. 22 seed Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic 6-1, 7-5 and Indonesia’s Janice Tjen 7-6 (9), 7-5 to reach the fourth round.
Rybakina has now made a habit of finding a way through when the match is on the line, and Sunday’s escape from 0-3 down was the latest reminder that her nerve rarely cracks first.
