Aryna Sabalenka v Elena Rybakina: Head to head, stats, quotes: All you need to know about their rivalry – updated after their Madrid Open clash
Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina are developing a strong rivalry at the top of the women’s game. Here’s everything you need to know about it
Antoine Couvercelle / Panoramic
Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina are two of the biggest servers and hardest-hitters on the WTA Tour and have already played each other nine times, twice in Grand Slams, including one Grand Slam final. Sabalenka has won six of their nine battles, including the most recent one, a 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 victory in the semi-finals of the 2024 Madrid Open.
What is the head to head record between Sabalenka and Rybakina?
Sabalenka and Rybakina have played each other nine times, with the Belarusian holding a 6-3 advantage. Their first meeting was in the quarter-finals in Wuhan, China, in 2019, when Sabalenka won in three sets. They have played twice in Grand Slams, once at Wimbledon, and once at the Australian Open – in the final – with Sabalenka winning both in three sets. Six of their nine battles have gone the full three sets.
Rybakina’s first win over Sabalenka came in the final of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells in 2023, while she also won in the final in Brisbane at the start of 2024.
However, Sabalenka won their latest clash at the Madrid Open in 2024. The Belarusian beat Rybakina 1-6, 7-5 (5)6-7 in the semi-finals to reach her second consecutive final at the tournament.
what is the biggest meeting between Sabalenka and Rybakina so far?
The biggest meeting between Sabalenka and Azarenka to date has to be the 2023 Australian Open final, when Sabalenka came from behind to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 and claim her first Grand Slam title.
How many Grand Slam titles have Sabalenka and Rybakina won?
Between them, Sabalenka and Rybakina have won three Grand Slam singles titles. Rybakina was the first to taste Grand Slam glory when she won the Wimbledon title in 2022, beating Ons Jabeur in the final. Sabalenka won her first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in 2023 and repeated the feat in 2024, beating China’s Qinwen Zheng in the final.
How many WTA Tour titles have Sabalenka and Rybakina won?
Sabalenka has won 14 career WTA titles so far. Her first title came in New Haven, USA, in 2018 and her most recent title came at the Australian Open in January.
Rybakina has won eight titles on the WTA Tour so far. The Kazakh picked up her first title in Bucharest in 2019 and has won three titles so far in 2024; beating Sabalenka in Brisbane before triumphing in Abu Dhabi and on clay in Stuttgart, where she beat world No 1 Iga Swiatek in the semis and Marta Kostyuk in the final.
What have Sabalenka and Rybakina said about each other?
“It’s definitely not easy to deal with such an aggressive serve,” Sabalenka said of Rybakina in Brisbane this year. “It’s definitely putting you under so much pressure.”
“She’s a really funny girl. I think all the time in the speeches she gives some funny moments.”
