Rybakina claws back from double jeopardy to beat Osaka and set up first-ever Gauff meeting since 2022
Elena Rybakina came back from a set and a break down, then saved four break points serving to stay in the match, to beat Naomi Osaka 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 and set up a first meeting with Coco Gauff since their marathon 2022 Toronto duel.
August 11, 2026, Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan and Naomi Osaka of Japan shake hands at the net after their Women’s Singles quarter-final match on day 11 of the WTA Masters 1000 National Bank Open at Sobeys Stadium on August 11, 2026, in Toronto, Canada. (Credit Image: © Leonardo Ramirez/eyepix via ZUMA Press Wire)/20260811_zsa_e321_076/ZEUS/2608120517
Kazakh second seed Elena Rybakina beat Naomi Osaka, the No. 11 seed from Japan, 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 to reach the semi-finals of the National Bank Open on Tuesday night, overturning a set and a break down before saving four break points from 2-3, 0-40 down in the decider.
Rybakina, ranked No. 2, will next face American Coco Gauff, the No. 4 seed, who didn’t have to play to qualify, Bencic being injured.
“I was trying just to fight,” she said afterward. “This first game of the match was really tough because it cost me the set. In the second I was just trying to stay closer to the score, even if I’m losing. Just fight. I’m super happy I won this match. Thank you so much for coming and supporting.”
She credited Osaka’s serve for making the contest as tight as it was. “It’s rare when you don’t play some players for so many years you’re on tour. She’s a great champion, she’s a fighter. We practiced a couple of times. Her ball is coming quite heavy, she can serve really well. The serve was really important today. I’m glad it went my way.”
The win extended Rybakina’s record on hard courts this season to 25-5 and sent her into her 14th career WTA 1000 semi-final, her third of the season and her third in Canada, matching last year’s run to the Toronto final. It was also her 38th win of 2026.
Gauff next
The semi-final against Gauff will be just the second meeting between the two, and the first since Gauff won their only previous match 6-4, 6-7, 7-6 in the second round in Toronto back in 2022, a near-three-hour battle. “We practiced quite a lot on the tournaments. We know each other quite well, even though we only played once,” Rybakina said. “I think it was here in Toronto many years ago. She’s a fighter. I definitely need to bring my energy, serve well. I think right now it’s really important to recover and somehow be fresh for tomorrow.”
Asked by Tennis Channel whether the win put the world No. 1 ranking on her mind, Rybakina brushed the question aside. “No, you guys are asking me all the time. Only when you ask, I have to think about it. No. I’m just staying in the present, trying to focus on a match at a time. Not looking at the ranking, not following. For me it’s just important to go match by match and hopefully win titles.”
