Rybakina Clinches No. 1, Reaches US Open Semis — SkimNews
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- Elena Rybakina defeated Zheng Qinwen 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 on Wednesday to reach the US Open semifinals and lock up the No. 1 WTA ranking regardless of remaining results.
- Rybakina will end Aryna Sabalenka's 99-week hold on No. 1 when updated rankings are released Monday, having needed only a semifinal berth to pass her.
- Rybakina faces either No. 4 Coco Gauff or No. 5 Mirra Andreeva in Thursday's semifinals; Sabalenka meets No. 3 Jessica Pegula in the other half.
- Zheng Qinwen, the 2024 Olympic gold medalist from China, had entered the main draw through qualifying after elbow surgery dropped her to No. 121, and is now guaranteed to climb back into the top 60.
- Zheng had staged dramatic comebacks in earlier rounds — erasing 5-0 deficits in the third set against Madison Keys and in the first set against No. 8 Iga Swiatek — but a double fault at 4-5 in the third handed Rybakina the break to close it out.
- The match began roughly eight hours after Ben Shelton's quarterfinal win over defending champion Carlos Alcaraz ended at 3:33 a.m., the latest finish in US Open history, and Rybakina said she struggled with sun and shadows in Arthur Ashe Stadium early on.
- Rybakina shrugged off the ranking milestone as 'just a number,' saying her focus is winning the tournament rather than celebrating the achievement.
Why it matters: Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion and current Australian Open titleholder, adds the No. 1 ranking to her résumé at age 27 — the first player from Kazakhstan to top the WTA — while Sabalenka's 99-week reign ends just shy of becoming the longest of the 21st century. For Zheng, a run from qualifying through to the quarterfinals after elbow surgery restores her ranking inside the top 60 and signals she is back near her 2024 Olympic form.
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