Elena Rybakina Explains Reason Behind Long Absence After Her Miami Open Exit

Elena Rybakina will be chasing her second title of the season at the WTA 500 Stuttgart Open.

Elena Rybakina Explains Reason Behind Long Absence After Her Miami Open Exit

Elena Rybakina (Image via X/AllABoutHQ)

In Short
  • Elena Rybakina returns to competition in Stuttgart after a break following her Miami Open exit.
  • She cited jet lag and fitness concerns as reasons for her absence from tournaments.
  • Rybakina will face Diana Shnaider in her first match at the Stuttgart Open, an indoor clay-court event.

Elena Rybakina is in Stuttgart to start her clay-court campaign. It will be her first tournament since the Miami Open, where she suffered a straight-set defeat at the hands of eventual champion Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals.

Before taking a short rest after her Miami exit, Rybakina had been continuously playing tournaments one after the other. After starting her campaign for the 2026 season at the Brisbane International, she captured her career’s second Grand Slam title at the Australian Open by overcoming Sabalenka. Then, at the Qatar Open, she lost to Victoria Mboko in the quarterfinal and retired mid-match from her round of 16 match.

Well, I had a couple of days off [after Miami exit], and honestly, jet lag was pretty tough from Miami, so I was mostly sleeping. Yeah, after we started preparation, I needed to do some work physically, because Indian Wells, Miami, long tournaments, and on the last match, I felt that my fitness dropped a little bit, and I definitely need to work on it.

Elena Rybakina said in the pre-tournament press conference

Rybakina has been very consistent between the end of the 2025 and the start of the 2026 season. At the 2025 WTA Finals, she defeated Sabalenka in the championship clash.

It’s clear that I’m proud of the work we’ve done, all the team and myself. So far, I’ve been very consistent, both in results and in the way I’ve played, from the end of last year to the beginning of this one. It wasn’t too long, but after Australia, I played Doha and Dubai. I didn’t feel quite right, but overall, I’m very happy with all the tournaments and matches I’ve played.

Elena Rybakina added

Although Sabalenka withdrew from the Stuttgart Open, she will continue to remain at the top of the rankings table even if World No.2 Rybakina clinches her second title in the tournament. Sabalenka has 10895 points in the live rankings and has a lead of 2,787 over Rybakina, who has 8108 points.

The World No.1 is a four-time finalist in Stuttgart in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2025. Last year, she lost to Jelena Ostapenko. The four-time Grand Slam champion has already played four finals, winning titles in Brisbane, Indian Wells, and the Miami Open.

Elena Rybakina on playing in indoor clay-court

Elena Rybakina will kick-start her campaign against Diana Shnaider in Stuttgart. It will be their first head-to-head meeting. The Stuttgart Open is an indoor clay-court event. Before the tournament, Rybakina discussed the advantages of playing in indoor conditions.

Elena Rybakina
Elena Rybakina (Image via X/#AusOpen)

I think it’s easier to play indoors. There are no external conditions, no sun, no wind. To be honest, I’ve been practicing indoors most of the time in Bratislava. It’s great to start this tour here. Even if it’s not played outdoors, even if it’s possibly not real clay, you still slide on the surface. Overall, as a beginning, I think it’s a nice start.

Elena Rybakina said

Rybakina won the Stuttgart Open for the first time in 2024 by defeating Marta Kostyuk. She skipped the tournament last year and instead represented Kazakhstan at the Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers.

If the two-time Grand Slam champion reaches the semifinals, she can schedule a match against Iga Swiatek, who is chasing her third title in the tournament following her victories in 2022 and 2023. Rybakina holds a 6-6 head-to-head tie over the six-time Grand Slam champion, who will be the heavy favorite to win the tournament.

Swiatek, after her Miami Open opening-round exit, parted ways with Wim Fissette and hired Rafael Nadal‘s former coach, Francisco Roig. She also trained alongside Nadal at his academy in Mallorca.

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