Elena Rybakina Reveals Unique Strategy to Stay Focused During Matches: “Trying to Zone Out”

Elena Rybakina is the woman of the hour at the moment. She not only won her third Grand Slam title but also reached her career-best ranking of No.1. Last week, she guaranteed her spot at the top after reaching the US Open semifinals. In the final, she upset two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka to win her career’s first title at Flushing Meadows.

Former players like Martina Navratilova and Greg Rusedski believe Sabalenka’s “bullying” tactics did not work against Rybakina, who maintained a sharp focus during the final, while her opponent was a bundle of emotions, especially when things did not go her way. Although from the outside, the Kazakh ace looked composed, she was battling racing thoughts in her mind.

Following the final, the World No.1 sat for an interview with CBS Mornings, during which she revealed the strategy she uses to silence the noise in her head.

There’s so many thoughts coming through the head, but honestly, I’m sometimes trying to zone out and just focus on each moment I have to do. If it’s my serve, I’m just counting in my head because it’s also all about the timing and, yeah, just focus on these little details and not focus too much ahead about the rally, just one point at a time. Staying in the moment.

Not that Rybakina has never flung her racket in frustration, but such scenes are pretty rare. Sabalenka, on the other hand, threw her racket multiple times during the match, including right after Rybakina smashed an ace on match point. When Rybakina was celebrating her victory, Sabalenka was seen sitting on her bench and breaking her racket before eventually destroying it.

She also snapped at the TV cameraperson, when they zoomed in on her face. During the match, she also smashed a ball into the crowd. The WTA has slapped her with a $7,500 fine for violating the code of conduct.

Elena Rybakina says Aryna Sabalenka is quite intimidating

Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka clashed for the 18th time in their career in that US Open final. They also met for the fourth time this year, with both winning two matches each.

Sabalenka won in Indian Wells and Miami, while Rybakina upset her in the US Open and Australian Open finals. In their overall head-to-head matchups, the four-time Grand Slam singles champion holds a 10-8 lead. The 27-year-old, during that aforementioned interview with CBS Mornings, talked about what it’s like to play the World No.2.

She is very tough, very tough to beat. And she can be quite intimidating at times. She showed amazing results. And she was so consistent over the past few years. So I’m super happy. Like, I managed to win this big title. And, yeah, as I said, we played throughout the year so many times. And it always has been, yeah, battles. And somehow, for now, it was going my way. And I’m sure we’re going to play with her so many more matches.

Sabalenka, who last won a Major at the 2025 US Open, last won a title at the Miami Open earlier this season. Before Miami, she won in Indian Wells and Brisbane. She suffered a dip in form during the clay and grass swing, reaching just one semifinal.

Rybakina took home her third title of the season after wins in Melbourne and Stuttgart. Apart from Indian Wells, Rybakina lost the Canadian Open final to Iga Swiatek. It’s Swiatek whom Sabalenka dethroned from the No.1 ranking in 2024, and she remained at the top for 99 consecutive weeks until Rybakina removed her.

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