Ex-ATP Player Calls Out Elena Rybakina for Her ‘Scr*w You All’ Attitude After Pan Pacific Open Exit
Elena Rybakina was scheduled to play Linda Noskova in the Pan Pacific Open semifinals, but withdrew from the event.
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Elena Rybakina (Image via X/AllABoutHQ)
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Elena Rybakina cited some discomfort ahead of her semifinal match at the Pan Pacific Open and ended up withdrawing from the match. This happened after she booked a spot in the WTA Finals.
The tennis world was not ready to believe that Rybakina ended her campaign due to any injury issues. They, in fact, are convinced that all she wanted to do was beat Victoria Mboko in the quarterfinals, as she needed just one match win to qualify for the year-end championships. Former ATP player Steve Johnson also did not buy Rybakina’s explanation.
I don’t know. Make the semis and then just pull the rip cord like ‘I’ve made it. Scr*w you all.‘
Steve Johnson said during the Nothing Major podcast
Prior to Mboko, Rybakina knocked out Leylah Fernandez in straight sets, following which, she admitted to feeling tired. Rybakina played four back-to-back events on the East Asian swing, including the penultimate and the final WTA 1000s of the season, the China Open and the Wuhan Open.
Due to Rybakina’s qualification, Mirra Andreeva could not make her debut at the year-end championships. The Russian ace, who clinched two back-to-back WTA 1000 titles at the Dubai Open and Indian Wells, was eliminated by Zhu Lin in her opening-round match at the Ningbo Open. Later, due to visa issues, she couldn’t play the Pan Pacific Open.
I would rather have her go out there and just lose 1 and 1. Pulling out is hard to do. Like, it’s really impressive, first of all, to make it. She knew she had to make a semifinal to reach the Finals — she did it. And then she beat two players who had beaten her earlier this year. As soon as she beat Mboko, I feel like she just walked off the court, went right to the doctor’s office, and said, ‘Thank you, I’m done, I’ll see you guys never.’
Steve Johnson added
Rybakina made her WTA Finals debut in 2023 and also qualified for the same the following season. But she has yet to progress beyond the round robin stage. Last year, she lost to Jasmine Paolini and eventual runner-up Qinwen Zheng in the round-robin stage and later stopped Aryna Sabalenka from qualifying.
Martina Navratilova gives advice to Elena Rybakina
Elena Rybakina has clinched two titles this season. She lifted the Strasbourg Open and the Ningbo Open by defeating Liudmila Samsonova and Ekaterina Alexandrova, respectively. The last Big Title that she lifted was the 2023 Italian Open by defeating Anhelina Kalinina.
The WTA Finals is scheduled to start on November 1. Martina Navratilova, the eight-time singles champion of this event, lauded Rybakina and offered advice to the 2022 Wimbledon champion about where she needs improvement the most.
If I were her, I’d work on the slice more, just to change things up. Mix in more drop shots off both wings so she can knife the ball and keep opponents guessing.
Martina Navratilova told WTA.com
Apart from Rybakina, the players who have qualified for the year-end championships are: Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, defending champion Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova, Madison Keys, Jessica Pegula, and Jasmine Paolini. From this list, only Swiatek and Gauff have tasted success in the WTA Finals. World No.1 Sabalenka was the runner-up in 2022, losing the match to Caroline Garcia.
Also, all of these aforementioned active players have won Grand Slam events or featured in the finals. This season saw four different winners in the Majors. Keys took home the Australian Open, while Gauff clinched the French Open. Swiatek shocked the tennis world by lifting the Wimbledon trophy, while Sabalenka defended her US Open title.
Also read: Andrey Rublev Admits he Might Take “a Pause” From Tennis as he’s Completely “Worn out”
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