Tokyo | Rybakina takes a step closer to Riyadh

On Thursday, Elena Rybakina opened her Tokyo campaign with a business-like win over Leylah Fernandez to reach the quarter-finals of the WTA 500 Toray Pan Pacific Open, putting herself just one win away from securing the 8th and final berth at the year-end WTA Finals Riyadh presented by PIF.

Today was a very difficult match. It’s always not easy against Leylah, and especially the first match for me here. I’m pretty happy with the win, and looking forward for my next match. I’m feeling a little bit tired, of course, but I’m ready to make a last push. I’m very happy with the last week, and I’m trying to bring everything from last week into here. Elena Rybakina

In a match between last week’s title-winners, Ningbo champion Rybakina defeated Osaka champion Fernandez, 6-4 6-3, denying the latter the chance to have a crack at her Canadian compatriot Victoria Mboko in the Last 8.

It was Rybakina who picked up a comprehensive 1 hour and 28-minute win against Fernandez, extending her current match streak to 5 with her win over the Canadian No 1.

It was a far cry from the 6-7(2) 7-6(3) 7-6(3) victory that Fernandez scored against the Kazakh in the semi-finals the Mubadala Citi DC Open in July.

On this occasion, Rybakina never trailed on the scoreboard, and dropped her serve just once, to level her all-time record against the 2021 US Open finalist to 2-2, and inch closer to passing 18-year old Mirra Andreeva from Russia in the Race to the WTA Finals, who currently occupies the 8th spot but was unable to compete in Tokyo reportedly due to visa issues.

Standing between Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, and the final spot in Riyadh is Mboko, another player the World No 7 will be hoping to exact revenge upon after a tight loss earlier this year.

In Mboko’s magical run to a break-through first WTA 1000 title on home soil in Montreal in August, the 19-year old saved a match point en route to beating Rybakina in the semi-finals.

“Today was a very difficult match. It’s always not easy against Leylah, and especially the first match for me here,” Rybakina said after Thursday’s win. “I’m pretty happy with the win, and looking forward for my next match.

“I’m feeling a little bit tired, of course, but I’m ready to make a last push. I’m very happy with the last week, and I’m trying to bring everything from last week into here.”

Rybakina’s win against Fernandez was also her 50th match win on the Hologic WTA Tour this season, making her the 4th player to reach that mark after Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula, all of whom have qualified for Riyadh already.

The Kazakh is the highest-ranked player competing in Tokyo after the pre-tournament withdrawal of Italy’s Jasmine Paolini, who secured her own spot in Riyadh last week by reaching the Ningbo semi-finals before losing to Rybakina.

No 3 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova needed only 69 minutes to dispatch Jaqueline Cristian in her Tokyo opener on Thursday at Ariake Coliseum

The No 3 seed here in Tokyo is Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova, who defeated Jaqueline Cristian from Romania in straight sets in her 2nd-round opening match to reach her 11th quarter-final of 2025.

Alexandrova took 69 minutes to dispatch Cristian, 6-1 6-2, and will meet Sofia Kenin in the quarters after the 10th-seeded American battled past Japanese wild-card Wakana Sonobe, 3-6 6-1 7-6(2), in 2 hours and 10 minutes.

Swiss No 5 seed Belinda Bencic came from 2-4 down in the first set to defeat French qualifier Varvara Gracheva in a first-time encounter, 6-4 6-3, to make her 5th quarter-final of 2025.

There she will take on Karolina Muchova, the 8th seed from Czechia, for a place in the Last 4 on Friday.

The last quarter-final will be between 6th seed, Linda Noskova, another Czech, and Russia’s Anna Kalinskaya who made it through on Wednesday.

No 5 seed Belinda Bencic set up a quarter-final encounter with Karolina Muchova after beating qualifier Varvara Gracheva in straight sets on Thursday at the Toray Pan Pacific Open