Elena Rybakina has secured the year-end women's singles world number one ranking after beating Yulia Putintseva 6-2 6-3 in the last 16 of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. The win means she cannot be overtaken in the closing weeks of a stellar year in which she has won the Australian Open and US Open titles.
Rybakina triumphed at the Ningbo Open last week to win her fourth title of 2026. After a first-round bye in Tokyo, she served six aces and produced 25 winners against Putintseva. She will now face former US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez in the quarter-finals, having beat her 6-2 6-2 in the Ningbo Open final.
Reflecting on the achievement, Rybakina said: "It means a lot. This is something we worked for with the team. So many great players and we are all really close to each other, and I'm happy that now with last week and with today's win I made it possible to secure number one at the end of the year."
The 27-year-old, who represents Kazakhstan, beat Aryna Sabalenka in the finals of the Melbourne and New York Slams this year and overtook the Belarusian to become world number one in September. Her push for the top ranking began after she lost to Sabalenka in the Wuhan Open quarter-finals last October, then won the Ningbo Open a week later and beat Sabalenka again to claim the WTA Finals. Her next tournament will be the defence of her singles title at the season-ending WTA Finals, taking place from 8-15 November in Indian Wells.
Source: BBC Sport · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing