In their Canadian Open quarter-final clash, Elena Rybakina rallied from a set and a break deficit to overcome Naomi Osaka in a three-set thriller.
Osaka, who holds four major titles, secured the opening set and established a 4-2 lead in the second, but her opponent launched a comeback to secure a 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 victory after two hours and 33 minutes of play.
“My main focus was simply to keep fighting,” remarked Rybakina, despite committing 72 unforced errors—her highest tally in a single match this year.
“Losing the opening game was a major setback that ultimately cost me the first set, so in the second, I focused on keeping the scoreline tight, even when trailing. I am absolutely thrilled to have come through with the win.”
The Japanese star started strong in Toronto, breaking Rybakina’s serve in the very first game to help secure the opening set.
Osaka seemed poised to seal the match in the second set; although she surrendered one break, she broke once more to lead 4-2 against the player who captured the 2022 Wimbledon and 2026 Australian Open titles.
Nevertheless, Rybakina roared back by taking three consecutive games before clinching the tie-break to send the match into a deciding set.
While leading 3-2 in the final set, Osaka had four opportunities to break but was unable to convert any of them, allowing Rybakina to hold serve and subsequently break Osaka in the following game.
Rybakina then served out the match with confidence, securing her spot in the semi-finals against Coco Gauff by firing her 15th ace.
Following the match, Osaka announced her withdrawal from the upcoming Cincinnati Open, the final warm-up event ahead of the US Open, citing “fatigue” as the reason.
Gauff advanced to the next round following Belinda Bencic’s retirement from their match due to a hip issue.
The second semi-final matchup will feature Iga Swiatek, who defeated Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-1, taking on Elina Svitolina, a 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 winner over Ekaterina Alexandrova.
