Elena Rybakina admits her game is still not where she would like to be after setbacks hampered her throughout the first part of this season but believes she is heading in the right direction and hopes to soon rediscover her best game.
During the Australian swing, the 25-year-old Kazakh dealt with a back injury and she exited the Australian Open in the round-of-16. Through February and April, the world No. 11 struggled to find her rhythm on the court – picked up some surprising defeats – and ended up exiting the top-10 for the first time since 2023.
However, it has been slowly coming together for Rybakina over the last two weeks. First, the former world No. 3 won her first title in more than a year at last week's WTA 500 tournament in Strasbourg. Now, she has been through to the French Open third round and currently rides a six-match winning streak.
Rybakina asked how she measures and rates her 2025 season
“Definitely, it’s not the start I usually had before. Usually after preseason, I played really well. This time it was different. I missed last year, end of the whole season. It takes time for me to get back to where I want to be. Slowly I think we’re on the right direction. Working pretty much on everything to be better every day," the 2022 Wimbledon champion explained.
After winning Strasbourg, Rybakina struggled in her opening French Open match but ultimately found a way to fend off qualifier world No. Julia Riera 6-1 4-6 6-4. In her next match on Thursday, the Kazakh looked much better and ousted rising American star Iva Jovic in two sets 6-3 6-3.
Now, Rybakina is set for a tricky matchup as she is set to battle against 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko for a place in the round-of-16 at Roland Garros. The Kazakh lost their first two meetings which came between 2019 and 2021 but has since won their last three clashes.
