Riyadh – Both players entered this second round-robin WTA Finals clash brimming with confidence, having breezed through their opening matches with minimal resistance. Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina had each dominated their first opponents, conceding few games and setting up a high-stakes encounter between two of the tour’s cleanest strikers — a duel promising power, precision, and plenty of fire.
3 Early Breakpoints Decide the Set
From the very first game, sparks were flying. Both players came out at full throttle, playing at an elite level from the first ball. Rybakina attacked with fearless intent, every swing of her racket seeking a winner. Swiatek, with her trademark footwork — arguably the best in women’s tennis — scrambled brilliantly just to stay in the rallies. It paid off: after a tight deuce, she held for 1–0.
Rybakina then stepped up to serve, but from 15–0 she was suddenly on the back foot. Swiatek read her patterns early, creating two break points and converting one — her 314th of the season — to move 2–0 ahead. Doing it off a Rybakina serve made it even sweeter. The Kazakh looked rattled; Swiatek was already in her head. In just eleven minutes, it was 3–0, and Rybakina was seeing stars.
A mistimed approach to the net handed Swiatek another pair of break points. For a brief moment, Rybakina steadied herself with some strong one-two punches on serve and finally held, her first game on the board at 1–3. It was the lifeline she desperately needed.
Swiatek responded immediately. Two commanding serves pushed her to 30–0, and her rhythm on serve now outshone Rybakina’s — a striking development given how much she and coach Wim Fissette had focused on improving that aspect in recent months. The work was paying off, as evidenced by her dominant serving performance two days earlier.
Rybakina finally produced her first solid service game to narrow the gap to 2–4, but Swiatek’s precision soon restored control. Mixing placement with power, she dictated again, sealing her hold with two big serves to reach 5–2 — just one game away from pocketing the set.
Rybakina refused to fold. A commanding service game kept her alive, trimming the deficit to 3–5.
Could Iga Swiatek serve it out? A fortunate bounce gave her 30–15 — two points away from the set. Rybakina’s returns, though fierce in intent, often lacked depth, and Swiatek pounced. At 40–15 she held two set points, but the Kazakh saved one with authority. Still, a superbly placed first serve from the Polish star sealed the deal.
One brief lapse earlier in the set — that costly second service game — had made all the difference for Rybakina. Swiatek, serving with precision and confidence, closed it out 6–3.
Swiatek vs Rybakina – Set One Stats
| Statistic | Swiatek | Rybakina |
|---|---|---|
| Dominance Ratio | 1.57 | 0.64 |
| Serve Rating | 304 | 258 |
| Aces | 1 | 1 |
| Double Faults | 1 | 0 |
| 1st Serve % | 71% (20/28) | 70% (16/23) |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 95% (19/20) | 69% (11/16) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 38% (3/8) | 43% (3/7) |
| Break Points Saved | 100% (1/1) | 67% (2/3) |
| Service Games | 100% (5/5) | 75% (3/4) |
| Ace % | 3.6% | 4.3% |
| Double Fault % | 3.6% | 0% |
| Return Rating | 146 | 68 |
| 1st Return Points Won | 31% (5/16) | 5% (1/20) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 57% (4/7) | 63% (5/8) |
| Break Points Won | 33% (1/3) | 0% (0/1) |
| Return Games | 25% (1/4) | 0% (0/5) |
| Pressure Points | 50% (2/4) | 50% (2/4) |
| Service Points | 75% (21/28) | 61% (14/23) |
| Return Points | 39% (9/23) | 25% (7/28) |
| Total Points | 59% (30/51) | 41% (21/51) |
| Match Points Saved | 0 | 0 |
| Max Points In A Row | 8 | 4 |
| Total Games | 67% (6/9) | 33% (3/9) |
| Max Games In A Row | 3 | 1 |
| Set 1Duration | 0h36m | |
Swiatek Suddenly Falters in Set 2 as Rybakina Seizes Control
After a brief off-court pause, Rybakina returned with purpose, gaining the early edge as the server in the second set. Two unforced errors put her under pressure at 15–30, but she steadied herself with a deep overhead and a composed rally to secure the hold — a small but important statement.
Swiatek’s next service game carried the weight of the moment. On one side of the court, Rybakina’s coach, Stefano Vukov, sat alone and stoic; on the other, Swiatek’s entire team erupted in applause after every point, sensing the danger. Rybakina’s form was sharpening, and the Pole knew it. A double fault handed the Kazakh a rare break point — only her second of the match — and a hesitant return from Rybakina somehow threw Swiatek off balance, forcing an uncharacteristic error into the net. The momentum swung. 0–2.
From there, Rybakina consolidated superbly, holding for 3–0 with renewed conviction — the mirror image of the opening set. Swiatek finally found rhythm on serve, directing her shots smartly into Rybakina’s forehand corner to get on the board at 1–3.
But the quality dipped momentarily. Both players grew erratic, trading double faults and unforced errors. At 30–30, Rybakina missed her first serves repeatedly before finding a timely one to save the game, then hammered home another to extend her lead to 4–1. The writing was on the wall: a deciding set loomed.
Swiatek faced two break points and faltered on a second serve. 5–1 — Rybakina to serve for the set. The world No. 2 looked adrift, her focus slipping just as Rybakina pressed harder. Three set points followed, and the Kazakh converted without hesitation.
It was striking to see how abruptly Swiatek’s level dropped midway through the set — a reflection of how fine the margins had been in the first. With both women operating so close to their peak, any lapse in intensity could prove fatal in the decider.
Swiatek vs Rybakina – Set Two Stats
| Statistic | Swiatek | Rybakina |
|---|---|---|
| Dominance Ratio | 0.50 | 2.02 |
| Serve Rating | 205 | 299 |
| Aces | 1 | 1 |
| Double Faults | 1 | 2 |
| 1st Serve % | 79% (15/19) | 61% (14/23) |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 53% (8/15) | 79% (11/14) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 40% (2/5) | 60% (6/10) |
| Break Points Saved | 0% (0/2) | – |
| Service Games | 33% (1/3) | 100% (4/4) |
| Ace % | 5.3% | 4.3% |
| Double Fault % | 5.3% | 8.7% |
| Return Rating | 61 | 274 |
| 1st Return Points Won | 21% (3/14) | 47% (7/15) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 40% (4/10) | 60% (3/5) |
| Break Points Won | – | 100% (2/2) |
| Return Games | 0% (0/4) | 67% (2/3) |
| Pressure Points | 0% (0/2) | 100% (2/2) |
| Service Points | 47% (9/19) | 74% (17/23) |
| Return Points | 26% (6/23) | 53% (10/19) |
| Total Points | 36% (15/42) | 64% (27/42) |
| Match Points Saved | 0 | 0 |
| Max Points In A Row | 3 | 7 |
| Total Games | 14% (1/7) | 86% (6/7) |
| Max Games In A Row | 1 | 3 |
| Set 2 Duration | 0h33m | |
Roland Garros Revisited in the Third
It felt like Roland Garros in reverse. Right from the start of the decider, Swiatek found herself under siege. Rybakina’s explosive forehand dictated the tone, pushing the Pole onto the back foot and forcing deuce in the opening game. Moments later, the Kazakh broke serve with authority — a statement of intent that echoed across the court.
Swiatek’s forehand rhythm deserted her, leaving her searching for answers. A sharp backhand winner momentarily steadied her, but Rybakina responded with an ace that underlined her control. 2–0. When another break point followed in Swiatek’s next service game, the pressure mounted. A bold first serve erased one, but a deep, punishing return sealed the double break. At 3–0, it was déjà vu — a mirror of their Roland Garros meeting, only this time reversed. Back then, Swiatek had stormed back to win 7–5 in the decider. Could history repeat itself?
Not this time. In a wild, breathtaking rally, Rybakina unleashed a ferocious forehand winner to stretch the lead to 4–0. Swiatek, remarkably composed despite being overrun, betrayed no frustration — just quiet acceptance that the tide had turned. But the errors piled up: 19 in total as she slipped to 15–30, then 30–40. The scoreboard read 5–0 before anyone could blink.
And then, fittingly, Rybakina sealed the bagel with an ace on her second serve — a perfect exclamation point to a ruthless performance.
She did not even need her coach Vukov today.
Remarkable.
Swiatek vs Rybakina – Set 3 Stats
| Statistic | Swiatek | Rybakina |
|---|---|---|
| Dominance Ratio | 0.40 | 2.50 |
| Serve Rating | 128 | 319 |
| Aces | 0 | 1 |
| Double Faults | 0 | 1 |
| 1st Serve % | 63% (15/24) | 58% (7/12) |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 40% (6/15) | 86% (6/7) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 25% (2/8) | 75% (3/4) |
| Break Points Saved | 25% (1/4) | – |
| Service Games | 0% (0/3) | 100% (2/2) |
| Ace % | 0% | 8.3% |
| Double Fault % | 0% | 8.3% |
| Return Rating | 39 | 310 |
| 1st Return Points Won | 14% (1/7) | 60% (9/15) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 25% (1/4) | 75% (6/8) |
| Break Points Won | – | 75% (3/4) |
| Return Games | 0% (0/2) | 100% (3/3) |
| Pressure Points | 25% (1/4) | 75% (3/4) |
| Service Points | 38% (9/24) | 75% (9/12) |
| Return Points | 25% (3/12) | 63% (15/24) |
| Total Points | 33% (12/36) | 67% (24/36) |
| Match Points Saved | 0 | 0 |
| Max Points In A Row | 2 | 5 |
| Total Games | 0% (0/5) | 100% (5/5) |
| Max Games In A Row | 0 | 5 |
| Set 3 Duration | 0h28m | |