When Rybakina won her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2022, it didn’t seem like it would take another three and a half years for her to win the next one. Her shot-making, physical attributes, and composure despite her youth all pointed to a brilliant career ahead.
But just half a year after that triumph, she met Sabalenka in the Australian Open final. And perhaps that match in January 2023 shook her confidence. She led 1-0, but in the end, the Belarusian powerhouse swept her off the court.
This year, she got her revenge. In a match with a very similar course, she found the strength and energy to finish as the winner. After a long wait of 1,302 days, she once again lifted a Grand Slam trophy above her head.
"It’s hard to find the right words right now. I’d like to congratulate Aryna on her amazing results in recent years, and I hope we’ll play many more finals together," she said at the ceremony, finally breaking into a smile.
"Melbourne really is the Happy Slam. I always enjoy it here," she added.
Key Moments
Rybakina vs Gracheva (7-5, 6-2)
Unexpected trouble came in the second round. Against an opponent who had only taken six games off Rybakina in two previous matches, she struggled this time. The French player might have remembered Indian Wells 2023, where she gave the Kazakh a tough time, but just like then, she only lasted the first set.
With a turnaround from 1-3 to 5-3 in the opening set, Rybakina took control and wasn’t rattled even by another lost service game. After closing out the first set, the second was more of a formality.
Rybakina vs Swiatek (7-5, 6-1)
The first set of the quarter-final saw a lost service game to love, then a quick response. But again, in the third game, she was under pressure and saved three break points. That was the start of the quarter-final against the world number two, but then Rybakina showed she can dominate on a fast hard court.
Her serve was a huge weapon, firing 11 aces - her highest tally of the tournament. She also showed her mentality with the number of winners she landed (26-10).
The match was essentially decided at the end of the first set, which she won 7-5 on her second set point. Swiatek never got back into the match. "We know each other well, so I tried to play aggressively. The first set was a lot about the second serve, but in the second, I played more freely and served better," Rybakina remarked after the match.
Rybakina vs Sabalenka (6-4, 4-6, 6-4)
Just when it looked like Rybakina might serve out the second set, Sabalenka produced her best moments. Her aggressive, powerful tennis erased the Kazakh’s lead, but not her spirit.
Rybakina didn’t show a hint of nerves or fear, and in the third set, down 0-3, she patiently turned the match around.
Sabalenka, of course, helped with unforced errors, but Rybakina won plenty of crucial points with her serve. In the end, an ace on match point summed up what was the champion's biggest weapon.
Key Stats
2 - Yes, this is only the second Grand Slam title of Rybakina’s career. The first came at Wimbledon 2022. Since then, she reached a title match just once, and last year, her best result was the fourth round.
47 - That’s how many aces Rybakina hit over seven matches, dominating this statistic by a wide margin. The next best, Xinyu Wang, managed just 27.
There were a few players in the tournament who averaged more aces per match (Parks 11.50, Noskova 8.00, Tauson 7.33, Osaka 7.00), but none of them made it past the third round.
60% - Although her highest WTA ranking is number three, and after her Melbourne triumph, she’s back at her career best in two years, she’s already claimed nine wins over world number ones!
Rybakina now has the highest win percentage against world number ones since the rankings began in 1975 (counting only players who have played at least 10 matches) - her record is 9-6.
By the way, her record against top 10 players in her last 10 matches is 10-0! Only six players have managed that in the 21st century.
As recently as mid-last year, she was outside the world’s top 10. It was as if she were going through a crisis, possibly due to the absence of Stefano Vukov.
In 2024, the WTA sanctioned the Croatian coach for inappropriate behaviour towards the player, whom he was accused of mentally abusing. Rybakina, however, denied being a victim, and since last summer, they have been working together again. In Australia, she insisted she would never have achieved such good results without him.
The shy Ice Queen of Melbourne
But it’s not just her team relationships that are complicated and shrouded in mystery. Matches against Rybakina are always mentally tough for her opponents. Not because of big emotions on court - quite the opposite. Often, there are none at all.
"You know she’s so calm. But in reality, she gives you nothing. You’re never sure if she’s angry, excited, or what mood she’s in. But she’s always just tough," is how her semi-final opponent Jessica Pegula perhaps best described this year’s 'Ice Queen' of Australia.
Melbourne was conquered by a shy girl from Moscow who now represents Kazakhstan and avoids questions about her homeland. "To be honest, I don’t really live anywhere," Rybakina says.
Her path from Russia was made easier by the long-time president of the Kazakh Tennis Federation, Bulat Utemuratov, and she says she trains in Slovakia and Dubai. A slightly mysterious but deserving new champion of the Australian Open!