Rybakina overcomes Zheng and 'battle inside' to make first US Open semifinal

Elena Rybakina will become the 30th WTA World No. 1 in next week’s PIF WTA Rankings.

The No. 2 seed ended qualifier Zheng Qinwen’s US Open run, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, in 2 hours and 14 minutes to reach her first semifinal at Flushing Meadows.

Trailing 4-3 in the third set, Rybakina faced a break point that would have put Zheng a game away from the match. She saved it with a net rush, then won six straight points and the final three games to seal the victory.

It echoed her Australian Open final win over Aryna Sabalenka in January, when Rybakina won six of the final seven games after trailing 3-0 in the deciding set.

“Very stressful,” Rybakina said afterward. “Didn't start my best and found a way in the end. Super happy.

“Yeah, a lot of thoughts was going through the head in the beginning, but glad that I managed to find a way.”

It was the third time in as many meetings this year that Rybakina came back from a set down to defeat Zheng. She won 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 in the Doha third round and 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the Madrid third round, and now leads their head-to-head 5-1.

The stakes were higher this time. Rybakina began the US Open as one of four players who could finish it at No. 1, and her semifinal berth secured the ranking outright. Aryna Sabalenka’s 99-week run at the top will end, while Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff will have to wait for their first opportunity to reach No. 1.

"I'm very proud representing Kazakhstan," Rybakina said. "Every time I come back to Kazakhstan, no matter which city I go, it's always so many kids.

"Now they play tennis, and the more and more are coming to the tennis facilities. It's just amazing how many, yeah, young people are looking up to you, and it just proves that everything is possible if you believe, if you work hard."

Rybakina also reached her first US Open semifinal and the fifth Grand Slam semifinal of her career. It is the first time she has made multiple major semifinals in one season.

Her 2026 record is now 47-13. Only fellow semifinalist Jessica Pegula has won more tour-level matches this year, at 50-12.

Rybakina's reaction: After Zheng's final forehand hit the net, Rybakina celebrated in what has become her customary fashion over the years: a deadpan expression with barely a flicker of her facial muscles, a stare into the middle distance and then some self-deprecation.

The 27-year-old did permit herself a brief smile during her on-court interview with Andrea Petkovic, but her tone was one of relief.

"It's been a very difficult match," she said. "Honestly, a lot of nerves, of course. Maybe it wasn't the highest level but I'm glad that I pushed through. It's an early match and in my head I was complaining a little bit about the sun, the shadow, a lot of little things. It was definitely a battle inside me but I'm glad that I pushed all the negative thoughts away and I kept on fighting."

Rybakina said her difficulties were not about the No. 1 ranking, but the schedule. This was her first midday match of the tournament and the first time she had played in the sun; her opening match against Thea Frodin had been scheduled for the first slot but was delayed for several hours by rain.

She also brushed off the idea that reaching No. 1 was her end goal in New York.

“It’s just a number right now,” Rybakina said. “Of course, I’m in the semis, so my goal is to win the tournaments which I play. I go just match at a time. It’s an amazing achievement, but you know how quick everything can change in tennis, ranking-wise, during the match. I just need to focus on my game, try to recover and enjoy tomorrow.”

Rybakina will face either No. 4 seed Coco Gauff or No. 5 seed Mirra Andreeva in the semifinals.

Rybakina flips first-set script in decider: The match comprised two sets with near-identical dynamics, bookending a one-sided second act that passed in a flash.

The first and third sets were the types one would naturally expect of a meeting between two of the strongest servers on the TA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz: plenty of easy holds, aces and service winners to escape break points, and ultimately only decided by a single break.

In the opener, Zheng fired a terrific forehand winner to bring up the first break point of the match at 4-3, and went on to convert as Rybakina netted a forehand. The final game of the set was a mini-thriller of its own as Zheng navigated seven deuces and saved five break-back points before slamming a service winner down the T to convert her fourth set point.

Rybakina responded by raising her level in the second set -- while Zheng's abruptly plummeted. The Chinese player, who had gone the distance in four of her seven matches at the tournament -- against Elena Pridankina, Kristina Liutova, Yulia Putintseva and Madison Keys -- found just one winner in this passage of play as her first-serve percentage dropped to 35%.

But Olympic gold medalist Zheng's resurgent tournament has been marked by a great deal of scoreboard resilience -- the 23-year-old won two consecutive sets from 5-0 down against Keys and Iga Swiatek -- and her gathered herself for a final push in her quest to become the second qualifier to make the US Open semifinals in the Open Era.

In the third set, Zheng fended off a break point at 2-2, then found a breathtaking backhand winner down the line to bring up one of her own at 4-3. At that juncture, Rybakina had only come to the net five times, and won only two of those points -- and her approach down break point gave Zheng plenty of time to set up for a pass. But Zheng pushed her backhand long, and the momentum suddenly flipped back to Rybakina.

A six-point run took her to a hold, then to triple break point on Zheng's serve. Zheng didn't let that game go easily, but a double fault on Rybakina's fourth break point sealed her fate. Betraying no nerves, Rybakina served out a milestone win with the calm efficiency that's been her hallmark for most of this decade.