Why Elena Rybakina’s consistency is changing WTA race

TL;DR

Elena Rybakina's recent performances, including a major title and consistent deep runs, have solidified her position as a top contender in the WTA, now ranked No. 2. Her success is changing the dynamics of the women's tennis race.

Key points

Elena Rybakina won the Australian Open and Stuttgart Open.
She is now ranked No. 2 in the WTA.
Rybakina has shown consistent performance in multiple events.

Elena RybakinaAryna SabalenkaKarolina Muchova

Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images

Rybakina’s recent run suggests a new level of consistency that could redefine her place at the top of the WTA.

Elena Rybakina has continued her steady climb among the elite, building on her Grand Slam success with another major title earlier this season. The Kazakh star defeated Aryna Sabalenka in the Australian Open final, reinforcing her status as one of the tour’s most dangerous players.

She has backed that up with deep runs across multiple events, including a final at Indian Wells and a semi-final appearance in Miami. More recently, Rybakina secured her second Stuttgart Open crown, overcoming Karolina Muchova in a repeat of last year’s final, a result that helped lift her to world No. 2—just behind Sabalenka.

Andy Roddick highlights Rybakina’s growing consistency

Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images

Assessing her 2026 campaign, Roddick pointed to a noticeable evolution in Rybakina’s week-to-week level—something that hasn’t always defined her career.

Speaking alongside Jon Wertheim, he suggested she is now firmly in the conversation for year-end No. 1. “Rybakina wins a [WTA] 500 in Stuttgart,” he said. “She’s in this number-one conversation for the year… she’s not having a lot of off-weeks.”

Wertheim expanded on the idea, comparing the current WTA landscape to the ATP Tour, where two standout players have separated themselves from the rest. He noted that Rybakina’s ability to win across surfaces—highlighted by her indoor clay success—adds another layer to her threat level, framing the rivalry with Sabalenka as a potential defining storyline of the season.