Elena Rybakina is through to the third round of Wimbledon, after breezing past Greece’s Maria Sakkari.
The world number 11, who won the Wimbledon Ladies Singles title in 2022, still remains one of the best grass court players on the WTA Tour.
With top seeds like Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula and Qinwen Zheng exiting the tournament at the first hurdle, Rybakina has a superb opportunity to reach the final and claim her second Wimbledon Crown.
Rybakina, who Martina Navratilova said is now possibly the favourite for the title, spoke about the mass exodus of seeds from Wimbledon.
Elena Rybakina says the amount of seeded players exiting Wimbledon is ‘very unexpected’
It would be a stretch to say that Elena Rybakina is a grass court specialist, due to her excellent results across all surfaces. However, it is abundantly clear that the Kazakh is at her most comfortable when on the green surface.
Her 2022 title is not the only occasion that she has performed well at Wimbledon – she made the semi-finals of the 2024 event.
However, many seeded players have struggled to adapt to grass following the clay court swing. A record-breaking 23 seeds across the men’s and women’s singles draws exited Wimbledon in the first round.
Speaking to the BBC after her winning performance on Thursday afternoon, Rybakina said: “It’s very unexpected to see so many seeded players lose but also the grass is very special and the season is quite short so not everyone can adapt so quick.
“And of course I like this surface a lot it really suits my game and for now it’s going well so hopefully I can continue like this.”
Rybakina will hope to continue her good form when she faces either Clara Tauson or Anna Kalinskaya in the next round.
‘I don’t feel pressure’
Unlike her peers, Rybakina has rarely struggled to perform at Wimbledon.
The 26-year-old has a wealth of experience at the tournament and is now a clear favourite to win her second Wimbledon crown.
Rybakina’s comments after her fourth round match at last year’s championships represent what the Kazakh player is all about.
In the interview, Rybakina said: “I don’t feel pressure.”
Unfortunately for Rybakina, she lost to eventual champion Barbora Krejcikova in the semi-final. This year, she will be hoping to go all the way at SW19.
