Women's tennis has a new world number one as US Open showdown looms
Elena Rybakina becomes world number one for the first time by reaching the US Open semifinals, despite defending champion and current top-ranked player Aryna Sabalenka still being alive in the tournament.
Elena Rybakina has secured her place as the new world number one after defeating Qinwen Zheng in the US Open women's tennis tournament. The Kazakh tennis player overcame Zheng with a scoreline of 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 to reach the semifinals for the first time in her career. Rybakina will face 2023 champion Coco Gauff in the next round, with defending champion Aryna Sabalenka and third seed Jessica Pegula set to contest the other semifinal.
Despite Sabalenka still being in contention for her third consecutive US Open title, Rybakina's comprehensive win over Zheng marked a significant milestone in her career. The early matches of the tournament concluded late, breaking the record for the latest finish ever at the US Open, with Ben Shelton's five-set thriller against Carlos Alcaraz concluding at 3:33 am.
Rybakina praised her performance, acknowledging that it wasn't the highest level of play but she was glad she pushed through.
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