"It’s better when the coaches are closer": Elena Rybakina on the advantage of having her team near the court

Elena Rybakina overflowed with confidence after her quarterfinal victory at the Australian Open against Iga Swiatek. The world No. 5 continues in impeccable form and reaches the semifinals of a Grand Slam for the fourth time in her career, with the possibility of advancing to her third major final.

The 2023 Australian Open runner-up took control of a duel that began evenly and ended up claiming the victory 7–5, 6–1. With this result, she also levelled the head-to-head against Swiatek at 6–6, repeating what happened in their previous meeting at the WTA Finals, where Rybakina claimed the Round Robin victory on her way to the title.

“I’m really happy with the win and happy that it was in straight sets. I struggled a bit with my serve in the first set, but overall I’m happy that I managed to win it in two sets,” the Kazakh said during her post-match press conference. “I think the start was a little bit slow, maybe from both of us, because the first-serve percentage from both players wasn’t very high. Maybe it was because I practiced indoors yesterday, and I think she also practiced indoors because it was too hot, so you have to adjust.”

After a first set in which Rybakina had just a 41% first-serve percentage — and which was decided thanks to a late break — the world No. 5 completely took over the match in the second set. She won eight of the last nine games played and closed out the victory with 11 aces and a 79% first-serve points won percentage, well above the Pole’s 60%. “In the second set, I tried tossing from a different position and moving the toss a bit, and I’m glad it worked,” Rybakina added.

For a player like Rybakina, who is accustomed to delivering strong performances in big tournaments, she had suffered several disappointments at Grand Slam events in recent times. Since Wimbledon 2022, Rybakina had not gone beyond the fourth round of a major — which was also the occasion of her most recent semifinals — and she had been far from competing for the title in the last Grand Slams.

The former Wimbledon champion acknowledged that the most complicated part of going deep at a Grand Slam is maintaining consistency and mental strength over two consecutive weeks. “The hardest part is probably staying consistent throughout the two weeks. There are always challenging days. You can play indoors, outdoors, in the sun, or at night, so all those conditions are tricky.”

“How quickly you can adapt to those circumstances is important. I think now I’m more calm going deeper into the tournament,” added the former world No. 3. “At the beginning, when it’s your first final or the first time you go far, you’re more emotional. Now I feel like I’m just doing my job, trying to improve each day. It’s another day, another match.”

The 2025 WTA Finals champion also referred to her working team — currently with Stefano Vukov back after his controversial suspension from the WTA Tour, following accusations of mistreatment towards the player, which Rybakina repeatedly denied until the coach’s ban was lifted.

“For me, it’s better when the coaches are closer because you can hear them better,” Rybakina said regarding communication with her team during the match. “It’s nice to get advice, especially if something isn’t working. I think it was a good idea to move the coaches closer to the court.”

It was precisely from Rybakina’s team that they paid close attention to what was happening, ensuring she held on to her advantage at the end of the first set and that the dominance was maintained once the second set began, making some adjustments to her serve.

“On the serve, I think about where to position myself, and if the sun is bothering me on one side, then I try to toss the ball differently. You need to be able to adjust,” Rybakina added. “In the first set it was pretty difficult, and it took a long time to start serving better in the second.”

Rybakina is one of the players who has found the greatest consistency in recent months, from a strong end to 2025 to an almost perfect start to the season in the Australian swing. She has 18 wins in her last 19 matches and is riding an eight-match winning streak against top-10 opponents — including her perfect campaign at the WTA Finals in Riyadh.

“Last season, in the last few tournaments I played, I gained confidence through tough matches. That’s something I’m trying to carry into this season,” Rybakina said. “There are still many things to improve and work on, but the most important thing for my game is staying aggressive whenever I get the chance to step in and maybe take a bit of risk. Even today, a few shots were very close to the line or on the line, and I’m glad it went my way. Staying aggressive is the key.”

In the semifinals, she will face world No. 6 Jessica Pegula, with whom she shares a 3–3 head-to-head record, and whom she defeated in their most recent encounter in the semifinals of the WTA Finals in three sets. The American reached the semifinals in Melbourne for the first time and comes after eliminating defending champion Madison Keys and world No. 4 Amanda Anisimova.

“With Jessica, it’s a different type of game,” said the 2022 Wimbledon champion about her opponent. “For me, the most important thing is to stay focused on my serve because it’s a big advantage if it works, and to stay aggressive in rallies. Then we’ll see who wins.

She’s a very experienced opponent, she moves well, and her ball stays quite low, which can make it difficult. I’ll try to adjust. We’ve made some plans with my team, and I’ll try to do my best.”