Elena Rybakina battled past Anna Kalinskaya 7-5 4-6 6-3 to reach the third round at the Miami Open keeping her hopes to win the Sunshine Double alive.
Kalinskaya earned an immediate break in the first game of the opening set. Rybakina broke back in the 10th game to draw level to 5-5. The reigning Wimbledon and Indian Wells champion broke for the second time in the 12th game to seal the first set 7-5.
Rybakina broke in the fourth game of the second set to build up a 7-5 4-1 lead. Kalinskaya broke back in the seventh game to draw level to 4-4 after a shaky service game from Rybakina. Kalinskaya broke serve in the ninth game at deuce and served out the second set 6-4 to take Rybakina to her fifth deciding set of the season.
Rybakina broke Kalinskaya in the sixth game of the third set to take a 4-2 lead. Kalinskaya pulled back on serve in the seventh game for 3-4. Rybakina earned her second break in the eighth game and closed out the win just before midnight after 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Rybakina has extended her winning streak to nine consecutive matches. It’s the longest winning streak in her career at WTA level so far. The Kazakh had previously achieved seven-match winning streaks twice. She achieved this feat, when she won seven consecutive matches en route to clinching her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon last year.
In this year’s edition of Indian Wells she beat Sofia Kenin, Paula Badosa, Varvara Gracheva and Karolina Muchova to reach her first WTA 1000 semifinal. She then moved past world number 1 Iga Swiatek in straight sets for the second time in 2023. Rybakina had already beaten Swiatek in the fourth round at the Australian Open.
Rybakina will renew her rivalry with Paula Badosa, who beat Laura Siegemund 7-6 (4-6) 6-2 after 2 hours and 51 minutes.
“I am happy that I managed to win. I had chances in the second set to close it out but I was a little bit on energy and she did a couple of good returns, one double fault from me, so it did not go my way in the second set, but I am happy that in the third set I found my way and won. I only had two days and today was a long day. We are now finishing now really late. Courts are different, balls are different, so it’s not easy at all, but hopefully these three sets will help me in the next round”, said Rybakina.
