Elena Rybakina Reaches US Open Semifinals, Secures First-Ever World No. 1 Ranking

World No. 2 women's tennis player Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan has advanced to the semifinals of the 2026 US Open, securing her first-ever rise to the world No. 1 ranking.

Rybakina defeated qualifier Zheng Qinwen of China, ranked No. 121, 2-1 (3-6, 6-1, 6-4) in the quarterfinals on the 11th day of the tournament at Flushing Meadows in New York, USA, in a match lasting 2 hours and 14 minutes.

Struggling early in the match and dropping the first set, Rybakina regained her rhythm in the second set.

Overwhelming Zheng, she took the set 6-1 in just 38 minutes to level the match.

In the decisive third set, after overcoming a break point deficit at 3-4, Rybakina secured a crucial break following a double fault by Zheng at 4-4, and then held her serve to claim victory.

Having won her second career major title at this year's Australian Open, Rybakina is now pursuing her first US Open title and the third major championship of her career.

Additionally, in the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) singles rankings to be released after the tournament, she will surpass Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, who has held the top spot for 99 weeks, to become world No. 1 for the first time in her life.

"Being world No. 1 is just a number right now," Rybakina said after the match. "Now that I've reached the semifinals, my goal is to win the tournament."


Rybakina will face 2023 tournament champion Coco Gauff of the United States, ranked world No. 4, in the semifinals.

Zheng Qinwen, who reached the US Open quarterfinals for the third time in her career following 2023 and 2024, sought to advance to her first tournament semifinal but fell short of her goal.

Zheng, who underwent surgery last summer for chronic right elbow pain, has struggled to find her match rhythm even after returning in February of this year.

Once ranked No. 4 in the world, Zheng slipped to No. 121 but fought her way through the qualifiers to reach the main draw of this tournament.

She became the first qualifier to reach the US Open women's singles quarterfinals in five years since Emma Raducanu of Great Britain in 2021.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News, Getty Images)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.