A few months into the 2020 season, one of the most startling revelations was the rise of Elena Rybakina. After stealthily breezing up the rankings in the season before, she soon became impossible to ignore. Tournament after tournament, her wins piled up and as she demolished serves and bulldozed ground strokes off both wings, She seemed destined to continue.
Instead, the pandemic struck and upon the resumption of the tour Rybakina struggled to find her way. Her fleeting moments of excellence were accompanied with frustration as she patiently awaited a breakthrough. At last, it has come. At the end of a wonderful two weeks when her form and confidence gradually blossomed, Rybakina has finally arrived at the very top of the sport.
