Kazakh tennis player Elena Rybakina commented on her defeat to Poland's Iga Swiatek in the final of the Canadian Open-2026 in Toronto. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Sports.kz.
Rybakina's words after the defeat
The world No. 2 lost to her opponent in two sets in the decisive match — 2:6, 3:6. After the match, Rybakina spoke emotionally:
"It's hard for me to find words right now... I tried my best, but it wasn't enough. I want to congratulate Iga and her team on a great tournament. Thank you to all the fans for the incredible atmosphere. I hope to come back here next time! I also want to thank everyone who organized this tournament. And, of course, thank you to my team — without you, guys, reaching the final would have been impossible! We will continue to work and move forward," Rybakina said.
Road to the final
Kazakhstan's No. 1 reached the final by defeating American Coco Gauff in the semifinals. The match ended in three sets with a score of 5:7, 6:2, 6:2 in favor of the Kazakh player.
In the decisive match, Rybakina faced Poland's Iga Swiatek. At stake were the WTA 1000 title and 1000 ranking points, but the Kazakh player failed to win the trophy.
Ranking changes
Despite the loss in the final, her performance in Toronto allowed Rybakina to strengthen her position in the WTA rankings and reduce the gap to world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Before the tournament, Rybakina trailed the Belarusian by 494 points. After reaching the final, the gap narrowed to 354 points.
Rybakina now has 8316 points, while Sabalenka has 8670.
Sabalenka's early exit from the Canadian Open also helped the Kazakh player close the distance. The world No. 1 ended her run in the Round of 16, losing to Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova, who is ranked 19th in the WTA.
Rybakina, on the other hand, reached the final match of the tournament, where she lost to world No. 8 Iga Swiatek with a score of 2:6, 3:6.