The 2025 season was another successful one for Elena Rybakina, but it was also a campaign marred by various injury setbacks.
The 2022 Wimbledon champion finished the year at No 5 in the WTA Rankings with her rise coming on the back of her brilliant end to the season as she was the last player to secure her place at the WTA Finals with qualification coming on the back of her title run at the Ningbo Open.
She went on to dominate the season-ending event in Saudi Arabia as she won the title without losing a match, defeating world No 2 Iga Swiatek in the group phase and world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the final.
Rybakina pocketed a record $5.235m in prize money – to finish the year with $8,456,632 – and also earned a maximum of 1,500 ranking points.
The Kazakh’s other highlight of the year came in May with her title run at the Internationaux de Strasbourg, but there were also several lows as she failed to reach the business end of the four Grand Slams.
She lost in the fourth round of the Australian Open against Madison Keys, but her campaign was hampered by a back injury, which was far from her most serious injury this year.
In an interview with Sportilinet.kz, Rybakina revealed: “My back hurt at the beginning of the season. It was unfortunate that it started in Australia, but we were able to fix everything quickly and do exercises.
“The most concerning issues are with my legs, which are sometimes better and sometimes worse. In addition to training, we do various recovery procedures. It’s not something that can be resolved quickly.”
The 26-year-old also struggled with a shoulder problem during the latter stages of the year, but that was down to wear and tear.
She added: “As for my shoulder, it happened at the last tournament, but it didn’t require any manipulation or medical assistance. I rested and it went away. My shoulder hurt because I played a lot of tournaments in a row and served a lot.
“Overall, it was under control. With the team, we manage to avoid serious injuries and surgery.”
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Barely three weeks after her 2025 season ended, Rybakina is already back on the practice court as she has started her pre-season training.
She was initially due to return to action at the exhibition World Tennis League in mid-December, but has decided she needs more time after a hectic year.
“I withdrew from the World Tennis League pre-season tournament in India. It’s been a long season, and if I’d played there, I’d have to start matches in India on the 17th. It’s completely rushed,” she explained.
“Now I’ll be preparing in Dubai for four weeks, then an exhibition tournament in China, which is convenient for my trip to Australia. Then there’s Brisbane and the Australian Open.”
The post Elena Rybakina reveals ‘most concerning issues’ that ‘can’t be resolved quickly’ as she gives calendar update appeared first on Tennis365.
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