Elena Rybakina has upped her consistency and is ready to challenge Aryna Sabalenka for the world No 1 ranking, according to Andy Roddick.
Sabalenka, who has been top of the WTA Rankings since October 2024, has a very handy 2,395-point lead over Rybakina ahead of this week’s Madrid Open, but there is no doubt that the gap between the two has decreased significantly in the past few months.
The four-time Grand Slam winner started the year with a 4-640-point advantage over the Kazakh player, who was down in fifth place ahead of the season-opening Grand Slam, but Rybakina’s Australian Open title run coupled with a runners-up finish at the Indian Wells Open and another title at last week’s Porsche Tennis Grand Prix has seen her edge closer.
During the same period, Sabalenka won the Sunshine Double at the Indian Wells Open and Miami Open and also finished runner-up to Rybakina in Melbourne.
In the latest Served with Andy Roddick podcast, former world No 1 Roddick discussed the battle between the two.
“Rybakina wins a 500 in Stuttgart, she’s in this No 1 conversation for the year, folks. I’m just telling you like she is firmly not having a lot of off weeks,” the American said.
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The 2003 US Open champion added: “This consistency over a four or five-month period is not something we’ve seen from Rybakina before. We know what the top shelf looks like,I think anyone with eyeballs can watch her and say, ‘Oh, her top level is as good as anyone’s’.
“But the difference being she doesn’t do it every time out, you know, over the course of a year, six months, whatever it may be. This feels different from what it’s been before with her as far as I can tell.
“I think she is firmly in this conversation [for being the No 1 player in the world]. If she’s winning on clay consistently, we know she can win on grass, she’s won Wimbledon,
“We know maybe not her best results in in New York in the past, but I know this is going to be fun. You you want someone to come for the throne, obviously Aryna is wearing it [the crown] very comfortably right now, but this is fun. The more in the mix, the merrier.
And Rybakina will get another chance to get even closer to Sabalenka at this week’s Madrid Open as the Belarusian is the defending champion so dropped 1,000 points at the start of the event while the Kazakh player won’t drop any points.
A title run for Rybakina, coupled with an early exit from Sabalenka, could result in the difference between the two being under 1,000 points when they head to Rome for the Italian Open.
The post Andy Roddick says Elena Rybakina is ‘coming for Aryna Sabalenka’s No 1 ‘throne’ in WTA Rankings appeared first on Tennis365.
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