An early start time didn’t rattle Elena Rybakina during the National Bank Open on Tuesday. Despite her opponent’s strong beginning, Rybakina staged a comeback to defeat Naomi Osaka 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 and secure a spot in the WTA Tour event’s semifinals. The second-seeded player from Kazakhstan broke Osaka’s serve at 3-3 in the final set and maintained her lead to clinch the victory at Sobeys Stadium.
Following Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic’s withdrawal due to a hip injury, the match between Rybakina and Osaka was moved up earlier than scheduled. The intense back-and-forth battle between the two players lasted two hours and 33 minutes.
Rybakina, a hard-serving player, expressed her difficulty in adjusting to the late-day light after playing her previous matches during the day sessions. She acknowledged the tough challenge ahead as she is set to face Coco Gauff in the semifinals.
Meanwhile, the other semifinal match will feature Elina Svitolina of Ukraine against Iga Swiatek of Poland. Both players secured victories in their quarterfinal matches on Monday. The tournament’s final is set for Thursday with a prize pool of $7.43 million.
Despite Osaka’s early lead in the match, Rybakina managed to stay positive and turn the tide in her favor. With a strong performance, Rybakina secured her third WTA 1000 semifinal appearance of the season.
In the men’s singles event, defending champion Ben Shelton advanced to the semifinals after defeating Jakub Mensik 6-3, 6-1. Shelton, the fifth seed, expressed his satisfaction with his performance and mental clarity during the match. He will face Learner Tien in the upcoming semifinal clash.
Additionally, Brandon Nakashima secured a spot in the semifinals with a decisive win over Luciano Darderi, joining Shelton and Tien as the three American men in the semifinals. Rafael Jodar also emerged victorious, setting up a semifinal showdown with Nakashima in what will be a first for both players in a Masters 1000 event.