Elena Rybakina tops Elina Svitolina to advance to Indian Wells final

It’ll be a rematch of the Australian Open final at Indian Wells.

Elena Rybakina, who won the title in Melbourne in January, will face top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka in the BNP Paribas Open final on Sunday, after a 7-5, 6-4 win over Elina Svitolina Friday on Stadium Court.

Svitolina played well, notching four aces in the first set. But she also double faulted four times and that helped Rybakina, 26, to come back from being down 2-0 in the first set.

Instead of going up 3-0, Svitolina couldn’t save a break point in the fourth game and then Rybakina got back on serve and controlled much of the rest of the match.

With the score tied in the first set, 5-5, Svitolina saved a pair of break points but couldn’t save a third as Rybakina’s forehand ripped returns that averaged 81 mph through that point in the match. She recorded 10 forehand winners through the first 11 games of the first set.

The Russian-born Kazakhstani then held serve to take the first set in 52 minutes.

Rybakina then immediately went up a break to start the second set and used her serve, the most potent weapon in women’s tennis, to control the rest of the match. Her first serve averaged 113 mph in the first set, and she reached as high as 119 mph in the second set.

“We haven’t seen someone serve this dominant since Serena (Williams),” former player Lindsey Davenport said on the Tennis Channel broadcast.

Svitolina was playing just 24 hours after beating second-seeded Iga Świątek with temperatures rising as high as 95 degrees. It was a grueling, physical match, and was her fourth win over a top 10 player this year.

She then had to play in another equally physical match Friday against Rybakina.

Svitolina provided some resistance. After falling behind a double break in the second set, she saved a break point then broke Rybakina to get a break back. She then held serve to cut Rybakina’s lead to 5-4.

But Rybakina’s serve was just too much in the 10th game. Rybakina calmed down, took some deep breaths and shook off the nerves in that final game to finished off the match.

Rybakina, who is ranked third in the world, will move up to No. 2 in the WTA rankings on Monday, regardless of Sunday’s outcome. In the Indian Wells final, she’ll face a player in Sabalenka who is poised to not only win her first title here but also avenge her loss to Rybakina in Melbourne.

Rybakina is looking to repeat as Indian Wells champion. She won the event in 2023 and is now vying to become the 11 woman to win two titles here. No woman has won three.

Sabalenka leads the series with Rybakina, 8-7.

“I’m going to fight as much as I can,” Rybakina said. “Hopefully it’s going to be a great match.”

[This story has been updated to add new information.]

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Elena Rybakina will face Aryna Sabalenka, with Friday’s semifinal win