Elena Rybakina will defend her Ningbo title on Sunday after overcoming a stubborn Diana Shnaider 6-3, 7-5 in a demanding semifinal, setting up a championship match with Canada’s Leylah Fernandez.
The world No. 1 needed 1 hour and 35 minutes to reach her second consecutive Ningbo final. Rybakina was broken to love while serving for the match, but recovered to seal the straight-sets win and book the 28th final of her career.
Quick facts
- Rybakina defeated Shnaider 6-3, 7-5 in the Ningbo semifinals.
- Fernandez beat Marie Bouzkova 6-3, 7-5 in 1 hour, 58 minutes.
- The final is Rybakina’s 28th career title match and Fernandez’s 10th.
- Rybakina leads their head-to-head series 3-2 and has won the past two meetings.
- Fernandez is chasing a seventh career WTA title; Rybakina is seeking another Ningbo crown.
Rybakina’s route through the draw has required patience. She was taken to three sets by qualifier Katarzyna Kawa in the quarterfinals, then had to withstand a lengthy opening-set battle against Shnaider.
She required 11 set points before taking the first set. Although she struck patches of commanding tennis, Rybakina finished with 42 unforced errors and had to work through several missed chances on serve.
Still, Shnaider created only one break-point opportunity during the contest. Rybakina converted her 11th set point to take control of the opener before surviving the late wobble in the second.
“That game was crucial and it lasted a long time,” Rybakina said. “My serve was a struggle at times. I was doing well on the first ball, but on advantage I could not finish the game. There were many chances, so I am happy it ended my way.”
Rybakina and Fernandez will meet for the sixth time on the WTA Tour, but for the first time with a trophy on the line. Rybakina owns a 3-2 advantage in the matchup and beat Fernandez earlier this season during her successful Stuttgart title defence, which brought her first repeat title at an event.
Now she has the opportunity to repeat that achievement in Ningbo. “It is never easy,” Rybakina said. “I will try to give everything tomorrow and fight.”
Fernandez earned her place in the final by closing out the last three games against Bouzkova. The Singapore champion continued a productive Asian swing, advancing to her second final of the season.
The Canadian’s semifinal was also uneven on serve. Fernandez was broken five times and won 54% of points behind her first delivery, but her returning pressure proved decisive as she broke Bouzkova eight times.
Fernandez struck 27 winners against 25 unforced errors, repeatedly finding enough attacking quality to halt Bouzkova’s momentum. Her 6-3, 7-5 victory lasted just under two hours.
“It was a good performance, though perhaps not my best tennis,” Fernandez said. “There were too many errors, but a semifinal brings nerves. I am very happy with how I handled them and that I found good tennis when it mattered, with a wonderful crowd behind us.”
Sunday’s final gives Fernandez the chance to end a two-match skid against Rybakina and collect the seventh title of her career. For Rybakina, the task is to turn a hard-earned run through the Ningbo draw into another successful title defence.
