An opening match win at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo has put Elena Rybakina is on the doorstep of securing the eighth and final berth at the year-end WTA Finals Riyadh presented by PIF.

Tokyo: Scores | Draw | Order of play

In a match between last week’s title-winners, Ningbo champion Rybakina defeated Osaka champion Leylah Fernandez 6-4, 6-3 in the second round of the WTA 500 tournament on Thursday to move one victory away from qualifying for the year-end championships for the third consecutive year. 

Rybakina picked up a comprehensive 1 hour and 28-minute with against Fernandez to run her winning streak to five — a far cry from the 6-7(2), 7-6(3), 7-6(3) win Fernandez scored against her in the semifinals the Mubadala Citi DC Open in July. She never trailed on the scoreboard — and dropped serve just once — to level her all-time record against the 2021 US Open finalist to 2-2 and inch closer to passing Mirra Andreeva in the Race to the WTA Finals.

Standing between the 2022 Wimbledon champion and the final spot in Riyadh is Fernandez’s compatriot Victoria Mboko — another player whom the World No. 7 will be hoping to get revenge on after a tight loss earlier this year. In Mboko’s magical run to a breakthrough first WTA 1000 title on home soil in Montreal in August, she saved a match point en route to beating Rybakina in the semifinals.

“Today was a very difficult match — it’s always not easy against Leylah, and especially the first match for me here … I’m pretty happy with the win and looking forward for my next match,” Rybakina said afterwards.

“I’m feeling a little bit tired of course, but I’m ready to make a last push. I’m very happy with the last week, and I’m trying to bring everything from last week into here.”

Rybakina’s win against Fernandez was also her 50th match win on the Hologic WTA Tour this season, making her the fourth player to reach that mark after Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula — all of whom have qualified for Riyadh already. 

The Kazakh is the highest-ranked player competing in Tokyo after the pre-tournament withdrawal of Jasmine Paolini, who secured her own spot in Riyadh last week by reaching the Ningbo semifinals before losing to Rybakina.Â