Elena Rybakina Dominates Naomi Osaka to Reach US Open Quarter-Finals

Elena Rybakina crushed two-time champion Naomi Osaka to stride into the US Open quarter-finals and move to within touching distance of the world number one ranking.

On a humid night in Louis Armstrong Stadium, the second seed needed just 68 minutes to dismantle the 13th seed 6-1 6-4, a scoreline that barely captured the gulf in authority from the baseline and, crucially, on serve.

Osaka, a four-time major winner and twice the champion in New York, arrived with momentum and confidence. Rybakina snatched both from her almost immediately.

The Kazakh opened with a statement set: heavy first serves, flat, biting groundstrokes, and a relentless depth that pinned Osaka behind the baseline. The first set raced by in 26 minutes, Osaka unable to find any rhythm as Rybakina broke twice and faced little resistance on her own delivery.

The tone was set early. Rybakina bullied the rallies, stepped inside the court, and took time away from Osaka, who has so often been the one dictating on this stage. This time, she was the one reacting, lunging, stretching, guessing.

The second set brought more resistance. Osaka began to land more first serves, found a few trademark forehands, and tried to extend the rallies. The match finally felt like a contest rather than a procession. But every time Osaka threatened to claw her way back, Rybakina’s serve shut the door.

The pressure finally told at 4-4. Rybakina pounced on a short second serve, earned the crucial break, and then served out the match with the composure of a player who knows exactly what is at stake.

Next up is China’s Zheng Qinwen, the reigning Olympic champion, who produced one of the comebacks of the tournament to beat former US Open champion Iga Swiatek. Zheng trailed 5-0 in the opening set of their fourth-round clash, yet turned the match on its head to book her place in the last eight.

That win set up a quarter-final rich in narrative: the Olympic champion against the Wimbledon champion, with the world number one ranking looming over it all.

For Rybakina, the equation is brutally simple. Win that quarter-final and she will rise to the top of the rankings for the first time in her career, regardless of whether Aryna Sabalenka successfully defends her title in New York.

“Of course I want it, I don't know anyone who won't want this,” Rybakina said when asked about the number one spot. There was no coyness, no attempt to play down the stakes. Just a clear target.

She insisted, though, that the approach cannot change now.

“I tried to approach it the same way and do everything I can, and fight to the end of my next match,” she said. The formula is straightforward: keep serving like this, keep striking this cleanly, and the rest tends to follow. “If I serve as well as I did today, I think I can do well. Let's hope it goes my way.”

On this evidence, it will take something special from Zheng to stop her. One match now separates Rybakina from the ranking every player chases and the status that would confirm what this performance against Osaka already suggested: she is playing like the best player in the world.