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Elena Rybakina secured the world No. 1 ranking on Wednesday after defeating Qinwen Zheng 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 to advance to the U.S. Open semifinals.
The Kazakh, seeded No. 2, overturned a set deficit against the Chinese Olympic champion to reach the tournament's final four in New York for the first time.
Rybakina entered the tournament ranked No. 2 behind Aryna Sabalenka. The victory over Zheng secured enough ranking points for Rybakina to overtake the Belarusian and reach world No. 1 for the first time in her career.
Zheng made the stronger start, taking the opening set 6-3 and handing Rybakina her first set loss of the tournament. The 2026 Australian Open champion responded by winning the second set 6-1 before closing out the third set 6-4 to complete the comeback.
Rybakina had entered the quarterfinals in strong form, winning her first four matches of the tournament without dropping a set. That run included a 6-1, 6-4 victory over former champion Naomi Osaka in the fourth round.
For Zheng, the quarterfinal appearance capped a notable run at the U.S. Open. The 23-year-old Olympic champion came through the qualifying rounds before reaching the last eight, including comeback wins over Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek along the way.
Rybakina will face either American fourth seed Coco Gauff or fifth-seeded Russian Mirra Andreeva in the semifinals on Thursday.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
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