The final match of Friday at the Mutua Madrid Open featured a contest between two Grand Slam champions. Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, seeded 10th, overcame Canada`s Bianca Andreescu with a score of 6-3, 6-2 during the evening session on Manolo Santana Stadium.
Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon winner, took 1 hour and 17 minutes to defeat Andreescu, the 2019 US Open champion. This marked their first meeting in over two years, but the outcome mirrored their previous encounters: Rybakina now holds a 3-0 record against Andreescu, winning all six sets played between them.
Here are some key points from the match involving the major titleholders:
Ranking and Clay Form
Earlier this week, Rybakina moved out of the WTA Top 10 for the first time since January 2023. She is currently ranked No. 11 and is defending 390 points earned from reaching the semifinals in Madrid last year.
Her strong results on clay in 2024, where she captured the title in Stuttgart, made the Madrid semifinals, and reached the Roland Garros quarterfinals with a 12-2 record, give Rybakina confidence for the upcoming weeks. While widely recognized for her success on faster surfaces, Rybakina has demonstrated significant capability on clay, adding another win in her 2025 clay season debut.
Dominant Performance
Rybakina brought her powerful game to the forefront in her latest match against Andreescu. Although the Canadian attempted to dictate points by stepping into the court, Rybakina was the one who controlled the rallies more consistently.
In the first set, Rybakina had more unforced errors (16) than winners (8), yet she still influenced point outcomes more effectively than Andreescu, who registered three winners and 10 unforced errors. Rybakina`s mistakes decreased as the opening set progressed, enabling her to claim the final three games. Her serve was particularly potent, offering Andreescu very few opportunities to break. Rybakina successfully defended all three break points she faced, all occurring in the second set, and won an impressive 80 percent of points when landing her first serve.
Andreescu`s Return
Despite the loss to Rybakina, Bianca Andreescu, whose career since her breakout year in 2019 has been impacted by injuries, can take encouragement from her first-round victory over Top 50 player McCartney Kessler. This marked her first win on the tour since October of the previous year.
The former World No. 4 has competed in only two tournaments this season. She plans to participate in the remaining clay-court events, including Rome and Roland Garros. Similar to her entry in Madrid, she will access the main draws of these tournaments using her protected injury ranking.
Next Opponent
In a highly anticipated third-round match, Rybakina is set to face the 17th seed, Elina Svitolina of Ukraine. This upcoming encounter will be a test for Rybakina, especially considering Svitolina, a former World No. 3, recently won her 18th career title on the clay courts of Rouen just before arriving in Madrid. Their head-to-head record is tightly contested, with Rybakina holding a slight 3-2 lead overall and being tied 1-1 on clay.
