Elena Rybakina criticized after her latest decision as tennis fans call her ‘unprofessional’

Elena Rybakina has been in fantastic form recently, having clinched her second title of the season.

After the Kazakh star lost in the quarterfinals of the Wuhan Open to Aryna Sabalenka, she quickly bounced back at the Ningbo Open.

There, Rybakina claimed the title, earning victories over top-ten players Jasmine Paolini and Ekaterina Alexandrova.

Her hot streak continued at the Pan Pacific Open, where the former Wimbledon champion did not drop a set in her first two matches against Canadian compatriots Leylah Fernandez and Victoria Mboko.

Rybakina was scheduled to play Linda Noskova in the quarterfinals, but she has since withdrawn from the tournament due to injury, a decision that has not gone down well among fans.

Fans slam Elena Rybakina after she withdraws from Tokyo

After her victory over Mboko, Rybakina had officially collected enough points to qualify for the year-end WTA Finals, which was one of the main incentives for her to play at the Pan Pacific Open.

Many fans have now suspected that her withdrawal from Tokyo indicated that she was only there for qualification points, rather than to fight for the title.

Rybakina’s injury statement read: “I’m very sorry I can’t play today. I have been having problems with my back this week and can’t play 100%.

“I am disappointed that my fans will not see me today, but I hope to see you next year.”

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One fan on X, formerly known as Twitter, responded: “Translation – I just qualified for the finals, so saving the body.”

Another fan said: “Sorry, this is unprofessional. Play the tournament.”

This fan argued: “Problems with her back. Sure, and yet you played four more tournaments this year just to qualify over Andreeva for the finals.”

“She could have simply said ‘I did what I needed to do this week. I’m fatigued and don’t want to risk injury ahead of the WTA Finals’ and it would have been perfectly acceptable” said one user.

Finally, one fan in Japan said: “As a Tokyo resident, it’s so disappointing. It looks like she no longer needs to be here.”

Every star qualified for the WTA Finals in Riyadh

The WTA Finals are set to begin on the first of November, and will take place in Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia.

Featuring at the prestigious year-end tournament are eight of the world’s very best, including Rybakina, who denied Mirra Andreeva a maiden appearance at the event.

Rybakina took the eighth spot, with Paolini, Madison Keys, and Jessica Pegula making up places seven, six and five.

US Open finalist Amanda Anisimova collected the fourth-most points in the race to Riyadh, 600 less than Coco Gauff in third.

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