Elena Rybakina doesn’t fixate on statistics, which is perhaps for the best.
Just ten weeks ago, during the Australian Open, Rybakina found herself on the wrong end of the longest tiebreak in grand slam singles history, losing a 42-point battle to Anna Blinkova. It would have been understandable for her to dwell on that crushing defeat as she faced off against Victoria Azarenka in the Miami Open semifinal, her first final-set tiebreak since. However, Rybakina’s mind was elsewhere. She wasn’t replaying memories of Australia, or Blinkova, or the six match points she missed in Melbourne. Nor was she consumed by thoughts of the lopsided second set where Azarenka staged a remarkable comeback, erasing Rybakina’s lead with a streak of 16 consecutive points. Even the fact that she had been just two points from victory minutes earlier didn’t occupy her thoughts. In that moment, all she focused on was maintaining a clear mind.
Reflecting on her dramatic 6-4, 0-6, 7-6 (7-2) triumph, Rybakina remarked, “I knew that in the tiebreak the only chance for me to win was just to switch off my mind and just try to go for it. I didn’t even remember that last time I played in Australia, the tiebreak. But definitely, all the matches I played here, it was a battle for every point with all the opponents. I was not really thinking much. I knew it’s a tiebreak, it’s a kind of roulette, it might not go your way, especially from the beginning – and it went my way.”
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