Miraculous Rybakina to reach Madrid semi-finals

It wasn't the usual Elena Rybakina on Court Manolo Santana against Yulia Putintseva on Wednesday. Far less at ease than usual and clearly lacking bite (54 unforced errors), the world number 4 was dominated for a long time. Quickly trailing by a set, the Kazakh fought back mentally. Fighting all the way to the end, despite a rather poor feeling, she finally prevailed, taking full advantage of her opponent's inconsistency (4-6, 7-6, 7-5 in 2h48).

In a fratricidal duel against her astonishing compatriot (Kasatkina, ranked 11th in the world, lost in the eighth round), the higher-ranked of the two Kazakhs relied on experience and fighting spirit to win. After a first set largely dominated by Putintseva (6-4), the Stuttgart winner managed the tie-break of the second set perfectly to come back, slightly against the run of play (7-6).

Undaunted, Putintseva once again took Rybakina by the throat and quickly pulled away (5-2). It was then that the world No. 4 showed all her progress. Brushing aside two match points, she went on to win the last five games of the match (4-6, 7-6, 7-5).

For Putintseva, the regrets are immense. Dominant throughout the match, it was her excessive number of unforced errors and, above all, her mental stamina that prevented her from achieving a major feat. Rybakina, on the other hand, is increasingly establishing herself as a WTA Tour leader. Even on a day as average as Wednesday's, she found the resources to come through and sign her 6th semi-final of the season.

For a place in the final, she will meet the winner of the duel between title-holder Aryna Sabalenka and Mirra Andreeva, the rising star of the circuit (17 years old).