"My level is higher than at the previous tournament," rejoices Rybakina after her opening victory in Strasbourg

12th in the world ranking, Elena Rybakina did not start this clay season well. The Kazakh, beaten in the third round in Madrid by Elina Svitolina and then at the same stage of the competition in Rome by Bianca Andreescu, returned to the WTA 500 tournament in Strasbourg where she reached the final in 2020.

Faced with Wang Xinyu in her first match, the former world number 3 won comfortably (6-1, 6-3) and reached the quarterfinals where she will face Magda Linette.

On the court moments after her success against the Chinese player, ranked 42nd in the world, Rybakina was asked about her level of play and sees progress compared to the past few months, having parted ways with her coach Goran Ivanisevic after only a few weeks of collaboration.

“I am happy to be back in Strasbourg, it has been three years since I last came here. I am glad to have won and I’m already looking forward to playing the next match. It wasn’t easy, Wang also plays very aggressively.

I knew there wouldn’t be very long rallies. I was focused on my serve. It was better in both serve and return in the second set. I am satisfied with my performance. I think my level is higher than at the previous tournament for now.

I hope I can continue like this and feel even better in every match I play here. It’s a very good tournament to play before Roland-Garros," explained Rybakina to WTA media after her opening victory in this 2025 edition of the Alsace tournament.