STUTTGART, Germany — World number four Elena Rybakina said she was pleased with the consistency she has shown in recent months after picking up her third title of the season in the Stuttgart Open.
Rybakina of Kazakhstan had little trouble in seeing off Marta Kostyuk 6-2 6-2 to win the Stuttgart Open, her third title this year.
“I’m really happy with all the matches I played here throughout the week, especially in the final. Was very solid from me,” Rybakina said according to Reuters.
“I think just the consistency, of course, and how I’m managing to play all these tournaments till the end, because it’s really tough with the schedule which we have, with all the jet lags and changes of the surface.
Rybakina adds the Stuttgart title to her wins in the Brisbane International and the Abu Dhabi Open this year. For Kostyuk, this was her second final defeat of 2024 after she lost the decider of the San Diego Open in March.
“I want to congratulate Marta of course, been a great tournament, great matches you played here, you’re playing really amazing and hopefully we’ll play many more finals,” Rybakina added.
The Kazakhstani fourth seed broke to love in the opening game and cruised to the first set, breaking again to make it 5-2 and then holding to love.
Kostyuk had no answer and when her opponent broke serve once more in the first game of the second set, the unseeded Ukrainian cut a forlorn figure as she dropped to her knees.
Rybakina, who defeated world number one and winner of the last two titles Iga Swiatek in the semi-finals, showed no mercy and Kostyuk forced her only break points over the course of the match when 3-2 down in the second set.
If there was to be a comeback, this was Kostyuk’s chance, but the 21-year-old looked close to tears as she failed to take advantage of three break points, constantly looking in frustration at her coach in the crowd.
The 24-year-old leaves Germany with the outright lead in titles this season, adding Stuttgart to a collection that includes Brisbane and Abu Dhabi. The victory over Kostyuk was her tour-leading 26th win of the season.
Rybakina held serve then broke again to make it 5-2 to leave her serving for the match. After hitting 10 aces in her win over Swiatek, she did not need any to dismiss Kostyuk.
“It’s an amazing event and I hope to be back here every year, thank you,” Kostyuk said.
“I want to say how incredibly proud I am to see so many Ukrainian flags out here this week.”
It was Kostyuk´s third final. She won her maiden title in Austin last year, and was runner-up in San Diego last month.
Playing in her fifth final of the season, Rybakina opened the match by breaking Kostyuk’s serve and never looked back.
With efficient serving, the tour’s ace leader sealed the first set after just 30 minutes. She lost just one point behind her first serve (15 of 16) and did not face a break point. Rybakina won 30 points to Kostyuk’s 17.
Facing down a confident Rybakina turned out to be a bridge too far for Kostyuk, who engineered a groundbreaking week in Stuttgart to make her second final of the year.
The 21-year-old Ukrainian came into the game having tallied three straight Top 10 wins, defeating No.7 Zheng Qinwen, and reigning Slam champions No.3 Coco Gauff, and No.9 Marketa Vondrousova.
Her win over Zheng in the Round of 16 was a remarkable one. Kostyuk saved five match points in stunning fashion to oust the Australian Open finalist.
Coming into the final with a 1-1 record against Rybakina, Kostyuk could find no inroads against the World No.4. Kostyuk struck just six unforced errors in the first set, but Rybakina’s baseline aggression extracted 16 forced errors.
Rybakina continued her momentum in the second set to close out the win after 1 hour and 9 minutes. She finished the match unbroken, saving all three break points she faced.
