Elena Rybakina secured a place in the Ningbo Open final on Saturday after defeating Diana Shnaider in straight sets. The top-seeded and defending champion, Rybakina overcame the 13th-ranked Russian 6-3, 7-5 to move closer to claiming her fourth WTA title of the year.

Rybakina, who ascended to the world number one ranking following her US Open victory in September, faced a challenging match despite her higher seeding. The Moscow-born Kazakh appeared poised to dominate the first set but encountered difficulties closing it out, particularly when serving at 5-3. During that stretch, she double-faulted twice and failed to convert ten set points, a rare lapse in her serving consistency.

This performance marks a strong return for Rybakina, who had missed the Wuhan Open the previous week due to a foot injury. Her opponent, Shnaider, demonstrated resilience and kept pressure on the top seed throughout the match.

Rybakina will meet Leylah Fernandez in the final, setting up a high-profile contest to decide the Ningbo Open champion.