Miami [US], March 22 : The No. 4 seed Elena Rybakina scripted a comeback victory against Danish qualifier Clara Tauson to register a 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the second round of the ongoing Miami Open.
Rybakina needed two hours and 27 minutes to complete the turnaround against 91st-ranked Tauson.
"I missed a lot of hours on the court. Of course now, every match, every hour I get on the court, I just want to do better and better. Every match was a fight, so I expect the same for this week, and just go match by match," Rybakina said as quoted by WTA.
Rybakina is second in total aces this year (trailing only Karolina Pliskova), but that weapon proved ineffective in the first set, as Tauson broke service three times en route to a one-set lead.
Rybakina established an early lead in the second set, but Tauson's power game remained strong. Tauson erased two set points on Rybakina's serve at 5-4, broke for 5-5 and moved closer to her career-best win by ranking.
Rybakina, on the other hand, utilised her own booming game to squeeze out the second set by scoring the next eight points in a row. Rybakina hit a winning overhead to tie the match at one set apiece, her 16th win of the set.
Tauson refused to give up and was twice a point away from a 3-1 lead in the third set. Rybakina, on the other hand, pulled out of that jam and tied the game at 2-2 before scoring a passing goal for a 3-2 advantage. Tauson remained close for the rest of the fight, but Rybakina never let her get the lead back. The 2023 Miami finalist sealed the victory with a forehand winner on her third match point.
In the third round, Rybakina will now take on another qualifier, Taylor Townsend.
"[Townsend is] a tricky opponent, we've never played against each other. She's a lefty; some good serves and volleys she can do. As I said, I'll try my best to recover and prepare for this match," Rybakina said.
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