When I was younger, I was always watching him play,” Elena Rybakina is an avid fan of Swiss Maestro Roger Federer and she has expressed this sentiment time and again. She grew up watching the Swiss maestro play. While she’s got a lot to achieve in her career, Rybakina still has one major wish she wants to fulfill at any cost. Not to mention that it involves Federer, her idol.
After going through a phase filled with lots of stress, Elena Rybakina is back to playing tennis on a competitive level. She made her comeback at the WTA Finals. Before that, her last appearance was in the US Open, back in September, where she couldn’t get past the second round. Since then, a lot has been anticipated about the 2022 Wimbledon winner. Especially, regarding the situation of her coach. After splitting with Stefanov Vukov in August, Rybakina stunned everyone when she announced a new partnership with none other than Novak Djokovic’s ex-coach Goran Ivanisevic.
Under Goran’s tutelage, she entered the WTA Finals last week. Unfortunately, her stint in Riyadh didn’t turn out as expected. She lost two of her group-stage encounters. On a positive note, however, she ended her campaign with a confidence-boosting win over World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka in her last match in which Elena won 6-4, 3-6, 6-1.
As of now, she’s enjoying her break ahead of a busy season in 2025. Recently, Elena appeared in an interview with SauBall Sports Channel, in which she talked about various aspects of her career and personal life. Well, the discussion took an interesting turn when the host brought up Roger Federer’s name. He wanted to ask Elena about her dream wish of playing alongside the Rog one day. When asked if she’s still thinking about it, Rybakina confessed, “Yes, if I had the opportunity to play with him, I would be very happy. I see that he still travels and attends many tournaments, so perhaps something like that could happen in the future. It’s definitely one of those mini-dreams, something I’d love to experience.”
