Elena Rybakina secured the year-end women's singles world number one ranking by defeating Yulia Putintseva 6-2, 6-3 in the round of 16 at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo on 29 October 2026.
The victory ensures the 27-year-old Kazakhstani player cannot be overtaken in the remaining weeks of the season, during which she has already won the Australian Open and US Open titles. She also claimed her fourth title of 2026 at the Ningbo Open last week.
Rybakina served six aces and produced 25 winners against Putintseva. She will next face Leylah Fernandez in the quarter-finals, having beaten the Canadian 6-2, 6-2 in the Ningbo final.
"It means a lot. This is something we worked for with the team. So many great players and we are all really close to each other, and I'm happy that now with last week and with today's win I made it possible to secure number one at the end of the year. It's an amazing achievement and hopefully we can continue this way next year," Rybakina said.
Rybakina overtook Aryna Sabalenka to become world number one in September after beating her in the Australian Open and US Open finals. A quarter-final win over Zheng Qinwen at the US Open confirmed her ascent. Her next tournament is the WTA Finals in Indian Wells from 8-15 November, where she will defend her title.
