Rybakina retires injured in Cincinnati as Sabalenka and Zverev exit

Rybakina heel injury ends pursuit of top ranking

Elena Rybakina withdrew during her Cincinnati Open quarterfinal against Iga Swiatek on Thursday due to a left heel injury. The world No. 2 trailed 4-1 in the opening set after dropping her first service game and stopping play abruptly when unable to place weight on her bandaged foot. After receiving medical attention at her chair, Rybakina played a single point before officially conceding the match. The retirement concluded her opportunity to overtake Aryna Sabalenka for the world No. 1 ranking, which required Rybakina to reach Sunday's final. Swiatek, ranked fifth in the world, advanced to a semifinal meeting with American Jessica Pegula following their previous match in the Toronto final one week earlier.

Honestly, it was giving me anxiety just watching this situation. I hope Elena is okay.

Sabalenka falls to Bejlek in fourth round

Rybakina's chance to claim the top ranking opened after Sabalenka lost her fourth-round match to 20-year-old Czech player Sara Bejlek. Sabalenka built a 5-1 lead in the opening tiebreak before Bejlek won five consecutive points to take the set 7-6 (9-7). In the second set, the Belarusian led 4-1 before conceding five straight games, including two service breaks and a concluding love game for Bejlek. The match concluded near midnight on Wednesday, punctuated by an incident in the first-set tiebreak when Sabalenka threw her racket and lost its vibration dampener under the camera pit. Ranked 35th in the world, Bejlek secured her first career victory over a top-10 player and advanced to face Madison Keys in the quarterfinals.

I totally lost my words. I just keep believing and that was the key today.

Form slump precedes title defence in New York

The early defeat continued a difficult period for Sabalenka ahead of her title defence at the US Open in New York, which starts on 30 August. Sabalenka is attempting to become the first woman to win three consecutive US Open titles since Serena Williams in 2014. After beginning 2026 by winning 26 of her first 27 matches, including the Indian Wells and Miami titles in March, her win-loss record stands at 17-7 since April. Over her last seven tournaments, the four-time Grand Slam champion has reached one semifinal, losing to Jessica Pegula in Berlin, alongside fourth-round exits at Wimbledon, Toronto, and Cincinnati.

Zverev exits after missing match point against Paul

The men's draw experienced a similar upset when top seed Alexander Zverev lost in the fourth round to American Tommy Paul. Zverev took the first set 6-4, but play paused for 90 minutes during the second set due to rain with Paul leading 4-3. When play resumed, Zverev held a match point at 6-5 in the second-set tiebreak, which Paul saved to force a deciding set. Zverev built leads of 4-2 and 5-3 in the final set before Paul won four consecutive games to seal a 4-6, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4 win across two hours and 47 minutes. Paul moves into the quarterfinals to face Italy's Flavio Cobolli, who advanced by defeating Rafael Jodar in three sets.