It was a last-ditch effort for Elena Rybakina to even take her place in the elite eight-player field for the WTA Finals last season.
Having dipped as low as world No.14 last July, the former Wimbledon champion’s curve upwards late in the second half of 2025 was a welcome pivot for the 26-year-old who had struggled with health and off-court issues.
The last player to earn her spot at the season-ending championships, the cool-as-you-like Kazakhstani swept the field, including world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka, and carried that confidence into the new season in her Brisbane International return on Tuesday night against Zhang Shuai.
Pat Rafter Arena already held fond memories for Rybakina, having denied Sabalenka for the trophy two years ago.
On Thursday, the third seed seeks to add another high-profile name to her list of Brisbane victims when she vies for a quarterfinal berth against former world No.2 Paula Badosa – a match-up between two of the most powerful ball-strikers, a head-to-head locked at four wins each.
“I'm happy that last year I didn't start well, but I finished quite strong, so it gives some confidence,” Rybakina said. “Even if you have a little time to work on some things, you can still improve, so this definitely gives you more motivation
“The most important [thing is] to keep on being healthy, play from beginning to the end [of the season]. The goal is always the same: be healthy, happy of course too, but yeah, win big titles.”
Spain’s Badosa required almost three hours on court to subdue Czech Marie Bouzkova on Tuesday night, a promising sign for the injury-plagued 28-year-old, who reached the Australian Open semifinals last year.
Top seed Sabalenka atoned for her 2024 final defeat to Rybakina in Brisbane emphatically with her second Australian Open crown weeks later and last year stood triumphant at Pat Rafter Arena for the first time.
On Thursday, her Brisbane title defence continues against Romanian Sorana Cirstea, a player she has split two meetings against.
The 41st-ranked Cirstea cut down Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and 14th seed Jelena Ostapenko back-to-back to reach the third round, while Sabalenka was in devastating form against a hapless Cristina Bucsa in her first hit-out of 2026.
On Tuesday night, two-time former champion Grigor Dimitrov allayed any concerns having not contested a singles match in almost six months due to a pectoral injury suffered at Wimbledon.
Pat Rafter Arena tended to bring out something special from the 34-year-old and he was particularly sharp against former world No.10 Pablo Carreno Busta to extend his record for most match wins at the Queensland Tennis Centre to 27.
The Bulgarian meets dangerous 23-year-old qualifier Raphael Collignon on Thursday night for the first time. Collignon, who was the mastermind behind Belgium’s surprise Davis Cup second-round qualifying win over Australia in Sydney last September, easily accounted for fifth seed Denis Shapovalov in the first round.
Aussie qualifier Rinky Hijikata will bid to reach his first tour-level quarterfinal since Adelaide last January when he meets giant-serving Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the third match at Pat Rafter Arena on Thursday.
The 24-year-old, a champion at the Playford Challenger in South Australia in November, comes off a win over compatriot Adam Walton in the first round, while Mpetshi Perricard upset fourth seed Tommy Paul.
The Frenchman went on a tear in Brisbane last year beating Nick Kyrgios, Frances Tiafoe and Jacob Mensik in succession before falling to Reilly Opelka in the semifinals.
Second seed Amanda Anisimova will do battle at Pat Rafter Arena for the second night in a row when she meets Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk.
The American world No.3 enjoyed her biggest season in 2025, which included successive major finals at Wimbledon and Flushing Meadows, and scored her first win in three attempts against Kostyuk en route to the title at Doha.
Anisimova ended home hopeful Kimberly Birrell’s push on Wednesday night, while Kostyuk recovered from a set down to see off lucky loser Yulia Putintseva.
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