Elena Rybakina Advances at Italian Open with Victory Over Eva Lys

ROME, Italy — Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan defeated Germany’s Eva Lys 7-6 (3), 6-2 on Friday evening at the Foro Italico, advancing to the third round of the Italian Open.

Rybakina, the No. 11 seed and currently ranked No. 12 in the world, faced off against Lys, who is ranked No. 63. This marks Rybakina’s successful return to clay after a challenging start to 2025.

In the first set, Rybakina and Lys battled closely, but Rybakina pulled ahead in the tiebreak, taking it 7-3. The Kazakh player displayed powerful serving and strong baseline play throughout the match.

After securing the first set, Rybakina found her rhythm and dominated the second set, capturing it 6-2. She will next face the winner of the match between Canadian Bianca Andreescu and Croat Donna Vekic, the latter being the No. 20 seed.

Lys, who had a commanding win in the previous round against Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima, performed well but struggled to match Rybakina’s power. Rybakina has previously dealt with coaching challenges and has been seeking to regain top form this season.

Defending champion Iga Swiatek also advanced to the third round on Friday, completing her match against Italian wildcard Elisabetta Cocciaretto in just 52 minutes.

As for Rybakina, this victory represents a much-needed boost as she aims to improve her ranking and performance on clay.