“I’ve always liked how Roger Federer plays” – Elena Rybakina has grown up watching Roger Federer play. She has, in fact, time and again expressed her love and admiration for the Swiss Maestro through her speeches. Even her candid actions portray the same! Take for example, in a previous media interaction, a reporter told her that her calmness in every situation reminds them of Roger Federer. Then recently, in another moment on ‘The Land Down Under’ fans got reminded of Roger Federer. What was that moment featuring Elena Ryabkina, though?
Well, currently the 25-year-old Kazakhstani tennis star is in Australia taking part in the United Cup. She has already led her team to a winning start in this tournament and now she was spotted giving a bright smile while posing with the ‘world’s happiest animal.’ Elena Rybakina recently uploaded a picture with a quokka on her IG account. She captioned that selfie with, “Hello from Perth 🇦🇺🥹 Smile for everyone 🥰.” We saw American tennis player, Desirae Krawczyk and the Serb, Nina Stojanovic dropping a comment on that post.
Krawczyk wrote, “Wow best selfie 🥹,” while Stojanovic showered love on her post by commenting, “Omg so cute 😍😍😍😍😍.” However, apart from this, the selfie took some fans back to days from 2017 when Rybakina’s tennis idol Roger Federer also shared a similar selfie with a quokka. For those who are unaware, quokkas are native to Australia’s Rottnest Island and they are considered to be the world’s happiest animals because of their friendly nature. Since they’ve no natural predators on the island, quokkas are known to approach humans with little fear.
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Talking about this beautiful creature, Roger Federer once said, “I thought it was a like a bigger mouse, but it’s more like a smaller kangaroo. They’re very cute.” Fans could relate to these two moments after seeing Elena Rybakina’s recent IG post. Rybakina’s love and admiration for Federer is quite infinite and these moments perhaps reflect how closely she has followed the Swiss over the years. Recently Elena Rybakina also expressed her wish (involving her tennis idol). What’s it, though?
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Elena Rybakina 🐠 (@lenarybakina)
Well, during an interview with SauBall Sports Channel, Rybakina was asked if she still thinks about her dream of playing alongside Roger Federer one day. In reply, the Kazakhstani said, “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.” So, the chances are still well alive for Elena Rybakina in this, but what are her chances in the 2025 season, though? What are her goals for the next twelve months?
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“I’m focusing on the Grand Slams” – Elena Rybakina
This season has been full of ups and downs for Elena Rybakina. She played 56 matches and won three titles the last season! However, frequent injuries and sickness issues have troubled her a bit in 2024. She’s currently ranked 6 in the world and all she now wants is to climb up the ladder in 2025!
Talking about her goals for the next season, Elena Rybakina said, “Well, definitely to play the full season because last season I was not playing China. I had to skip. I had some health issues. I think that’s the most important for me to stay healthy, to play from beginning until the end.” She further added, “Yeah, of course, I’m focusing on the Grand Slams and trying to get some big titles. So you need to be ready for some tough matches; fight until the end. I think everything is possible. It’s just not always everything depends on you, but I think with the preparation we did, I have some chances.” Does she really have a chance of clinching a big title in the 2025 season?
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Well, Alex Corretjo recently showcased his optimism with the Kazkhstani tennis star by saying that he thinks Rybakina will win her second Grand Slam title at the upcoming AO. He also added, “I’m actually thinking she might finish as No. 1 this year.” What does her new coach, Goran Ivanisevic think about Elena Rybkina winning big titles in the near future? “I think she can win more Slams, that’s for sure,” said the Croatian. Do you think Elena Rybakina can win the 2025 AO?