Elena Rybakina came from a set and 0-3 down in the decider to beat Liudmila Samsonova 6-4 4-6 6-4 at the Toronto tournament. The key was return: Rybakina won 56 receiving points to 40, broke six times and closed both the opening and deciding sets with breaks in the 10th game.
The first set was a string of service breaks, with Rybakina taking it 6-4 when she broke in game 10. Samsonova steadied in the second, breaking for 3-2 in game 5 and holding on for 6-4. In the decider, Samsonova raced to 3-0 with breaks in games 1 and 3, but Rybakina hit back immediately in game 4, levelled at 3-3 with a break in game 6 and broke again in game 10 to seal the match.
Rybakina's serve stood out: she fired nine aces to Samsonova's one and saved 7 of 13 break points. Samsonova actually won more service points, 60-48, yet Rybakina's returning kept punishing her, as she claimed six breaks across the match.