NINGBO: World number one Elena Rybakina won her fourth title of an outstanding season with a ruthless straight-sets victory over Leylah Fernandez in the Ningbo Open final on Sunday.

The top seed and defending champion cruised to a 6-2, 6-2 win in 73 minutes over the world number 30 from Canada.

Rybakina, the Australian and US Open champion, collected her 15th WTA crown in all and went a long way towards securing the year-end number-one ranking.

“Thank you all you guys for an amazing atmosphere,” the Moscow-born Kazakh said in her victory speech to the crowd. “Every day it’s amazing to play in front of you. It gives a lot of motivation and energy to keep on going.

“A second win here, it’s such a special place for me.”

Rybakina broke and then held her own serve with a delicious two-handed crosscourt backhand for a 4-2 lead in the opening set.

She immediately put Fernandez under pressure again on the Canadian’s serve and it was soon 5-2 to the reigning champion when her opponent fired into the net.

The 27-year-old Rybakina, who missed this month’s Wuhan Open with a foot injury, began to turn the screw and sealed the set to love in under 40 minutes.

Fernandez, who was looking to win her second title in as many months, was broken once more as a clinical Rybakina grabbed a 2-1 second-set lead.

Rybakina saw off two break points in the fourth game to hold, and with that, Fernandez’s resistance was broken.

Rybakina was within sight of retaining her trophy after breaking once more for 5-2, then sealed the deal on her first championship point with a searing forehand.

Published in Dawn, October 26th, 2026