WATCH: Elena Rybakina joins forces with Simona Halep as they practice together ahead of Kazakh's possible WTA Finals 2024 return
Elena Rybakina and Simona Halep joined forces to train together in preparation for the former's comeback at the 2024 WTA Finals. The Kazakh tennis star will be making her second appearance at the season-ending tournament.
This year, Rybakina has had a brief yet successful season, clinching three titles. She kicked off her year by winning the 2024 Brisbane International, where she defeated Aryna Sabalenka 6-0, 6-3 in the final.
Then, the former World No. 3 won the Abu Dhabi Open by defeating Daria Kasatkina 6–1, 6–4 in the final. She then went on to secure the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix title in Stuttgart by beating Marta Kostyuk 6-2, 6-2 in the title match. She also finished as the runner-up at the Qatar Open and the Miami Open
Rybakina participated in all four Grand Slam tournaments this year. She reached the second round at the Australian Open before being defeated by Anna Blinkova. At the French Open, she made it to the quarterfinals before losing to eventual runner-up Jasmine Paolini, and at Wimbledon, she reached the semifinals but was bested by eventual champion Barbora Krejcikova.
At the US Open, Rybakina won her first-round match against Destanee Aiava but had to withdraw from the tournament before her second-round match against French qualifier Jessika Ponchet due to a lower back injury.
Despite playing in a limited number of tournaments this season, Rybakina's brilliant performances have earned her a spot at the 2024 WTA Finals, scheduled to take place from November 2-9 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Currently, Rybakina is in Dubai preparing for her return to the court at the season-ending tournament. She took to social media to share a video of herself practicing with Halep.
"Back at it. Great practice with @simonahalep ," Elena Rybakina captioned her Instagram post.
Watch the video here:
A look into Elena Rybakina's campaign at WTA Finals 2023
![Elena Rybakina at the 2023 WTA Finals [Image Source: Getty Images]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/10/4d4f2-17298944966075-1920.jpg?w=500)
In 2023, Elena Rybakina became Kazakhstan's first singles qualifier at the WTA Finals. She joined Anna Danilina and Yaroslava Shvedova as the only Kazakh players to have competed in the season-ending tournament, with the latter two having represented Kazakhstan in doubles.
In her first match of the WTA Finals group stage, Rybakina lost to eventual runner-up Jessica Pegula 5-7, 2-6. However, she redeemed herself in her next match and secured a hard-fought victory over Maria Sakkari with a score of 6-0, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (2).
Despite her efforts, the former World No.3 was unable to advance to the next round, as she was defeated by Aryna Sabalenka with a score of 2-6, 6-3, 3-6.
Elena Rybakina will once again take to the court alongside the likes of Iga Swiatek, Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Jasmine Paolini, Pegula, Zheng Qinwen, and Krejcikova to compete in this year's WTA Finals.