Ningbo Open final: world No 1 Rybakina vs Leylah Fernandez after straight-sets semi-finals

World No 1 Elena Rybakina will play Leylah Fernandez in the Ningbo Open final after both won their semi-finals 6-3, 7-5 on Saturday, ARY News reported from Reuters. Rybakina beat Diana Shnaider and Fernandez beat Marie Bouzkova.

The semi-finals

• Elena Rybakina bt Diana Shnaider 6-3, 7-5. Shnaider is ranked 13th.
• Leylah Fernandez bt Marie Bouzkova 6-3, 7-5. Bouzkova is ranked 26th.

What is at stake

Rybakina, the top seed and defending champion in Ningbo, is chasing her fourth WTA title of 2026. The Kazakh player took the No 1 ranking from Aryna Sabalenka after winning the US Open in September, her third Grand Slam title, and she missed last week's Wuhan Open with a foot injury, so the week in China is also a test of her fitness ahead of the season-ending WTA Finals.

Fernandez, the Canadian ranked 30th and a US Open finalist in 2021, won her first title of the year in Singapore last month and is going for a second in two months.

When to watch in Pakistan

Ningbo is three hours ahead of Pakistan, so an afternoon final in China starts in late morning or around midday PKT on Sunday. WTA matches stream on the WTA's own platform; check the tournament schedule for the exact time. More tennis and sport is in our sports section.