Elena Rybakina won her first title as world No. 1 on Sunday, beating Leylah Fernandez of Canada 6-2, 6-2 in the final of the Ningbo WTA 500 to defend the title she won last year.

The Kazakh’s fourth title of the season, after the Australian Open, Stuttgart and the US Open, puts her alone at the top of the tour’s list for most titles in 2026. It is the 15th title of her career, and her 53rd match win of the season extends her lead at the top of the tour in that category too.

“It’s already my second year here, second win. It’s such a special place for me. Thank you so much Ningbo. Xiexie,” Rybakina said. “I want to congratulate Leylah for a great week. A lot of tough matches and tough wins. Congrats to you and your team.”

She thanked her team, “most of them back home supporting and watching,” and the crowd. “It’s amazing to play in front of you. It always gives a lot of motivation, a lot of energy to keep on playing.”

Rybakina, who became world No. 1 for the first time on September 14 after winning the US Open, opened her week when Uzbek qualifier Polina Kudermetova retired at 5-0. She then beat Polish qualifier Katarzyna Kawa 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 and No. 6 seed Diana Shnaider 6-3, 7-5.

Fernandez’s strong autumn continues

Fernandez, ranked No. 30, was playing the 10th final of her career, a month after winning the title in Singapore. She beat No. 7 seed Elise Mertens of Belgium 2-6, 6-3, 7-5, qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich 7-5, 6-7 (3), 6-3, Ekaterina Alexandrova 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 and Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 7-5.

“I’d like to congratulate Elena for a wonderful week, a wonderful year,” Fernandez said. “We’re having a good end of year. We just gotta keep going, keep working hard. I wanna thank my family for always supporting me and believing in me in these tough moments.”