Elena Rybakina has become the first player representing Kazakhstan to reach the top of the singles world rankings and now leads the Women's Tennis Association's 2026 prize-money table. She officially took the number one position on September 14, becoming the 30th woman in WTA history to achieve it. Her season's prize earnings exceeded US$10 million. That placed her nearly US$2.8 million ahead of Belarus's Aryna Sabalenka, with the Czech Republic's Linda Noskova third.

Her first US Open title provided the largest addition to her earnings. Rybakina defeated two-time defending champion Sabalenka 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 in the September 12 final in New York. The victory brought a record US$5.5 million prize and 2,000 ranking points. It also completed a season in which she won the Australian Open and reached the finals at Indian Wells and Toronto.

Rybakina was the first singles player to qualify for the 2026 WTA Finals, where she will defend her title. She credited the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation with helping her pursue a professional career. Before that support, she had been considering offers from American universities. The federation noticed her performance at a tournament and supported the decision she and her family made to enter the professional tour.

“Kazakhstan has given me so much,” Rybakina told the WTA. She expressed gratitude to the federation and the people who had supported her from the beginning. The WTA also reported that more children in Kazakhstan were taking up tennis and attending new facilities as her career progressed. Rybakina said she wanted to celebrate the achievement with the country's tennis supporters.