Elena sends Leylah packing

MANILA, Philippines — Top seed Elena Rybakina saved two match points against unseeded Canadian Leylah Fernandez to advance to the semifinals of the WTA Stuttgart tournament on Friday where she will meet Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva.

Rybakina, the 2024 Stuttgart winner, needed three hours to get past Fernandez 6-7 (5/7), 6-4, 7-6 (8/6), saving two match points in the final-set tiebreak.

Earlier Andreeva rallied past two-time Stuttgart champion Iga Swiatek 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Meanwhile, former three-time winner Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the Madrid Open beginning next week as he needs more time to recover from a shoulder injury.

The former world No. 1 and 24-time Grand Slam winner has not played since losing to Briton Jack Draper in the Indian Wells fourth round just over a month ago.