Elena Rybakina's week in Tokyo ended a day after it gave her one of the biggest honors in tennis. The world No. 1 withdrew from her Pan Pacific Open quarterfinal on Friday because of an injury, sending Leylah Fernandez into the semifinals.

Rybakina, the tournament's top seed, walked onto the court to tell the fans herself. She said she had been dealing with "a little injury" for several days. She did not say what the injury was.

She also said she needs to be ready for the WTA Finals in Indian Wells next month. She closed her message to the Tokyo crowd by saying, "I hope to see you all next year."

A season to remember

On Thursday Rybakina beat Yulia Putintseva 6-2, 6-3. That win guaranteed she will finish 2026 ranked No. 1 in the world.

She called it "an incredibly special moment for me." Rybakina won the Australian Open and the US Open this season, along with titles in Stuttgart and Ningbo. A French Open title is all that stands between her and the career Grand Slam.

She will receive a trophy for the year-end top ranking at the WTA Finals, which run Nov. 8 to 15.

Who is left in Tokyo

Fernandez will face Kamilla Rakhimova in the semifinals. Rakhimova beat Maya Joint 7-5, 5-7, 6-1.

The other semifinal features 18-year-old wild card Mia Pohankova of Slovakia against third seed Diana Shnaider. Pohankova knocked out Naomi Osaka earlier in the week and then beat Alycia Parks 7-6 (3), 6-3.

Shnaider survived a thriller against Alex Eala. She lost the first set, then came within two points of defeat in the second-set tiebreak before winning 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 in 2 hours and 52 minutes.