Sabalenka Advances to WTA Finals Semifinals, Rybakina Eliminated

Aryna Sabalenka, who has won 22 of her last 23 matches, became the first competitor to secure a semi-final berth at the WTA Finals after defeating Jasmine Paolini in straight sets. The top-seeded Sabalenka achieved a 6-3 7-5 victory, which simultaneously confirmed Elena Rybakina’s exit from the season-ending tournament held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Earlier on Monday, Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan suffered her second defeat at the Finals, losing 7-6 (7-4) 3-6 6-1 to Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen, meaning Rybakina needed a win from Paolini to remain in contention. However, Sabalenka’s determined win against the Italian player, during which she saved two set points, moved her closer to securing her first WTA Finals title and the year-end world number one ranking. If she triumphs over Rybakina in her last Purple Group match scheduled for Wednesday, the Belarusian athlete will maintain her top position in the standings through 2025, beyond the reach of Iga Swiatek. Sabalenka, 26, stated, “I’m proud of myself. Not only myself, my team. We were able to overcome a lot of things. To be able to show such great tennis and become world number one. It’s teamwork, it’s not only me. Nobody sees the behind-the-scenes work. But they do a lot for me. I really appreciate them for everything they do for me. This is motivation for me to keep winning on this court.” Sabalenka, a two-time Grand Slam champion in 2024, started strongly against Paolini with an early double break of serve; although the 28-year-old fourth seed managed to recover one of those breaks, she struggled to effectively challenge her powerful opponent. The second set, however, unfolded differently. Despite Sabalenka winning four consecutive games following an initial break by Paolini, she became frustrated as the Italian, who is having a breakthrough season on the WTA Tour, staged a comeback to take a 5-4 lead. Nevertheless, after successfully defending two set points, Sabalenka’s performance shifted, leading her to immediately break Paolini’s serve again and then conclude the match on her first opportunity. Sabalenka further commented, “The second set was quite tricky, I was just trying to stay aggressive, to show her that I am going to fight for this set no matter what. I’m really happy to close this match in straight sets.” This marks the first occasion the WTA Finals are being hosted in Saudi Arabia, a decision that has drawn criticism from some due to the nation’s human rights record. The current tournament features a record prize money pool, with the singles champion expected to receive approximately £4m. In the Orange Group, Jessica Pegula is scheduled to compete against Barbora Krejcikova on Tuesday, preceding a match between defending champion Swiatek and Coco Gauff. Prior to her loss against Paolini on Saturday, the inaugural day of the WTA Finals, 25-year-old Elena Rybakina, who has secured three WTA titles in 2024, had been inactive for two months due to illness and injury. The former Wimbledon champion appeared fatigued during that match but began her encounter with Zheng more robustly, although it was the Chinese competitor who secured the initial break of serve en route to establishing a 4-1 advantage. Subsequently, Zheng’s count of unforced errors began to increase, and while Rybakina managed to recover in the set by claiming three consecutive games, a lengthy return from the Kazakh player in the tie-break concluded the opening set in Zheng’s favor. The two players were closely matched at the beginning of the second set, but after falling behind 3-2 with a break, Rybakina elevated her performance significantly. Following her immediate recovery of the break, she then saved two additional break points from a 15-40 deficit, serving three aces in the game before placing a backhand shot precisely on Zheng’s baseline. This marked the second of four consecutive game victories that secured the second set, yet Rybakina faltered once more in the deciding set. As her opponent showed signs of fatigue, Zheng capitalized by securing a break for a 3-1 lead, maintaining her advantage thereafter to clinch her inaugural Finals win on her first match point. This triumph also represented her first victory against Rybakina in three encounters. Zheng, 22, commented, “I’m really happy to win this match. I’ve never beaten her before and she’s one of the greatest players right now.” Zheng is scheduled to compete against Paolini in the final round of group-stage matches on Wednesday, with the victor advancing to join Sabalenka in the semi-finals.