TENNIS – Elena Rybakina capped a flawless week at the WTA Finals by stunning world number one Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 7-6(0) in the final yesterday for her first trophy in the season-ending championships and a record $5.235 million in prize money.
The last stop of this season’s WTA Tour kicked off with four different Grand Slam champions in the field, but ultimately went to a player who did not even reach the quarter-finals of a major in 2025 and was the last to qualify with a win in Ningbo and a run to the Tokyo semi-finals.
Rybakina earned 1,500 points – her biggest haul – after she was denied any for her 2022 Wimbledon win when the ATP and WTA penalised the major for banning Russian and Belarusian players from playing in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
It was Rybakina who made early inroads with a barrage of powerful winners to shrug off concerns over a sore shoulder and break for a 4-2 lead in the opening set.
The ice-cool world number six rallied from 15-40 down in the seventh game to tighten her hold and secure the set with more bold ball striking from both flanks, leaving 2022 finalist Sabalenka with a mountain to climb.
Rybakina ramped up the pressure in the next set as she lost only two points in four service games.
She showed her battling qualities for a clutch hold in the 10th game when Sabalenka crashed a forehand into the net.
Rybakina cranked up her massive serve two games later and forced a tiebreak, where the Kazakh grabbed the early lead and never looked back to secure her 11th straight match victory and with it the title.
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