Aryna Sabalenka isn't used to having a match taken to her. Even against long-time rival Elena Rybakina, Sabalenka usually plays more aggressively. Not at the beginning of the two players' WTA Finals match, though. Sabalenka and Rybakina were playing for money, of course, but Rybakina might have been playing for even more.
The two players had both gone undefeated in the round-robin stage and then, obviously, won their semifinal match to set up a final of two unbeatens. This meant whoever won the match was going to take home $5.3 million. That is good money if you can get it.
But Rybakina was playing for even more. Much of the last couple of years have not been kind to the Kazakhstani had off-court issues with her long-time coach Stefano Vukov. The coach was fired by the player, but then re-hired. The issue was that he was serving a suspension by the WTA for a code violation, and he couldn't return until August.
Elena Rybakina defeats Aryna Sabalenka to win the WTA Finals
That is about when Rybakina began to improve. She reached the semifinals in the Citi Open, the Canadian Open, and Cincinnati, and she won the Ningbo Open in October. After falling out of the top 10, she had made it back to No. 6. If she beat Sabalenka, she would move up to No. 5.
And she did beat the WTA No. 1 by doing a lot of the same things the Belarusian can do. Both Rybakina and Sabalenka are two of the biggest hitters in tennis. Sabalenka is normally a bit more consistent, but if Rybakina is playing well on a hard court, she can be almost unbeatable.
In the first set, she was far more aggressive than the top-ranked player. She had 16 winners against 10 unforced errors, while Sabalenka had five and seven, respectively. Plus, the Kazakhstani was pushing the Belarusian around the baseline in a way few other players have the ability to.
The second set was far more even, with each player holding serve, even while under duress at times. Sabalenka proved her guile and why she is No. 1 by keeping Rybakina at bay. But then things fell apart for her in the tie-break.
Elena Rybakina jumped out to a 5-0 lead, and the match was seemingly done. She was going to win her first WTA Finals and move back into the top five. She did so with blistering shots and power, and she served notice to the rest of the WTA that she will be a force in 2026, beating Sabalenka 6-3 7-6(0). And she took home a little over $5 million.