By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, November 6, 2025Photo credit score: Matthew Stockman/Getty for WTA
Fierce front-runner Aryna Sabalenka already locked up the season-ending prime spot earlier than the WTA Finals started.
As we speak, the world No. 1 exuded dedicated comeback character.
Down a break twice within the opening set, Sabalenka roared again repelling defending-champion Coco Gauff 7-6(5), 6-2 to safe her semifinal spot and knock the third-seeded American out of Riyadh.
The highest-seeded Sabalenka concludes round-robin play with a 3-0 report successful the Steffi Graf Group. Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula superior to the semifinal from the Steffi Graf Group immediately.
Undefeated within the Stefanie Graf Group 💪@SabalenkaA defeats Gauff 7-6, 6-2 and books her ticket to the semifinals.#WTAFinalsRiyadh pic.twitter.com/NCOllsRcuy
— wta (@WTA) November 6, 2025
It’s the fourth consecutive WTA Finals semifinal for Sabalenka—she’s the primary girl to achieve 4 in a row since Corridor of Famer Maria Sharapova did it from 2004 to 2007—and there’s an enormous reward looming on the finish of the Riyadh rainbow. If the No. 1 takes the title undefeated she’ll money a champion’s verify of $5.2 million.
“I really feel nice,” Sabalenka instructed Tennis Channel’s Coco Vandeweghe in her on-court interview. “I really feel like yearly I’d play, I’d lose a minimum of one match in spherical robin.
“This 12 months I got here and I take this match as a daily match. I am going onto the court docket, I attempt to struggle, I attempt to deliver my finest tennis and I’m tremendous completely satisfied to get this win in straight units.”
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Earlier, the fifth-seeded Pegula dismissed Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-3 in 63 minutes. Rome champion Paolini, who had been bothered by an obvious chilly, was not her typical feisty self all through the match and went winless in round-robin play.
The 2023 finalist Pegula was all enterprise reaching her second WTA Finals semifinal within the final three years. It was Pegula’s twenty sixth profession Prime 10 win as she goals for a seventh closing of the season.
Sabalenka’s sweep of Gauff, which got here a day after Amanda Anisimova knocked out Iga Swiatek in a three-set thriller, means each former champions are out of the sector and a brand new WTA Finals champion can be topped on Saturday.
It additionally means two of the ultimate 4—Anisimova and Pegula—are People.
In tomorrow’s semifinals, Sabalenka performs the fourth-seeded Anisimova in a rematch of the US Open closing, which the Belarusian gained. Storming by her nineteenth straight tiebreaker win, Sabalenka stopped Aminisova 6-3, 7-6(3) to efficiently defend her US Open championship and seize her fourth Grand Slam crown in Flushing Meadows two months in the past.
General, Anisimova is 6-4 vs. Sabalenka, together with a three-set win within the Wimbledon semifinals in July.
“We’ve got a terrific historical past—that’s true—all the time nice battles,” stated Sabalenka. “I’m excited dealing with her. My mentality going to be go on the market, deliver the whole lot I can, do the whole lot doable and work exhausting for a dream.”
The second-semifinal pits the undefeated Rybakina towards Pegula. Rybakina, like Sabalenka, can accumulate a $5.2 million champion’s verify if she runs the desk by the semifinals and closing.
The 31-year-old Pegula has gained three of 4 conferences vs. Rybakina, together with a 7-5, 6-2 triumph of their most up-to-date encounter on the 2023 WTA Finals in windy Mexico.
The subtext of immediately’s twelfth assembly between Gauff and Sabalenka was the 21-year-old American had overwhelmed the Belarusian of their two greatest finals. Gauff drained 70 errors from Sabalenka on a gusty Paris Saturday in a 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-4 victory within the Roland Garros closing. That got here a few years after Gauff—and a vocal Flushing Meadows fanbase—stopped Sabalenka 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 within the 2023 US Open closing.
Additional, biomechanical coach Gavin MacMillan, who helped Sabalenka repair her as soon as wayward serve, now sits in Gauff’s teaching field after becoming a member of her staff every week earlier than the US Open started.
Figuring out the typically risky Belarusian in addition to he is aware of, you’ll be able to wager MacMillan suggested Gauff to make the ability participant hit an additional ball as typically as doable.
On the outset, Sabalenka was too amped up, scattering seven unforced errors and wailing in prolonged, exaggerated grunts as Gauff broke to open then held at 15 for a 2-0 lead.
The 2-time US Open champion broke again to degree after 4 video games, however Gauff, whose forehand was standing as much as Sabalenka’s jolting energy, broke once more for 3-2 then slid an ace out vast then helped her consolidate the break for a love maintain and 4-2 lead.
All through the set, Gauff hit virtually unique kick serves as she did towards Paolini on Tuesday and the end result was a lot cleaner, albeit slower, serving than the 17 double faults she hit towards Pegula in her round-robin opener.
Serving for the primary set at 5-4, 30-0, Gauff was two factors from a one set lead, however pulled again and performed to not lose factors as an alternative of attempting to win them.
That Gauff reticence rewarded Sabalenka’s aggression.
Deadlocked at 30-all, Sabalenka ran down a netcord shot, drop-shotted Gauff then went nose-to-nose at internet bumping a backhand volley winner for break level. For the second time within the recreation, Gauff performed a drop shot—an indication her forehand confidence could also be waning—however Sabalenka ran it down shoveling a forehand move down the road and bellowing “come on!” breaking again for 5-all.
Afterward, Sabalenka admitted her thoughts was already on the second set when she was two factors away from dropping the primary.
“I used to be already working for the second set, to be sincere,” Sabalenka stated. “I used to be simply looking for the rhythm on her serve. I used to be simply attempting to struggle, you realize.
“After which someway I used to be capable of flip round issues. I feel that recreation gave me like an additional increase of vitality and perception that I can nonetheless win this set and yeah, I did it.”
A resurgent Sabalenka stamped her second straight love maintain—her tenth consecutive level on serve—to take her first lead of the day at 6-5.
Resetting, Gauff posted a assured maintain at 15 to pressure the first-set tiebreaker.
Although Sabalenka was the extra demonstrative participant—and appeared downright frazzled earlier within the set—the Tiebreaker Queen lived as much as her fame within the additional session with a dedicated comeback from 2-4 down within the breaker.
Sabalenka stoned a routine backhand volley vast from practically on prime of the online giving Gauff the early 3-1 lead. Although she prolonged the result in 4-2, the defending champion unraveled in premature errors. Gauff netted her signature shot—the two-handed backhand—and the Belarussian banged the vast serve to degree at 4-all.
For a lot of the set, Gauff’s serve and forehand had been stable pictures. At 4-5, Gauff coughed up her first double fault of the day to face double set level.
The highest seed torched the vast serve, creating an expanse of open area, for a flashy forehand winner to grab the 55-minute opener.
Leaving all of it on court docket 😤@SabalenkaA takes the primary set 7-6(5) over Gauff.#WTAFinalsRiyadh pic.twitter.com/8PANYPuKKr
— wta (@WTA) November 6, 2025
Credit score Sabalenka for calming her nerve and cracking each first serve within the breaker to enhance to an excellent 22-2 in 2025 tiebreakers.
Figuring out she wanted the straight-sets win to advance to the semifinals, the sting got here off Gauff’s recreation and her forehand lapsed into spots of wildness within the second set.
Sabalenka surged by 12 of the primary 15 factors of the second set constructing a 3-0 lead she prolonged to 4-0.
Gauff obtained on the board within the fifth recreation then fought again from 40-love down breaking for 2-4.
That was the defending champion’s closing stand. Gauff’s forehand went MIA–she was so late on one return it even missed the doubles sideline—as Sabalenka transformed her fifth of six break factors on the day for a 5-2 lead.
Whereas Gauff definitely confirmed indicators of progress on each serve and forehand to proceed her evolution as a champion she’s obtained to develop comfy shifting spins on her serve, mixing the kick with the slider serve, particularly vast on the deuce facet. Hitting the kick completely handcuffed the 5’4” Paolini, however Sabalenka stands half a foot taller and as soon as she obtained dialed in on return she drilled some deep ones successful 11 of 18 factors performed on Gauff’s second serve.
On the forehand, ideally you’d prefer to see Gauff progressively shift her grip from full western to semi western—she already makes a grip change when attacking internet to volley—however that can take time. Two rapid enhancements Gauff could make is halt her tendency to leap into flying forehands which frequently trigger her to open up on the shot and spray it and attempt to assault midcourt balls shortly with the topspin drive forehand whereas now she’ll typically choose to hit a slice forehand that works as an method shot however isn’t typically a ending shot.
On Sabalenka’s facet, she confirmed once more immediately she will settle her nerve when she’s on the precipice of self-implosion and belief her pictures. When Sabalenka tempers her energy with endurance—and whips the vast serve to arrange the forehand strike as she did serving out the match immediately—she stays a devastating pressure.
