The WTA Finals kicked off on Saturday with a Purple Group match between Aryna Sabalenka and Zheng Qinwen. World No. 1 Sabalenka displayed her dominance, claiming a decisive 6-3 6-4 victory by breaking Zheng’s serve once in each set. This strong start positions the three-time Grand Slam champion well in the group stage, where she’ll be pushing to remain undefeated and lock in the coveted year-end No. 1 ranking.
With this victory, Sabalenka extends her perfect head-to-head against Olympic gold medalist Zheng to 5-0 and continues a dominant 21-1 streak in recent matches.
Being one of the top eight players in the world certainly pays off. With her opening win in Riyadh, Sabalenka secured a substantial $350,000 prize, from a record-breaking prize money of $15.25 million, along with an additional 200 ranking points.
Everything you need to know and Sabalenka v Swiatek for year-end No.1, via @WTA pic.twitter.com/kWw2fJQEZO
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Sabalenka’s clearest path to locking in the year-end No. 1 ranking is straightforward: win all three of her group-stage matches. With one down, she’s two wins away from reaching her goal. Even if she doesn’t sweep the group, advancing to the final would still secure the top spot, regardless of Iga Swiatek’s performance. For Swiatek, the only route back to No. 1 is by winning the tournament outright.
Besides Sabalenka and Zheng, the other two players in Purple Group are Jasmine Paolini and Elena Rybakina. The Orange Group features Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula and Barbora Krejcikova.
