Aryna Sabalenka started her second group-stage match with a bang. She was up against Jasmine Paolini on Monday (November 4) and defeated her with a scoreline of 6-3, 7-5.
Sabalenka did not give a chance to Paolini at the beginning as she won four back-to-back games. Paolini finally won the fifth and sixth games of the first set and later denied Sabalenka an easy win after claiming the eighth game. Sabalenka then quickly wrapped up the set with a 6-2 win.
Paolini then forced a comeback and won two games on the trot but the momentum kept shifting. She was on the verge of winning the second set when she led 5-4 but the Belarusian turned the tables when she won the next set and quickly finished the match in her favor. After the match, Sabalenka thanked her team and credited behind-the-scenes work for her win.
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 No. 1. It’s teamwork. It’s not only me. The behind-the-scenes work nobody sees. 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. Those guys deserve to be called the best team ever.
Aryna Sabalenka said after the match
It was their fifth meeting on the WTA Tour and Sabalenka has now improved the head-to-head record over the Italian to 3-2. Paolini will next face Qinwen Zheng.
Aryna Sabalenka will next lock horns with Elena Rybakina
Following her two group-stage matches, Aryna Sabalenka’s next goal will be to beat Elena Rybakina and strengthen her position in the WTA rankings. Sabalenka has locked horns with Rybakina nine times on the WTA Tour and leads the head-to-head meetings 6-3.
They clashed with each other twice this year. While Rybakina won the Brisbane International final in straight sets, Sabalenka defeated the Kazakh in their last encounter, in the semifinals of the Madrid Open. Their 10th clash will also be the second time they’ll meet at the WTA Finals as they played each other in the year-end event last year in the group stages.
Rybakina is now on the brink of elimination. She lost her first-round match against Jasmine Paolini, after which, she fell to Qinwen Zheng in three sets in her second match.
Sabalenka, who is bidding to win her first WTA Finals trophy, had reached the final in 2022 and lost to Caroline Garcia. Last year, eventual champion Iga Swiatek knocked her out of the tournament in straight sets.
