Aryna Sabalenka beat Jasmine Paolini. © APA/afp / FAYEZ NURELDINE

Sabalenka in the semifinals at WTA Finals

Belarusian tennis world number one Aryna Sabalenka has advanced early into the semifinals of the WTA Finals in Riyadh.

04 November 2024

From: apa

The winner of this year's hard court Grand Slams Australian Open and US Open celebrated her second win in two matches on Monday with a 6:3, 7:5 win against the Italian Jasmine Paolini. This means that Sabalenka can no longer be denied entry into the knockout rounds, and with another win she would be number one in the WTA rankings at the end of the year.

In the second match of the day in Saudi Arabia, where the tournament of the best eight players at the end of the season is taking place for the first time, the Chinese Zheng Qinwen beat the Kazakh Elena Rybakina 7:6(4), 3:6, 6:1. Zheng and Paolini will duel for second place in the semifinals in Group A on Wednesday.