Coco Gauff saw off world number one Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets and is now just one win away from taking the WTA Finals crown.

The American, who also beat Iga Swiatek on her run to the final, handed the Belarusian a second consecutive loss in Riyadh as she triumphed 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 in one hour and 49 minutes on Friday.

The pair traded blows in the opening set, with Sabalenka getting the first break in the third game, only for Gauff to follow her lead in the next.

The world number three forced the tie-break, and she had to hold her nerve to take the first set as Sabalenka had fought back from 6-1 down.

Gauff's momentum carried her into a 4-1 lead in the second set but that run was halted despite valiantly defending six break points in the next as Sabalenka attempted to start a comeback.

They traded more breaks, but Gauff had already done enough, avenging her defeats to Sabalenka in the Australian Open and Wuhan Open semi-finals to reach the championship match, where she will face Zheng Qinwen for the prize. 

Data Debrief: Young guns pave the way

It has been an impressive WTA Finals for Gauff so far, and this victory means she has become the youngest player to defeat the world number one and number two at the tournament since Kim Clijsters in 2002 (Serena and Venus Williams).

She is also the youngest WTA Finals finalist since Caroline Wozniacki in 2010.

In fact, Gauff and Zheng will have the youngest combined age for the two finalists at the WTA Finals since Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams in 2004, at just 42 years and 271 days. 

Sabalenka already knew she would be the year-end number one before entering these Finals, but she finishes the year on a slightly dour note, having lost consecutive matches for the first time since 2022 (against Donna Vekic in San Diego and Liudmila Samsonova in Guadalajara).

Qinwen Zheng booked her place in the last four of the WTA Finals with a dominant 6-1 6-1 victory over Jasmine Paolini.

The Olympic gold medallist hit 12 aces as she powered past this season's French Open and Wimbledon finalist in just over an hour in Riyadh.

This was the winner-takes-all clash in Purple Group, with both players aiming to join world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-finals.

The form player since Wimbledon with 29 wins from 34 matches - also including titles in Palermo and Tokyo, plus a run to the final in Wuhan - Zheng quickly asserted her authority on proceedings.

The 22-year-old scored five breaks of serve on the way to becoming the youngest semi-finalist on her WTA Finals debut since Petra Kvitova in 2011.

"Finally, I showed off some tennis I really want to play," she said. "Of course, when you enter the match, you are nervous, but at the same time, you feel confidence because you know your level. And I know how capable I am.

"I remember in 2022, my serve was quite strong. I don't know why but, suddenly in 2023, my serve started to drop. In this tournament and the rest of this half-year, it is the first time I've felt like the serve is starting to come back."

Beating two top-10 players in the same tournament for the first time, Zheng is the first Chinese player to achieve the feat since Li Na (four) at this event 11 years ago.

The seventh seed also follows in the footsteps of Na and Kimiko Date in 1994 as one of three players representing an Asian country to reach the last four at the WTA Finals. 

Sabalenka's place in the semi-finals was already secured, rendering her 6-4 3-6 6-1 defeat by Elena Rybakina academic, though ending a seven-match winning streak.

Having shared the two meetings this season in Brisbane and Madrid, the players took a close set each here, but it was one-way traffic in the decider.

In the final match of her first tournament since withdrawing from the US Open with a back injury, Rybakina did not face a single break point in the final set, while winning all 12 points on her first serve, to bow out with victory.

Though academic, it was an historic victory for the Kazahstani, who became the first player representing an Asian country to defeat the world number one at the WTA Finals.

Rybakina is also the fourth player to achieve six or more wins over the WTA's number one across a two-season span, after Tracy Austin (1979-80), Venus Williams (1999-00) and Lindsay Davenport (2000-01).

Aryna Sabalenka became the first player to book her place in the WTA Finals semi-finals after her straight-sets win over Jasmine Paolini on Monday.

The Belarusian had to dig deep in the second set but prevailed in 91 minutes, beating the Italian 6-3 7-5 in Riyadh to secure top spot in the Purple Group after two games.

While Sabalenka cruised through the first set, she was almost forced to a decider, but saved two set points in the 10th game of the second to level the score at 5-5 before going on to claim the victory.

In doing so, she became the first player to reach back-to-back semi-finals at the tournament as world number one since Serena Williams in 2013-14.

Having won three of her previous four tournaments and won 22 of her 23 matches in that time, Sabalenka is now just one win away from securing the year-end world number one spot for the first time, a feat she can achieve if she beats Elena Rybakina on Wednesday in the final round-robin match.

And she can go into it with confidence after improving her record against top-five opponents in 2024, with this her fifth such triumph.

"I'm proud of myself. Not only myself, my team," Sabalenka said. 

"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."

In Monday's other match, Zheng Qinwen kept her hopes of reaching the final four alive with her win over Rybakina.

The Olympic champion was forced to go the distance though, despite getting the first break in the first and second sets, but eventually came out on top 7-6 (7-4) 3-6 6-1 in just under two-and-a-half hours.

Since the event's inauguration in 1972, Zheng is just the second Chinese player to win a match at the WTA Finals after Li Na.

It was a milestone victory for the 22-year-old as well as she earned her 50th win of 2024, improving her record to 50-17, making her the first Chinese player in the Open Era to hit that mark in a calendar year, though she acknowledged she could have made things easier for herself.

"I was the one to make the first break, and then I let her back in the first," Zheng said.

"Then it happened again in the second. But in the third set, I talked to myself. I broke her first and I stayed focused.

"Finally, in the third set, I start to play my tennis again. So, I'm really happy to win the match."

Aryna Sabalenka continued her dominance over Zheng Qinwen with victory in her first match of the season-ending WTA Finals in Riyadh. 

Sabalenka, who entered the tournament as the new world number one, emerged a 6-3 6-4 victor in just under an hour and a half in Saudi Arabia. 

The Belarusian's triumph saw her claim a 10th win against a top 10 opponent in 2024, surpassing Iga Swiatek (nine), who is in action against Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday. 

Sabalenka also improved her record to 5-0 against the Olympic champion, though acknowledged the difficulties she faced.

"I’m super happy with the win, especially against Qinwen," Sabalenka said.

“It’s always tough matches, tough battles against her, and I'm really, I’m really glad I was able to finish this match in straight sets.”

Having won the Australian Open and US Open this season, Sabalenka said it is her dream to claim a maiden WTA Finals crown. 

"It would mean everything to me. I really worked hard the past years since the very beginning of my career," the 26-year-old said.

"I really hope I'll be able to hold this beautiful trophy one day."

In Saturday's other match, Jasmine Paolini marked her WTA Finals debut with a 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 win over Elena Rybakina.

Paolini became the first Italian to register 40 wins during a single season at WTA events since Sara Errani, who managed 48 Tour-level victories in 2015.

Aryna Sabalenka says she will "do everything I can" to end the year as world number one for the first time in her career.

The winner of this season's Australian Open and US Open, Sabalenka sits top of the WTA summit ahead of Iga Swiatek, with the pair battling it out to be there come the conclusion of the WTA Finals in Riyadh.

Sabalenka, who has also triumphed in Cincinnati and Wuhan this term, will hold onto top spot by winning all three of her group-stage matches or reaching the final of the event.

The 26-year-old was in a similar position last season when she arrived at the WTA Finals in Cancun, but was subsequently displaced by Swiatek.

And she is desperate not to miss out this time around.

"That's definitely one of the goals," she said. "I've always been saying that, for me, it's about finishing the year as the world number one. I'll do everything I can to finish the year as world number one.

"Any time we come to the tournament, we want to win. That's the first goal. I'm trying to be focused on the first part. Then, if I am able to finish the year as number one, it'll be amazing, and I'll be super happy."

Meanwhile, reigning champion Swiatek must successfully defend the WTA Finals crown - and land her sixth silverware of the campaign - if she is to enter 2025 as world number one.

Following an impressive start to the season, the French Open champion has tailed off and skipped the recent Asian swing due to fatigue, but is determined to seal her return to the summit.

"Obviously, we're both fighting for this spot," she said. "It's been us basically, over the past few years.

"I'm in the tournament. I want to play my best and win. I'm going to focus on my first match and do everything step by step.

"She's a great player. She also deserves to be number one. For sure, I'm going to fight for me to be in that place."

Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek are once again embroiled in a tussle for the year-end number one spot in the WTA rankings.

Last year, Swiatek finished as the year-end number one, with a flawless display at the 2023 WTA Finals in Cancun seeing her top Sabalenka, who had been in pole position.

Sabalenka will be out to avoid a similar fate this time around, with the WTA Finals moving to Riyadh.

Here, we preview the key storylines ahead of the tournament.

Sabalenka and Swiatek go head-to-head... again

It has been a fantastic season for both of these players, who have proved their credentials as the standout duo on the WTA Tour.

Sabalenka has scooped two grand slam titles, triumphing at the Australian Open and the US Open.

Swiatek, meanwhile, won the French Open and collected bronze at Roland-Garros at the Paris Olympics. Between them, the pair have won nine Tour-level titles in 2024.

Sabalenka will guarantee her place at the top of the world heading into 2025 should she win her three group-stage matches in Riyadh.

The Belarusian takes on Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen, world number five Elena Rybakina and Jasmine Paolini, this year's Wimbledon and French Open runner-up, in her group.

Sabalenka is the first player to make successive WTA Finals appearances as the number one since Serena Williams in 2013 and 2014.

The 26-year-old has reeled off 46 match wins across grand slams and WTA 1000 events this year, which is one more than Swiatek (45).

Swiatek, on the other hand, has Coco Gauff, US Open runner-up Jessica Pegula and Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova to contend with.

Since the reintroduction of the round-robin format in 2003, Swiatek has conceded the fewest games of any player to win the WTA Finals, dropping only 20 games en route to the title last year - breaking Williams' record of 32 from 2012.

Swiatek downed Pegula in last year's final, and dropped just a single game. That made her the player to concede the fewest games in a WTA Finals title match. Martina Navratilova (1983) and Kim Clijsters (2003) previously shared the record, conceding two games in respective finals.

She is also one of only two players, along with Williams, to win the tournament without dropping a set since the tournament's format was altered 21 years ago.

Swiatek could become the first player to win the WTA Finals on consecutive occasions as the second seed. Among this year's qualifiers, the 23-year-old (75%, 9-3) holds the highest winning percentage at the WTA Finals.

Since 2003, the Pole is, however, the only top seed to win all three group matches and not reach the final at that year's WTA Finals, losing to Sabalenka in their semi-final in 2022.

The key insights for the other contenders

Since 2003, Gauff (2022-2024) is only the second player to reach three consecutive editions of the WTA Finals before turning 21, after Maria Sharapova (2004-2007). 

Gauff is aiming to become the fourth American to win the WTA Finals before turning 21 after Chris Evert (1972, 1973 and 1975), Tracy Austin (1980) and Williams (2001).

Paolini has had a fine year, and will become only the fourth Italian to appear at the WTA Finals after Francesca Schiavone (2010), Sara Errani (2012, 2013) and Flavia Pennetta (2015).

At the age of 28 years and 303 days, she will become the second-oldest player to make their maiden WTA Finals appearance as a top-five ranked player, after Li Na (29 years and 241 days) in 2011 – since the WTA rankings were first published in 1975. Paolini (18) won the joint-most matches at grand slam events in 2024, along with Sabalenka. 

Meanwhile, only Swiatek (five) and Sabalenka (four) have won more WTA-level titles in 2024 than Rybakina (three).

At the age of 30 years and 258 days on the day of the final, Pegula could become the oldest maiden-winner of the WTA Finals since the event’s inauguration in 1972, surpassing Jana Novotna (29 years and 52 days) in 1997.

In Cancun last year, Pegula became the first player to face the WTA's top four players at a single event, since the rankings were first published in 1975.

Since the event's inauguration in 1972, Zheng will become only the second player from China to appear at the WTA Finals after Li Na (2011-2013).

Excluding alternates, Krejcikova (13) will be the first player ranked outside the WTA's top 10 to appear at the WTA Finals since Vera Zvonareva (11) in 2004.

Aryna Sabalenka has ended Iga Swiatek 11-month reign at the summit of the world rankings ahead of the WTA finals.

Sabalenka previously held the top spot for eight weeks from September to November last year, and has returned once again after a sensational run of form. 

The Belarusian has compiled a record of 20-1 since mid-August, during which she claimed her third grand slam title at the US Open after beating home favourite Jessica Pegula. 

Sabalenka also recently claimed the Cincinnati Open and Wuhan Open titles, while she also started the year with a major triumph at the Australian Open. 

She is the player with the most wins in 2024 with 46, including the women's singles grand slam and WTA-1000 events, one more than Swiatek who is in second. 

The next chance for Swiatek to return to number one is the season-ending WTA Finals next month in Riyadh. 

Aryna Sabalenka is not thinking about claiming the world number one ranking after her Wuhan Open triumph on Sunday. 

Sabalenka downed home favourite and reigning Olympic champion Zheng Qinwhen, prevailing 6-3 5-7 6-3 to claim her fifth title on Chinese soil. 

The Belarusian became the player with the most main draw wins at the Wuhan Open since the tournament's inception in 2014, with this victory her 17th in as many matches at the competition.

Sabalenka is also only the second player, after Serena Williams at Miami (2013 to 2015) to win a WTA 1000 tournament in three consecutive editions, but faces a stern test in toppling Iga Swiatek at the summit of the WTA rankings ahead of the end of the season. 

"Really tight ranking right now," Sabalenka said. "Really nice to see. I always say, of course, it's one of my goals, but I prefer to focus on myself and just keep working hard.

"We'll see after the [WTA Finals] if I was good enough this season to become world number one."

Sabalenka (28) and Swiatek (30) are now the pair with the most WTA 1000 wins combined (58) in a single season, surpassing Williams and Maria Sharapova in 2013 (57).

But Sabalenka did not have it all her own way in Sunday's showdown with Zheng, who fought back in the second set to force a decider.

Sabalenka eventually halted Zheng's hopes of becoming just the second Chinese player to claim a WTA 1000 title after Li Na in 2012, but it was a tough test for the 26-year-old.

"First of all, I would say the conditions are probably a little bit better for her here," Sabalenka said.

"It's much slower and the ball's getting heavier. She has more things to do on the court when it's slower.

"Honestly, I felt like I just lost a little bit of focus and I let her come back in the match. I got a little bit frustrated there.

"It became a three-set match. Balls are getting heavier, in the third set, [it was] a bit emotional."

Aryna Sabalenka overcame home favourite Zheng Qinwen 6-3 5-7 6-3 to claim a third straight crown at the Wuhan Open.

US Open champion Sabalenka has an immaculate record at the WTA 1000 event, where she extended her dominance on Sunday.

The showdown was a rematch of this year's Australian Open final, in which Sabalenka also came out on top.

She is now unbeaten in four matches against Zheng, this year's Olympic champion. 

Having required just 38 minutes to take the first set, Sabalenka was pegged back in the second, eventually succumbing after saving four break points.

Yet the Belarusian regained the impetus in the decider, swiftly taking a double-break lead and hardly looking back from there.

Data Debrief: Queen of Wuhan does the three-peat

What a year it has been for Sabalenka, and after previously winning in Wuhan in 2018 and 2019, the world number two completed a hat-trick of trophies in style. She has played 17 times at the tournament and is yet to lose a match.

Sabalenka, who has won four trophies this year, is the second player, after Serena Williams at Miami (2013 to 2015), to win a WTA 1000 event in three consecutive editions of the tournament.

China is something of a home away from home for the 26-year-old, too. She is now the player to have won the most WTA-level titles on Chinese soil in the Open Era (five).

Meanwhile, Sabalenka and world number one Iga Swiatek are the pair with the most combined wins at WTA 1000 events (58) in a single season, surpassing Williams and Maria Sharapova in 2013 (57).

Aryna Sabalenka produced a stunning comeback to reach the Wuhan Open final, coming from a set and a break down to end Coco Gauff's nine-match winning run.

In a repeat of their Australian Open semi-final clash in January, Sabalenka again emerged victorious, winning 1-6 6-4 6-4 in two hours and 28 minutes. 

Gauff wasted no time in stamping her authority on the contest, breaking Sabalenka's serve in consecutive games to race into a comfortable 5-0 lead in the opening set.

Sabalenka eventually get her first point on the board in the sixth game, but the damage had already been done, with Gauff claiming the early advantage, dropping just 13 points in doing so.

The second set saw both players fail to hold serve, with the first five games seeing consecutive break points before Gauff took control, only for Sabalenka to win the next two games on the spin and hold on to take the encounter the distance.

Sabalenka started brightly in the decider, taking an early 3-0 lead, with the third game seeing 19 points contested before the Belarusian hammered home her advantage. 

The American managed to claw her way back into the contest, though, winning three games on the spin. But Sabalenka broke one final time, with Gauff striking her 21st double fault to seal Sabalenka's progression to the final.

Sabalenka will face the winner of the first all-Chinese semi-final at a WTA 1000 event between Qinwen Zheng and Xinyu Wang's on Sunday. 

Data Debrief: Super Sabalenka

Sabalenka hit 31 winners during the contest, becoming the first player to hit 1000 winners in WTA-1000 since Opta collects this data in 2021.

The Belarusian also became the player with the joint most finals reached in WTA events held in China in the Open Era (six), level with Alison Riske & Jelena Jankovic.

She is now the player with the most main draw wins at the Wuhan Open since the tournament's inception in 2014, equalling Petra Kvitova's total of 16. 

Only Jannik Sinner (eight, including Shanghai) has made more Tour level finals than Sabalenka in 2024 (seven, including Wuhan).

Aryna Sabalenka continued her Wuhan Open dominance as she reached her third consecutive semi-final at the competition with a straight sets victory over Magdalena Frech.

Sabalenka needed just over an hour to down her Polish opponent, emerging a 6-2 6-2 victor in a largely one-sided contest. 

The Belarusian laid down a marker of her intentions early on, serving a love game in the opener before quickly racing into a 4-0 lead. 

Frech would get her first point on the board in the fifth game, but the damage had been done in the opening exchanges as Sabalenka saw out her serve to take the advantage. 

The world number two threatened to end the contest in double quick time after she claimed a 3-0 lead in the second set, only for Frech to respond and close to within one game. 

However, Sabalenka held firm to secure the win, sealing the triumph with her third match point as she extended her winning streak to 15 matches in Wuhan. 

Sabalenka will now face Coco Gauff for a place in the final in what will be the pair's first encounter since the Belarusian's semi-final win at the Australian Open earlier this year.

Data Debrief: Sabalenka continues Wuhan love story

Sabalenka is only the second player after Ashleigh Barty to reach the semi-finals of the Wuhan Open in all their first three appearances at this tournament.

Only Serena Williams (21 in Rome, 20 in Miami and 19 in Madrid) has won more consecutive matches in a single city hosting a WTA-1000 event than Sabalenka in Wuhan (15) since the format’s introduction in 2009.

Aryna Sabalenka paid tribute to "legend" Rafael Nadal, acknowledging the retiring Spaniard is "an inspiration to all of us".

The 22-time major winner announced on Thursday via a video on his social media platforms that he will retire from competitive tennis following next month's Davis Cup finals in Malaga.

Nadal's decision - generally expected given his injury struggles in recent years - has been met with widespread tributes throughout the tennis and sporting world.

And WTA number two Sabalenka - the reigning Australian and US Open champion - was the latest big name to salute the 14-time French Open winner, who was dubbed "the King of Clay".

"He's an inspiration for all of us, for the next generation, for current players. He's a legend," Sabalenka told WTA.

"As he said, everything has a beginning and an end. We are all going to be there. I'm really happy for what he was able to achieve. He was inspiration for everyone. He's a hard worker. He definitely had so much love for this sport."

Sabalenka is through to her 11th successive WTA quarter-final at the Wuhan Open after coming from behind to beat Yulia Putintseva 1-6 6-4 6-0.

The reigning champion recovered from losing the opening set - plus a break point at 4-3 down in the second set - to claim his 14th straight victory in Wuhan. 

"In the first set, I was all over the place," she added. "I'm really glad that I was able to put myself together in the second set and things clicked.

"In that game [the eighth in the second set], I was just trying to cool myself down and just to remind myself to keep trying, keep fighting.

"You have to work for it, you have to run, you have to play the point, build the point, find the right shot, then go for it, not rush things. I was just having that conversation in my head all the time.

"After that game, I felt like something clicked. The return was better. The movement was better. The decisions I was making were much better. I felt like that was really the turning point in the match."

Aryna Sabalenka maintained her perfect record at the Wuhan Open and clinched her 50th tour-level win of the year as she beat Katerina Siniakova in straight sets on Wednesday.

The Belarusian returned to winning ways after her shock exit at the China Open, with the score 6-4 6-4 after 94 minutes to reach the third round.

Sabalenka weathered an early storm as Siniakova pushed her at the start before the pair traded breaks just when it looked like she had gained an edge.

However, the world number two broke her serve again in the final game to take the set, and it was a similar story in the second.

The Czech valiantly defended her serve as the pair traded blows, but Sabalenka showed her edge by winning the final two games to set up a meeting with Yulia Putintseva in the next round.

"I missed Wuhan a lot," Sabalenka said. "I just have really good memories of winning, two times, the title here. Just Wuhan brings me a lot of great memories, good vibes.

"Siniakova, who is fighting for every point, it's really good that I was able to finish this match in two sets."

Data Debrief: Posting big numbers

The Wuhan Open has been out of the calendar for the last five years, but Sabalenka has settled back in quickly.

She has won all 13 of her matches played at the tournament (winning the title in both 2018 and 2019) and is the first player to win their first 13 matches in a single city hosting a WTA event since Maria Sharapova in Stuttgart (13-0 between 2012 and 2014).

The victory over Siniakova is her 50th of the WTA Tour in 2024, a number she will be pleased to reach after having her 15-match winning streak snapped in Beijing last week. 

Karolina Muchova secured an upset at the China Open, snapping Aryna Sabalenka's 15-match winning streak to reach the semi-finals.

The Czech prevailed in two hours and 48 minutes with a 7-6 (7-5) 2-6 6-4 win over the number one seed on Friday.

Muchova started strong, forcing Sabalenka to defend three break points in the opening game, but they were evenly matched throughout.

Sabalenka almost took the first set, but Muchova held her nerve, successfully fighting back against two set points before taking the tie-break.

The Belarusian looked back to her free-flowing best in the second though, earning two breaks as she forced the decider in comfortable fashion.

Sabalenka took an early lead in the final set, but from 4-2 down, Muchova clawed her way back, going on a four-game winning streak at the end to book a meeting with Qinwen Zheng or Mirra Andreeva in the final four. 

Data Debrief: Czech mate

Given Sabalenka's recent hot streak, this does look like an upset, but it is actually pretty run-of-the-mill for Muchova.

She has now won her last three matches against Sabalenka in WTA events, defeating her at Cincinnati, Roland Garros 2023 and China Open 2024. 

Excluding the BJK Cup, only Iga Swiatek (85.3%) has a higher winning percentage than Muchova on hard-court in WTA events during 2024 (84.6%, 11-2), surpassing Sabalenka (82.5%, 33-7).

The 28-year-old has reached just her second career semi-final and is the player with the fewest WTA-1000 wins during the season before the start of the China Open (one) to reach this stage of the tournament.

Naomi Osaka is confident she will be able to gain control of her tie with Coco Gauff at the China Open.

Osaka defeated Katie Volynets 6-3 6-2 on Monday to progress to the last 16 in Beijing.

And the four-time grand slam champion's reward was a meeting with world number six Gauff.

The duo have played each other on four occasions, splitting the head-to-head record with two wins each, though their last meeting came in 2022, with Gauff winning in straight sets.

"She's very athletic obviously. For me, my strongest traits are being aggressive and also my serve," Osaka said.

"So it's definitely going to be a battle - who wants to take control of the point first? And I think it's going to be me."

Osaka's tie with Gauff will represent the first time two former grand slam winners will meet in the last 16 at the China Open since 2016, when Petra Kvitova overcame Garbine Muguruza.

World number two Aryna Sabalenka also sealed her progress on Monday, beating American Ashlyn Krueger 6-2 6-2.

"Control over my emotions, that's the key," said US Open champion Sabalenka, who will face Kruger's compatriot Madison Keys in the next round.

"Before it felt like if I'm not going to win this match, something bad is going to happen. I'm going to die," she explained.

"Nowadays I'm just working hard, I'm trying to improve myself every day. Every time I'm on the court, I'm trying to give my best. If you give your best but you didn't win the match, it's okay."

Sabalenka has now registered 800 winners in WTA 1000 tournaments during 2024, while she is the only woman during the Open Era to register a win percentage of over 80% in WTA tournaments held in China (81.3%, 39-9, minimum10 matches played).