RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — She entered the tournament at less than her best and decided to go all in on a first-strike, attack-mode strategy.<\/p>\n
And then, as she progressed through the WTA Finals field, Elena Rybakina — despite a sore right shoulder — started to feel better and better about her game. She faced World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday night\u2019s final and didn\u2019t change a thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like she just decided that she\u2019s just going to step in and go for her shots without, thinking and without doubting any decisions,\u201d Sabalenka said. \u201cAnd I think she was a bit more brave today than me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rybakina was a 6-3 7-6 (0) winner and, because of her undefeated 5-0 record, collected $5,235,000 in prize money.<\/p>\n
It was the 11th\u00a0straight match-win for the 26-year-old from Kazakhstan, a win streak that started after a loss to Sabalenka in Wuhan, China.<\/p>\n
Rybakina has now gone 8-6 against No. 1 players, a remarkable record. She\u2019s the first player to defeat both Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek at multiple WTA events, after previously achieving the feat on the way to winning tournament title at Indian Wells in 2023.<\/p>\n
The serve, as usual, was the critical piece. After hitting 15 aces against Jessica Pegula in the semifinals, she added 13 more against Sabalenka — and saved all five break points. She also won nearly 77 percent of her first-serve points.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome moments,\u201d Rybakina said, \u201cwhen I needed it the most, the serve worked — even though she was really playing well and pushing me in the tough situations.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sabalenka has a reputation for power, but Rybakina produced far faster groundstrokes from both sides. She constantly had Sabalenka under pressure, hitting off-balance shots — and talking to herself.<\/p>\n
Even before that ultimate tiebreak, Rybakina asserted herself. Down 4-5 in the second set, she saved two set points<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most difficult [thing] was that she was just like, going for her shots, and she was making those lines after lines after lines,\u201d Sabalenka said. \u201cI was just trying to wait for opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
A chance that never, truly came.<\/p>\n
Afterward, Rybakina sat down with wtatennis.com. Here\u2019s what she had to say:<\/p>\n
You arrived here jet-lagged, tired from playing so many matches and, by your own admission, had low expectations How did those low expectations help you win the tournament?<\/p>\n
Rybakina: Yeah, I guess I was not putting too much pressure on myself. It\u2019s a lot of challenges when you come from tournament to tournament, even if it\u2019s not a long travel. You need to get used to the new conditions, new balls, learning how to control them. We did only two days of practice, and I went right into my first match. It was not easy. But the advantage I had was the serve, that\u2019s what we were focusing on because we knew in the longer rallies I wouldn\u2019t be feeling so confident because we just arrived. I was trying to go for early shots. I was really aggressive, I would say, the whole tournament. The best players, they will give you some chances but not that much. I was taking everything as soon as possible.<\/p>\n
You lost the first set of your group match to Swiatek — and then won 12 of 13 games. How do you turn it on like that?<\/p>\n
Rybakina: She played really well to start. Sometimes it takes time for everybody to get used to each other. For example, Iga plays with more spin on the ball, and she has unbelievable footwork and energy on the court. Sometimes I\u2019m a little too slow to start the match, not serving as good when the match goes longer. It\u2019s really little details, but I managed to find a way and put things together.\u00a0<\/p>\n
No one was better than Sabalenka in tiebreaks this year,\u00a0and yet, you didn\u2019t give her one point in the second-set breaker. That\u2019s never, ever happened in her career. How do you explain that?<\/p>\n
Rybakina: [Exhales sharply.] Oh, OK. I remember when the tiebreak started that once this year I played against her in the third set [in Berlin], and I was up and had so many match points because it was a tiebreak. It was such a match and this time, I was just going point by point. Until the moment of the match point, I didn\u2019t want to think about it. And then I realized that I won — because I was so focused. Looking back, first few points were really important.<\/p>\n
Best of the 2025 WTA Finals Riyadh<\/p>\n
You won Wimbledon three years ago \u2026 How can this big a springboard to more success at the Grand Slam level next year?<\/p>\n
Rybakina: Well, I hope so. All that happened this week, I can bring to the next season. It gives me so much more motivation to work even more because we did good progress in the little blocks between the tournaments. Physically, even when I wasn\u2019t at my best, we did a good job. I\u2019ve experienced winning a Slam, losing in a final to Aryna [2023 Australian Open] \u2026 each match like this brings so much experience and this time it went my way, everything worked. I\u2019ll try to carry every positive thing from this tournament into my next big matches.<\/p>\n
You\u2019re flying back to Dubai on Sunday \u2026 Any vacation plans?<\/p>\n
Rybakina: I\u2019m going to spend a couple of days in Europe, different cities. Mostly for the health, some tests. I\u2019ve been having some [illness] issues that went away and are coming back. And then I\u2019ll see my family. Since I live in Dubai, there are good places to train. So I think I\u2019m going to stay there, in one place. Looking forward to a rest.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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