Aryna Sabalenka will have ‘that little extra swagger’ at WTA Finals
Aryna Sabalenka will have some extra confidence heading into this year’s WTA Finals after “securing the most important thing” ahead of the tournament.
Four-time Grand Slam winner Sabalenka will start the season-ending event in Riyadh as the world No 1 and she is virtually assured of still being top of the WTA Rankings after the tournament.
Following her run to the semi-final of the Wuhan Open coupled with main rival Iga Swiatek’s quarter-final exit, the Belarusian opened a 1,600-point lead over the six-time Grand Slam winner in the battle for the No 1 spot.
With both players having only one event left, the upcoming WTA Finals where a maximum of 1,500 points are available for an undefeated champion, Sabalenka will finish the year at No 1, although there is a disclaimer.
Both players could still be docked points for not playing the required number of WTA 500 events in 2025, but their zero pointers are likely to be the same.
Sabalenka also finished as year-end No 1 last year while in 2023 she was pipped to the honour by Swiatek with the Pole securing the sought-after title by winning the WTA Finals.
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Having also won the US Open, former world No 9 CoCo Vandeweghe believes the 27-year-old will have an extra spring in her step at the WTA Finals, especially with the battle of the year-end No 1 title pressure off.
“I think the most important thing is that year-end No 1. She’s got that secured. She’s got that locked,” she told Tennis Channel. “I remember going into Cancun two years ago, where she was holding No 1 in the world, and Iga snatched it from her at the end.
“And that, to me, I think, has been so important for Aryna Sabalenka, to hold that year-end No 1. And how she’s been able to bounce back mentally.
“Because she lost those tough finals of Roland Garros to Coco Gauff, she lost in the semis of Wimbledon, which we thought she was going to win that and cakewalk to the final, but then there was Amanda Anisimova.
“…And then Aryna Sabalenka, bouncing right back, winning the US Open.
“Coming in with a Grand Slam to the year-end championships, that is such a difference maker to the rest of the field.
“Because it’s dog-eat-dog in the locker room, and you’re holding that little extra swagger out there.”
Another Year-End Honour
Once her year-end No 1 spot has been confirmed, Sabalenka will also complete a calendar year at the top of the WTA Rankings as she has been top since October 20, 2024.
She will join Chris Evert (1977, 1981), Martina Navratilova (1983, 1984, 1986), Steffi Graf (1988-1990, 1994, 1996), Monica Seles (1992), Serena Williams (2014, 2015) and Ashleigh Barty (2020, 2021) to achieve the feat.
Sabalenka, though, is yet to win the WTA Finals with her best run coming in 2022 when she finished runner-up to Caroline Garcia while she has reached the semi-final the past two years.
