The WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, got underway with contrasting results for two top players on Sunday. World number one Aryna Sabalenka delivered a commanding performance, defeating Italian player Jasmine Paolini 6-3 6-1.
Sabalenka's impressive display included 11 aces and 24 winners, as she won 66% of her first-serve points. This victory marked her 60th win of the year and her 12th over a top-10 opponent. The Belarusian, who secured the year-end number one ranking earlier in the week, has spent a total of 63 weeks at the top of the world rankings, including 55 consecutive weeks since October last year.
In the second match of the day, defending champion and world number three Coco Gauff struggled with her serve, recording 17 double faults and making 75 unforced errors. She was beaten by fellow American Jessica Pegula in a hard-fought contest that lasted two hours and 15 minutes. Pegula, ranked fifth in the world, won 6-3 6-7 (4-7) 6-2.
Gauff's serve was broken nine times throughout the match, and despite a strong response in the second set, she was unable to recover. Pegula, who was the runner-up in 2023, secured her win with her second match point.
Earlier on Saturday, Elena Rybakina and Iga Swiatek emerged victorious in the Serena Williams Group. In other tennis news, Canadian 19-year-old Victoria Mboko won the Hong Kong Open, claiming her second title of the season.
The WTA Finals continue, with Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski starting their doubles campaign with a 6-3 7-6 (7-2) win over Russians Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider. Second seeds Taylor Townsend and Katarina Siniakova also secured a win in their doubles match.
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