Aryna Sabalenka books semifinal spot with win over Gauff

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka underlined her dominance at the WTA(Women’s Tennis Association) Finals with a commanding 7-6(5), 6-2 win over defending champion Coco Gauff on Thursday, booking her place in the semifinals and ending the American’s title defence.

The Belarusian, already assured of a semifinal berth, produced a composed and aggressive performance to register her third straight group-stage victory at the season-ending event for the world’s top eight players. Her win also secured Jessica Pegula’s passage into the last four from the same group. Pegula had earlier defeated Italy’s Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-3 to finish with a 2-1 record, while Gauff ended at 1-2 and Paolini at 0-3.

Sabalenka will next face American Amanda Anisimova in a much-anticipated rematch of this year’s U.S. Open final, while Pegula is set to meet Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina in the other semifinal.

Gauff started strongly and appeared on course to take the opening set, breaking Sabalenka twice and serving for the set at 5-4. But the top seed fought back with fierce determination, breaking back by chasing down a drop shot and firing a forehand winner down the line to level the contest.

“I was already preparing for the second set, to be honest,” Sabalenka admitted. “Something just clicked, and I managed to break. That game gave me a lot of confidence that I could still take the set.”

Gauff led 4-2 in the tiebreaker but faltered with a netted backhand and a costly double fault, allowing Sabalenka to seize control. The Belarusian converted her second set point with another forehand winner and never looked back, breaking early in the second set to seal a confident victory.

Reflecting on her loss, Gauff said, “I had a lot of chances in the first set. It’s disappointing not to take them. She raised her level, and I just couldn’t match it after that.”

With this victory, Sabalenka remains unbeaten in Riyadh and firmly on track for her maiden WTA Finals crown.

She also won the 2025 US Open women’s singles title by defeating Amanda Anisimova in the final.