The season-ending event sees Sabalenka and Swiatek battle for year-end world No. 1 for the second year in a row

Aryna Sabalenka reached the semifinals of the WTA Finals with a 6-3, 7-5 win over Jasmine Paolini on Monday for a second straight victory in the group stage.

Aryna Sabalenka and Qinwen Zheng scored wins in the second day of round robin play at the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

In her most recent match on September 30, 2024, Sabalenka won 6-2, 6-2 against Ashlyn Krueger in the Round of 32 of the China Open. In her last match, which was slated for August 29, 2024 at the US Open, Rybakina was eliminated against Jessika Ponchet via walkover.

Aryna Sabalenka is the first player to secure a semi-final spot at the WTA Finals but her victory over Jasmine Paolini spells the end of the road for Elena Rybakina.

Swiatek is the only player who can overtake Sabalenka. The 23-year-old, who plays Coco Gauff on Tuesday, needs to retain her title undefeated and hope Sabalenka loses her remaining matches in order to claim the year-end number one spot.

Aryna Sabalenka (No. 1) will take on fellow top-10 resident Jasmine Paolini (No. 4) in the Round Robin at the Akron WTA Finals Guadalajara on Monday, November 4.Sabalenka’s last match was a

The 26-year-old is also on the brink of clinching the year-end No. 1 ranking. A win over Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina in the final group match on Nov 6 or a loss from her rival, Poland’s Iga Swiatek, would seal the year-end top spot for the Belarusian. “I’m proud of myself. But not only myself, my team,” Sabalenka said after her win.

(Reuters) -World number one Aryna Sabalenka secured a semi-final berth at the WTA Finals by beating Italian fourth seed Jasmine Paolini 6-3 7-5 on Monday to stay unbeaten in the purple round-robin group.

Aryna Sabalenka withstands Jasmine Paolini fight-back to seal WTA Finals progress - The World No 1 is through to the last four after a a 6-3 7-5 victory