Elena Rybakina finished the 2025 campaign with a flourish by beating Aryna Sabalenka to win the WTA Finals.
It was the first time that Rybakina had been successful in this competition, and she managed to win all five of the matches she played at the tournament.
Sabalenka was frustrated after losing another big final to finish 2025, with Rybakina blowing her away in the final.
Rybakina has won Wimbledon previously and sat as the number three player in the world rankings, so the fact that she is beating the top players shouldn’t be a surprise.
However, Sabalenka has enjoyed two successive years as the world number one, and the fact that she simply thrashed her in the WTA Finals highlights just how good she can be.
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Rybakina came through against Sabalenka in straight sets, and Simon Rea has praised just how extraordinary she was in that match.
Rybakina actually has a winning record in matches against Sabalenka, and given how long she’s been the world number one, it was a remarkable result at the WTA Finals.
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Rea coached Kyrgios for a number of years, and he couldn’t quite believe what he was watching
Speaking on the Australian Open TV podcast, he said: “Looking specifically at the final, there are not many players on Tour that can almost have their way with Aryna Sabalenka down the other end, in terms of dictating more points than they are on the receiving end of, and Rybakina is one of those.
“She had 13 aces to five in the final against Sabalenka. She was not broken across two sets.
“This was an extraordinary number which jumped off the page at me, when I was watching this match back, and it did get confirmed, she won 75% of her second serve points, Rybakina. 50% is a really solid number, anything above 50 is a good, solid result. So, to win 75% of your second serve points against Sabalenka, who is all about trying to do maximum damage on second serve return herself, proved to be a real difference maker in the match.
“I think just to speak to the pedigree of Rybakina. She is now 8-6 all-time against number one-ranked players in the world.
“There are only two other players in history who have had a winning record against number one players in the world. They are Steffi Graf and Serena Williams. She is in elite company.
“That speaks to how good this woman’s upside is. When she is at her best, she is a fearsome prospect to come up against, and she can have a say in the match, which means you are going to be flat out trying to hang with her. I think we saw that again in Riyadh.”
Rybakina is one to watch in 2026
Since winning Wimbledon and being number three in the world, Rybakina has struggled to find consistency.
She has endured some poor performances at Grand Slam tournaments in recent years, and she will hope this win can give her momentum going into next year.
The Australian Open could be a great opportunity for Rybakina to continue her fine form and add another Grand Slam to her collection.
Although there are still some bits and pieces to work on, Rybakina’s very dangerous serve and winning record over the world number one absolutely give her a good chance of winning.
Rybakina is now very much one to watch in the New Year and it will be fascinating to see if she can win another big title when the WTA Tour gets back underway.
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