Svitolina beats Sabalenka at WTA Finals to reach semifinals, ending Sabalenka's season

Elina Svitolina beat Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 in a group-stage match at the season-ending WTA Finals. Svitolina will face Linda Noskova in the semifinals. The defeat ended Sabalenka's 2026 season.

Svitolina, who is Ukrainian, won the WTA Finals in 2018. Sabalenka is from Belarus. She won three titles this season, including Indian Wells and Miami, known together as the 'Sunshine Double'. She lost the world number one ranking to Elena Rybakina in connection with the US Open.

In the other match, Mirra Andreeva beat fellow Russian Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-1. It was Andreeva's third straight-sets win at her first appearance at the event. She had already secured her semifinal place and will play Jessica Pegula. Shnaider replaced Karolina Muchova, who withdrew because of illness. Andreeva and Shnaider are friends.

How the match unfolded

According to Al Jazeera, Svitolina broke Sabalenka's serve six times and won on her fourth match point with a forehand winner. Al Jazeera said it was her first win over Sabalenka in more than six years, improving her head-to-head record to 2-6. According to the BBC, Sabalenka lost the final six games. The BBC reported that she threw her racquet to the ground during the deciding set.

Al Jazeera reported that Svitolina did not shake hands with Sabalenka after the match. It described this as consistent with her practice since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The BBC report does not mention the handshake. According to Al Jazeera, Sabalenka declined to speak to the media.

Context

According to the BBC, Sabalenka lost the Australian Open and US Open finals this season. It is her first season since 2022 without a major title. She had been world number one for 99 weeks.

Al Jazeera reported that the event is being held at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. It said the event was moved from Riyadh because of what it describes as the United States-Israeli war on Iran. It will be played in Charlotte from next year, Al Jazeera said. Al Jazeera also reported that Rybakina withdrew on the eve of the tournament because of illness.

The semifinals are on Saturday, according to Al Jazeera. The BBC said the final is scheduled for Sunday.

What each side says

Al Jazeera quoted Svitolina as saying: "It was a bit of a roller-coaster match." The BBC quoted her as saying: "It was an extremely tough match, especially mentally. I was just trying to play one point at a time."

According to the BBC, Pegula called Andreeva a 'diva' in a private conversation with her coach the previous week. The conversation was aired on a live stream. Andreeva told reporters that Pegula has since apologised and that there is "no drama", the BBC reported. The reports do not include a comment from Pegula.

Analysis

Sabalenka's exit closes a season that, by the BBC's figures, combined strong results with missed opportunities in major finals. The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not include her view of the match. Svitolina's win, and the absence of a handshake reported by Al Jazeera, show how the war in Ukraine still shapes interactions on the women's tour. Andreeva arrives in the semifinals unbeaten. Her match with Pegula will be their first tour-level meeting. The outcome of either semifinal remains open. Form in the group stage does not guarantee results in the knockout rounds.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.