Aryna Sabalenka's bid to clinch the year-end No. 1 ranking begins when she takes on WTA Finals debutant Qinwen Zheng in Saturday's Round Robin match.
The Belarusian recently supplanted Iga Swiatek atop the women's game, and she aims to avoid a false start against an opponent she has never lost to.
Match preview
© Imago
The opening match of the Purple Group pits Sabalenka against Zheng, with the world No. 1 the undoubted favourite despite the Chinese player's incredible 2024.
Sabalenka has never lost to the 22-year-old in four match-ups, even if she was taken to a decider in the Wuhan final last month, which she clinched 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.
The 17-time WTA Tour champion seeks a fifth consecutive triumph over the improving young player, keen to continue her dominance in this rivalry and take the first step towards notching the year-end first-place ranking.
While a glut of possibilities exist, ending the round-robin undefeated guarantees the 26-year-old the No. 1 spot, and she aims to notch win one at Zheng's expense.
Sabalenka entered last year's event in top spot, only to drop to second after Swiatek went 5-0 in Cancun, including success over the Belarusian in the semis, but she hopes to avoid a similar outcome this year.
© Imago
Despite a 0-4 record against the top-ranked player, Zheng can take confidence from recent events in Wuhan, where she took her bete noire to three sets for the first time before clinching last week's title in Tokyo.
The Chinese player was backed to defeat Sofia Kenin in straight sets, and she beat the one-time Grand Slam winner and two-time majors finalist to notch her second title of the year following her Paris Olympics success.
She makes her debut at the year-end event in Riyadh, motivated after a successful Asian swing, keen to not only make up the numbers at the Finals.
In a rematch of the match-up in October, the final WTA 1000 tournament in 2024, Zheng hopes to snap Sabalenka's superiority.
Head To Head
Wuhan Open (2024) - Final: Sabalenka 6-3 5-7 6-3
US Open (2024) - Quarter-final: Sabalenka 6-1 6-2
Australian Open (2024) - Final: Sabalenka 6-3 6-2
US Open (2023) - Quarter-final: Sabalenka 6-1 6-4
Sabalenka leads this head-to-head 4-0 and aims to record a fourth victory over Zheng this year and fifth overall.
The Chinese player is 3-6 against top-10 opponents in the last 12 months and 8-15 overall, a statistic she hopes to improve by stunning the favourite.
We say: Sabalenka to win in two sets
Though Zheng is determined to finally defeat Sabalenka, the motivated world No. 1 is focused on securing her first year-end top ranking, and that starts with a win against the two-time champion in Saturday's WTA Finals opener.
