Sabalenka channels fury to outlast Pegula in Riyadh thriller
Pushed to the brink by Jessica Pegula’s relentless fightback, Aryna Sabalenka rediscovered her explosive edge in a gripping three-setter, keeping her WTA Finals campaign on track amid the Saudi heat.
Aryna Sabalenka stepped onto the court in Riyadh carrying the mantle of world No. 1, her season’s 61 victories a testament to power that borders on overwhelming. Yet against Jessica Pegula, a rival whose recent clashes have stretched her to the limit, the Belarusian faced not just strokes but a mirror of her own vulnerabilities. In the King Saud University Indoor Arena, under the glare of championship lights, Sabalenka’s fiery persona simmered before erupting, securing a 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 win that preserved her unbeaten run and edged her toward the semifinals.
Bottling pressure in the opener
Sabalenka absorbed an early break point with a thunderous first serve, then unleashed her forehand to break for 4-2, the ball whipping crosscourt before an inside-in winner sealed the shift. Pegula rallied, saving a set point and breaking back to 5-4, her returns probing deep to disrupt the one–two rhythm that had built Sabalenka’s lead. But the top seed held firm, converting her fifth set point after 45 minutes of taut exchanges, the crowd’s rising hum underscoring her restraint amid the mounting tension.
This opener highlighted the tactical dance on Riyadh’s swift indoor hard courts, where Sabalenka’s aggressive patterns clashed with Pegula’s angle-seeking precision. The American’s backhand slices kept points alive, forcing the Belarusian to vary her inside-out forehands to open the court. As the set closed, Sabalenka’s focus sharpened, a quiet prelude to the emotional storm brewing.
“She always pushes me to the limit,” Sabalenka said after the match. “In the second set, I felt like she stepped in and played incredible tennis. In the third set, I was thinking ‘OK, I’m going to go after my shots, I’m going to stay even more aggressive and put all that speed back on her and hope I’ll get my chance. And yeah, again she pushed me and I love it. I love playing against her because it’s never an easy match. it’s always great tennis, great level, great points and I’m super happy with the win.”
Pegula’s surge forces decider
The second set turned on Pegula’s opportunism, as she broke at love in Sabalenka’s second service game, her flat groundstrokes neutralizing the power with deep crosscourt replies. Building to 5-2, the American saved two break points in the final game, firing three forehand winners that echoed through the arena and leveled the match. Sabalenka’s frustration flickered—double faults creeping in—but she bottled it, the air thick with the stakes of her group lead hanging in the balance.
Pegula’s consistency thrived here, her returns landing heavy to counter the one–two setups, while the indoor conditions amplified every low-bouncing exchange. This pivot exposed the rivalry’s evolution, with their last three meetings all going the distance, each point a psychological tug-of-war. As the decider loomed, the WTA Finals scores captured the group’s volatility, Jasmine Paolini already eliminated, leaving only Sabalenka at 2-0 amid the contenders.
Roar returns in third-set rally
Pegula broke early for 2-1 in the third, exploiting Sabalenka’s serve woes—3-for-14 on first deliveries, double faults piling up like echoes of prior close calls. But the Belarusian ignited, her errors morphing into down-the-line lasers as she reeled off four straight games for 5-2, inside-out forehands pinning her opponent wide and restoring the roar that defines her game. Serving for the match, she unleashed a final forehand winner, dropping to her knees in a release of pent-up fury, her ninth win in 12 against the American sealed in just over two hours.
This surge embodied Sabalenka’s championship pedigree, turning mental strain into tactical fire on a surface that rewards boldness. The victory, her 13th against a top-10 foe this season—the most since Iga Swiatek’s 15 in 2022—positions her firmly in the Stefanie Graf Group. With the WTA Finals draws mapping the path ahead and the order of play setting her clash with Coco Gauff, where a win would even their 6-5 head-to-head and clinch a perfect 3-0 record.
Eye of the tiger ! 😤@SabalenkaA battles past Pegula in a three set match 6-4, 2-6, 6-3. #WTAFinalsRiyadh pic.twitter.com/OwCDYLcfQQ
— wta (@WTA) November 4, 2025
As the dust settled, Sabalenka’s gaze turned forward, the @SabalenkaA intensity fueling the #WTAFinalsRiyadh buzz from November 4, 2025, and the pic.twitter.com/OwCDYLcfQQ capturing her triumphant drop. Even a loss to Gauff leaves little doubt in her semifinal berth, but victory would amplify the momentum, blending her power with the psychological edge reclaimed in this grind. On these courts, where every roar echoes the season’s trials, her path forward promises more of the high-stakes drama that has defined her reign.
