The WTA year-end championship will be held in Riyadh in 2024, and the round-robin stage promises some exciting clashes, such as the one between Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina.
Sabalenka and Rybakina are two of the purest power hitters on the WTA Tour. Both are among the tallest players, which helps them to hit their serve powerfully and precisely, benefitting from many free points.
On top of that, both are able to hit from the baseline powerfully and while it would be a great experience to be a spectator at one of their matches, the tennis balls would certainly disagree, as those get crushed when these two meet.
Now, they will meet in the Purple Group of the round-robin stage at the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh, which will run from October 2nd to 9th. Sabalenka will enter the tournament as the World No. 1 player and on a five-match winning streak.
She won the Wuhan Open, and before that, she was on a 15-match winning streak before Karolina Muchova ended it in Beijing. That means the Belarusian player won 20 of her last 21 matches, which is incredible.
Rybakina is in a completely different situation. She hasn't played since the US Open, and even before that, she competed only sporadically. Since the Wimbledon Championships, the Kazakhstani player has played only two matches.
There was also a lot of drama surrounding her, with a questionable split from coach Stefano Vukov in the midst of it. Now, she will enter the WTA Finals without a tennis match in the past two months and only two matches in the last four months.
That's not ideal, but the time away from the courts might also prove to be a blessing in disguise for Rybakina, who, unlike her opponents, had time to recharge her batteries and come to Saudi Arabia to rest.
Aryna Sabalenka vs Elena Rybakina Head-to-head:
The two have already met nine times, and this will be their 10th meeting on the WTA Tour. Their first meeting happened back in 2019 when Sabalenka won in a three-set match in Wuhan.
After that, it took two more years before they met again, this time at the Abu Dhabi Open, but the result didn't change, with the Belarusian player coming on top again.
It took Rybakina until the 2023 Indian Wells Open to beat Sabalenka, but since that match, she has been the better player, leading in the H2H since that period 3-2.
In the overall H2H, however, Sabalenka is the better player, having won the first four matches between the two and leading overall 6-3.
| Aryna Sabalenka | Elena Rybakina | |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | H2H | 3 |
| 1 | Rank | 5 |
| 26 | Age | 25 |
| 54-12 | 2024 W/L | 41-9 |
| 414-186 | Career W/L | 330-141 |
Aryna Sabalenka vs Elena Rybakina Prediction:
The biggest question mark in this match is how will the time away from the courts impact Rybakina. She might come well-rested and find it as a benefit, but she might also struggle to find the rhythm for some time.
On the other hand, there are no question marks surrounding Sabalenka. She's been the best player in the world in the past three months, and while Rybakina is one of the very few players who can go toe-to-toe with Sabalenka, the Belarusian player should win this match.
Prediction: Aryna Sabalenka to win in three sets.
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