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Svitolina defeats Sabalenka to reach WTA Finals semi-finals

Summarised from 5 outlets · 8 reports · Updated 15 Nov, 05:02 · Archive

Elina Svitolina defeated Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 3-6 6-1 to reach the semi-finals of the WTA Finals at Indian Wells on Friday. The Ukrainian claimed her first victory against Sabalenka in more than six years, improving her overall record against the Belarusian to 2-6.

Svitolina won the first set decisively, standing up to Sabalenka's powerful serve. Sabalenka fought back to take the second set as her game improved. The momentum shifted decisively in the third set. The opening games were tight, but Svitolina broke Sabalenka's serve to go 3-1 up and then won the final six games without reply, running away with the set.

Speaking after the match, Svitolina said: "Very happy with the performance. It was not an easy match. It was a little bit of a roller coaster. I played well in the first set, she stepped up the game and the third I tried to put an 'extra' ball over the net." The Ukrainian will face Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova in Saturday's semi-final. "I knew from the start of the tournament this would be a possibility but I have no regrets or complaints. I'm in the semi-final and that's amazing for me," Svitolina added.

The defeat marked a disappointing end to Sabalenka's season. It came just two days after she lost all 11 of her final games in a crushing defeat to Mirra Andreeva. The loss means Sabalenka has failed to reach the last four of the WTA Finals for the first time since 2021. She also did not win a Grand Slam title this year, losing in the finals of the Australian Open and the US Open to Elena Rybakina, who replaced her as world number one.

Svitolina, the 2018 WTA Finals champion, is appearing at the tournament for the first time since reaching the final in 2019. She has returned to the top 10 this season for the first time since 2021. Al Jazeera reported that Svitolina did not shake hands with Sabalenka after the match, maintaining her policy of not doing so with Russian and Belarusian players following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

In another quarter-final match, Mirra Andreeva won 12 of the final 13 games to defeat Diana Shnaider 6-2 6-1. Andreeva, who won Group 2 with a 3-0 record, will face Jessica Pegula in Saturday's other semi-final. Shnaider, making her WTA Finals singles debut as a late replacement for Karolina Muchova, who withdrew with a gastrointestinal illness, led 2-0 in the first set before Andreeva took control and wrapped up the victory in 55 minutes.

Following her defeat, Sabalenka apologised after a viral video showed her swearing in Russian during the match. Some commentators interpreted her comments as an insult towards Svitolina or Ukrainians. Sabalenka wrote on social media that "my comment was not directed at Elina" but that she had lost her temper because of the behaviour of some fans. "I was frustrated with a small group of spectators who were aggressively cheering my mistakes, and I reacted emotionally in the moment," she wrote, adding that she should have handled her frustration differently.

Svitolina defeats Sabalenka to reach WTA Finals semi-finals
Image: New York Post

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How it is being reported

In this story: Elina Svitolina · Aryna Sabalenka · Linda Noskova · Mirra Andreeva · Diana Shnaider · Jessica Pegula · Elena Rybakina · Indian Wells

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log