Aryna Sabalenka’s WTA Finals campaign began in emphatic fashion on Monday afternoon.
The former world number one played her best tennis when it truly mattered, beating Wimbledon finalist Karolina Muchova 7-6, 7-5 in Indian Wells, California.
Sabalenka, who is yet to win the high-profile end-of-year tournament, will play Elina Svitolina and Mirra Andreeva later this week.
With her latest victory at the Finals, Sabalenka has written her name into the sport’s history books.
Aryna Sabalenka equals Mary Pierce’s WTA Finals record
Pierce, the 2000 Roland Garros champion, remains one of France’s most accomplished players.
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However, the French star never captured the WTA Finals crown.
Pierce won 13 matches at the event across seven tournaments, reaching the final on two occasions.
Aryna Sabalenka has now equalled Pierce’s total of 13 match wins at the WTA Finals.
According to statisticians OptaAce, Sabalenka has now equalled Mary Pierce’s record for the most wins at WTA Finals among non-champions at the event since its inception in 1972.
Most WTA Finals match wins without winning a title
- Aryna Sabalenka – 13
- Mary Pierce – 13
- Virginia Wade – 12
- Arantxa Sanchez Vicario – 11
- Helen Sukova – 11
- Pam Shriver – 11
Sabalenka will become the outright leader in this statistical category if she defeats Roland Garros champion Mirra Andreeva on Wednesday afternoon.
Andreeva, who defeated Sabalenka in their last match – the 2025 Indian Wells final – has expressed her desire to play the Belarusian in California.
Aryna Sabalenka vs Mirra Andreeva could decide the Group Two champion
Mirra Andreeva also triumphed in her first match at the 2026 WTA Finals, beating Italian Open champion Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-0.
With victory, Andreeva became the first player born since 2005 to claim a WTA Finals match win. Andreeva, from Russia, was born in 2007.
All results at the WTA Finals so far
- Linda Noskova defeated Marta Kostyuk, 6-2, 6-4
- Coco Gauff defeated Jessica Pegula, 6-4, 6-7, 6-2
- Aryna Sabalenka defeated Karolina Muchova, 7-6, 7-5
- Mirra Andreeva defeated Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-0
With both Sabalenka and Andreeva winning their opening matches, Wednesday’s contest will likely decide who will emerge from Group Two as the group winner.
As for Svitolina and Muchova, whoever loses their contest will struggle to advance to the last four in California.
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