INDIAN WELLS, California: Mirra Andreeva won her WTA Finals round-robin group in emphatic fashion on Wednesday, defeating Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 6-0.
The No. 3 seed trailed Sabalenka 1-4 in the opening set but won 20 of the next 23 points and rode that momentum to become the Group 2 winner in 62 minutes.
“I feel like I could play another two matches. I’m so pumped up and full of energy,” said Andreeva, who gave coach Conchita Martinez “82% of the credit” for a post-warmup pep talk that she feels spurred her to victory.
Andreeva was the subject of a pre-tournament hot mic diatribe from fellow competitor Jessica Pegula; the American was heard calling Andreeva a “diva” and made other comments for which she has since apologized. Since then, the 19-year-old Russian has lost just eight games in her first two round-robin matches. Her 2-0 record leaves Sabalenka and Elina Svitolina to play for the remaining semifinal spot on Friday.
Sabalenka, who lost the No. 1 ranking after 99 consecutive weeks to Elena Rybakina after Rybakina won the U.S. Open, posted a straight-sets victory over Karolina Muchova in her opening match and looked solid early against Andreeva. Playing with tape affixed above her right knee, Sabalenka suddenly struggled to win points against her opponent, who won her first Grand Slam title at the French Open in June and defeated Sabalenka to win the 2025 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
Still, the No. 2-seeded Sabalenka will have a shot to qualify for a fifth consecutive WTA Finals semifinal against Svitolina, a former WTA Finals champion who eliminated Muchova in the first match of the afternoon.
Svitolina, the only mother in the eight-woman field, lost 6-4, 6-0 to Andreeva in her first WTA Finals match since 2019, but rebounded after losing the first set to beat Muchova 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.
