WTA Finals: Sabalenka battles past Muchova as Andreeva thrashes Svitolina

Sabalenka overcame a determined Muchova 7-6(2) 7-5 in her sixth consecutive appearance at the season-ending tournament.

The Belarusian had to fight back after Muchova served for the opening set at 5-4, but recovered to force a tiebreak and take control with a convincing 7-2 win.

Sabalenka appeared to be cruising towards victory when she opened up a 4-2 lead in the second set. However, Muchova broke back as the world number two served for the match, levelling the score at 5-5.

The Czech's resistance was short-lived, though, as Sabalenka secured another break before serving out the match to claim her first win in Group 2.

"She's such an incredible player. Always tough battles. I was just trying to stay calm and focus point by point. She can come back any time. You have to be focused from beginning till the end," Sabalenka said on court.

"I'm super happy with the level I played. To get the first win, it's really important. Great start."

Meanwhile, French Open champion Andreeva enjoyed a winning debut at the tournament, defeating 2018 champion Svitolina 6-4 6-0.

The Russian needed just one break to take the opening set before dominating the second, winning all six games to complete a convincing victory.

Svitolina struggled to match her opponent's intensity and failed to convert any of the six break points she earned during the match.

Andreeva had lost to the Ukrainian at the Australian Open earlier this year but was pleased to reverse that result.

"I was trying to think about was that she beat me in Australia earlier this year. I really tried not to think about the match we had last year on these courts," Andreeva said of her 2025 Indian Wells win over Svitolina.

"I remember how I was playing when I beat her here, but I knew it would be a tricky match. She's an amazing player. I'm just very happy I was able to get through the match."

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