World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka secured her spot in the Mutua Madrid Open final for the fourth time with a decisive 6-3, 7-5 victory over 17th seed Elina Svitolina.
The match lasted 1 hour and 32 minutes. This win put an end to Svitolina`s impressive undefeated clay-court streak of 9-0 (18-0 in sets) this year, which Sabalenka halted.
Marquee Final Set
The final at this year`s first WTA 1000 clay-court event will feature a highly anticipated match between Sabalenka and No. 4 seed Coco Gauff. Earlier, Gauff had comfortably defeated defending champion Iga Swiatek 6-1, 6-1 in just 64 minutes.
Gauff holds a narrow 5-4 lead in their career head-to-head. Their previous clay meeting was in Rome in 2021 (won by Gauff), and Gauff also won their most recent match at the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh.
Dominance in Madrid
Sabalenka has demonstrated consistent dominance at the Madrid Open over the past decade, boasting an impressive 22-4 record at the tournament. She claimed the title in 2021 and 2023 and was a finalist last year.
With this victory over Svitolina, Sabalenka became the first player on the WTA tour to reach 30 main-draw wins in 2025, solidifying her position as the tour leader in match victories this season.
Match Highlights
In the evening match on Court Manolo Santana, Sabalenka established an early 4-1 lead in the first set. However, Svitolina fought back, breaking serve with a strong backhand return to narrow the score to 4-3.
Svitolina faced triple break point in the subsequent game and conceded the break back to Sabalenka with a double fault.
Serving for the first set at 5-3, Sabalenka faced three break points but saved them with powerful serves and a winner. She secured the set on her fourth ace.
Leading 5-3 in the second set, victory seemed inevitable for the World No. 1, who had handled pressure points well throughout the match.
However, while serving for the match at 5-4, Sabalenka stumbled, allowing Svitolina to level the score. Svitolina`s momentum was short-lived, as Sabalenka immediately broke back for a 6-5 lead with a forceful backhand.
Serving for the match a second time, Sabalenka made no mistake. She quickly reached 40-0 and converted her second match point with another strong backhand that forced an error from Svitolina.
Sabalenka`s clutch performance on break points was key; she saved five out of seven against Svitolina. Her total of 39 break points saved at this event is the highest recorded by any player at a single WTA event this season.
