Top seed Sabalenka eases past Paolini in WTA Finals
RIYADH :Top seed Aryna Sabalenka kicked off her WTA Finals campaign with a dominant 6-3 6-1 win over Jasmine Paolini on Sunday, registering her fifth straight victory over the world number eight.
Jasmine Paolini Sport News
Sabalenka blasts past Paolini in WTA finals opener in Riyadh
RIYADH: Aryna Sabalenka kicked off her quest for a maiden WTA Finals title by blasting 11 aces on her way to a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Jasmine Paolini in Riyadh on Sunday.
Swiatek swats aside Keys for winning start in Riyadh
RIYADH: World No. 2 Iga Swiatek began her quest for a second WTA Finals trophy with a 6-1 6-2 win over Australian Open champion Madison Keys in their round robin clash at the season-ending championships on Saturday.
Five storylines to follow at the 2025 WTA Finals in Riyadh
RIYADH: The WTA Finals are back in Riyadh for a second straight year, with the top eight women of the tour ready to do battle one last time this season. Taking place at King Saud University Indoor Arena from November 1 to 8, the world’s best players are split into two groups of four. They will go through a round-robin stage, with the top two in each group advancing to Friday’s semifinals. Aryna Sabalenka is the top seed and headlines the Stephanie Graf Group alongside defending champion Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, and Jasmine Paolini, while second-seeded Iga Swiatek is in the Serena Williams Group with Madison Keys, Elena Rybakina and Amanda Anismova. Seven of the eight players spoke to the press on Friday, with Paolini forced to skip her media duties citing illness.
Rybakina books place in WTA Finals for third straight year
Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina secured the last qualifying spot for the season-ending WTA Finals in Riyadh after advancing to the Pan Pacific Open semi-finals in Tokyo on Friday.
Rybakina wins Ningbo title to close in on WTA Finals
NINGBO, China: Elena Rybakina rallied from a set down to beat Russian fourth seed Ekaterina Alexandrova 3-6 6-0 6-2 and win the Ningbo Open title on Sunday, as her late surge to reach next month’s WTA Finals gained momentum.A 10th career title for Rybakina means the Kazakh only has to reach the semifinals of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo this week to seal the last qualifying spot for the season finale at the expense of Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva.Others who have qualified for the WTA Finals, to be held in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh from November 1-8, are Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova, Jessica Pegula, Madison Keys and Jasmine Paolini.Alexandrova made a flying start, racing 4-1 ahead as Rybakina struggled to rein in the errors and mix up her game, before the 30-year-old comfortably took the opening set with a powerful forehand winner.Desperate to prevent a fourth straight defeat by Alexandrova on hardcourts, Russian-born Rybakina came out firing in the next set, hitting a crosscourt winner to consolidate an early break and lay the platform to level in the match.World number nine Rybakina cranked up the intensity from the baseline in the deciding set, but it was a foray to the net that earned the 26-year-old another early break, and she went on to claim her second trophy of the season.
Postecoglou fired around 20 minutes after Forest lose 3-0 to Chelsea in Premier League
LONDON: Around 20 minutes. That’s how long it took Nottingham Forest to fire Ange Postecoglou after the team’s 3-0 loss to Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday. It left Postecoglou without a win in eight matches since taking charge as the replacement for Nuno Espirito Santo on Sept. 9. In a 39-word statement, Forest said Postecoglou was “relieved of his duties as head coach with immediate effect” after “a series of disappointing results and performances.” British media has already been linking former Burnley and Everton manager Sean Dyche with the job, should Postecoglou get fired.
Marc Guehi to leave Crystal Palace, says Glasner
LONDON: Marc Guehi has told Crystal Palace he will not sign a new deal at the club, manager Oliver Glasner has said. The England center-back almost joined Liverpool on transfer deadline day last month, but Palace pulled the plug at the last minute, missing out on a sizeable fee. Glasner revealed the defender, in the final 12 months of his contract, has already informed the club this will be his final season at Selhurst Park. “The club wanted (him to stay). They offered Marc a new contract but he said, ‘No, I want to make something different’, and that’s normal,” he said. “And for us, it’s how we can deal with this situation.