On November 5th, the WTA Finals group stage in the Graf Group delivered another thrilling day of tennis. Top seed Aryna Sabalenka survived a tough battle, rallying past fifth seed Jessica Pegula with a 6–4, 2–6, 6–3 victory. The win not only avenged her Wuhan loss but also marked her second straight triumph in the group stage.
However, despite her perfect 2–0 record, Sabalenka’s ticket to the semifinals isn’t guaranteed yet. After two rounds, the standings show:
- Sabalenka (2–0) leads,
- Gauff and Pegula both (1–1),
- Paolini (0–2) has been eliminated.
This means Sabalenka, Gauff, and Pegula will battle for the final two semifinal spots in a high-stakes final round!
💬 Sabalenka: “Pegula always pushes me to my limits”
After the match, Sabalenka praised Pegula’s fighting spirit:
“She’s an incredible player who always pushes me to the edge. In the second set, she raised her level and played amazing tennis. In the decider, I told myself to go for it — to be more aggressive and use my pace to put pressure on her.”
She added with a smile, “I truly enjoy playing against her because every match is intense and full of great rallies. I’m really proud of this win.”
🎾 Gauff Cruises Past Paolini to Stay Alive
Defending champion Coco Gauff also kept her hopes alive with a confident 6–3, 6–2 win over an ailing Jasmine Paolini. The American earned her first victory of the tournament and set up a crucial final showdown with Sabalenka.
“I’m really happy I managed to turn things around,” Gauff said. “I only hit three double faults today — compared to 17 last time! That shows I can serve well when I stay calm and stick to basics. Maybe I was overhitting before, so today I focused on rhythm.”
She added, “This win means a lot. I knew I had to win to stay in contention. Every match here, I play like it could be my last.”
🔥 Final Round — Graf Group
- Sabalenka vs Gauff
- Pegula vs Paolini
Once the dust settles, we’ll know which two players advance to the semifinals — and who will join the top two from the Serena Group in the final four. Expect fireworks ahead!
