Rybakina Upsets Sabalenka to Win Record £4 Million Prize
Rybakina earned her forty-fifth hard court triumph of 2025
Elena Rybakina secured the largest reward in WTA all time by beating world number one Sabalenka in straight sets at the tournament.
The 26-year-old produced a stunning display to defeat four-time Grand Slam winner her opponent in two sets in Saudi Arabia.
Because both players came through the tournament without a loss, the purse on the table was a record-breaking £3.98m – the biggest prize offering in women's tennis history.
The prize money tops the £3.74m Sabalenka earned for claiming the US Open, which was the highest-paying Grand Slam in 2025.
"This has been an incredible week," stated the Kazakh player.
"Truly didn't expect any result so to go so far was just incredible."
"Let me offer congratulations to Sabalenka for holding the top spot for a second consecutive year in a row, it's an incredible accomplishment."
Rybakina, who was the world number six, hit sixteen winning shots during a commanding first-set display.
The 2022 Wimbledon winner saved a couple of chances before taking every point in the sixth game of the set to take the break and served out to win the opening set.
As the second set progressed, Sabalenka defended another two opportunities at four-all to shift the balance in her favor.
However, after fighting back to upset her opponent's flow, the top seed let her opponent off the hook by wasting two set points in the following game to tie the second set at 5-5.
Sabalenka's failure to force a decider affected her tiebreak performance, with Rybakina taking all seven points to take home the championship.
The victory, her sixth triumph over her rival, means she will rise one place in the rankings to number five in the world rankings.
An emotional Sabalenka was seen crying as she met with her coaching team shortly after the final.
"It was not the finest performance from me today but Rybakina you were certainly the superior player," Sabalenka told the audience.
"You really smashed me out of the court. I'm pleased to see you play your best tennis. Celebrate this stunning title."
