RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka booked her place in the semifinals of the WTA Finals in Riyadh after defeating No. 4 Jasmine Paolini 6-3, 7-5 on Monday.

With the win, Sabalenka improved to 2-0 in the Purple Group and, along with Zheng Qinwen's win over Elena Rybakina earlier in the day, secured her finish as group winner.

WTA finals Riyadh: results | Schedule | Ranking

Sabalenka has been champion in three of her last four tournaments, winning the Cincinnati Open, US Open and Dongfeng Voyah Wuhan Open. She has now won 22 of her last 23 matches and is just one round-robin win away from securing the year-end world No. 1 ranking. First place in the ranking. Sabalenka faces Rybakina in the final group game of the week on Wednesday, where a 3-0 record would secure top spot.

Sabalenka and Paolini shared their last four meetings, but in Riyadh it would be their first showdown in over a year. Since their last meeting in Beijing in 2023, Paolini has raised her level and climbed the rankings, thanks in large part to her back-to-back Grand Slam finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon this year.

The 28-year-old Paolini reached her first WTA final – where she qualified in both singles and doubles – and finished fourth in the singles of her career, tying Francesca Schiavone as the highest-ranked Italian in Hologic WTA Tour history.

Sabalenka overwhelmed Paolini early and built an insurmountable 4-0 lead to take the first set in 36 minutes. She ended the first frame with a brilliant forehand for her seventh winner of the game. The reigning Australian Open and US Open champion appeared poised to move on from the straight set after building a 4-2 lead in the second set, but Paolini fought back.

Paolini played physical defense from the baseline, increasing ball pressure and Sabalenka blinked. With Sabalenka in disarray and errors leaking out, Paolini broke out to level the set, securing two set points on Sabalenka's serve. The world No. 1 stood firm, wasting both chances to hold serve and then ran away in the final two games to secure victory and stay perfect in Riyadh.

The loss drops Paolini to 1-1 in the purple group. After Zheng Qinwen claimed a three-set win over Rybakina to also level at 1-1, Day 3 results pointed to a win-and-in scenario for tournament debutants Paolini and Zheng. The two will face off on Wednesday, with the winner advancing to her first WTA Finals semi-final to face the Orange Group winner.