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Rybakina secured the greatest reward in women's tennis history by overcoming world number one Sabalenka in straight sets at the WTA Finals.

The 26-year-old produced a stunning display to beat four-times major winner Sabalenka 6-3 7-6 (7-0) in Saudi Arabia.

Since both players came through the event undefeated, the prize money on the table was a historic £3.98m – the largest prize offering in WTA history.

The reward exceeds the £3.74m the Belarusian earned for claiming September's New York major, which was the highest-paying Grand Slam in 2025.

"This has been an fantastic tournament," stated the Kazakh player.

"Truly didn't expect any result so to reach the final was just incredible."

"I want to say praise to Aryna for holding the top spot for a second consecutive year running, it's an outstanding accomplishment."

Rybakina, who was the world number six, hit sixteen winners during a impressive first-set performance.

Rybakina fended off two break points before taking every point in the sixth game of the set to take the break and held her serve to seal the opening set.

As the second set progressed, Sabalenka defended two opportunities at four-all to swing the momentum in her favor.

However, having worked so hard to upset Rybakina's rhythm, the top seed let her opponent off the hook by wasting a pair of chances in the following game to tie the set at 5-5.

Sabalenka's failure to force a decider affected her tiebreak play, with the Kazakh winning all seven points to win the title.

This win, Rybakina's sixth over Sabalenka, means she will move up one place in the WTA rankings to number five in the world rankings.

An emotional the runner-up appeared to be in tears as she sat with her coaching team shortly after the match.

"That was not the finest performance from me today but Elena you were certainly the better player," the Belarusian addressed the audience.

"You literally overpowered me out of the court. I'm happy to see you at your peak. Enjoy this stunning title."