Elena Rybakina Stuns Sabalenka to Claim Record £4m Payout
Rybakina sealed her 45th hard-court victory of the year
Rybakina secured the largest reward in WTA history by overcoming world number one Aryna Sabalenka in two sets at the tournament.
The 26-year-old produced a brilliant display to beat four-times major winner her opponent 6-3 7-6 (7-0) in the host country.
Since both players advanced through the tournament without a loss, the prize money on the table was a historic almost £4 million – the largest payout offering in WTA the sport's history.
The prize money exceeds the £3.74 million the Belarusian earned for claiming the New York major, which was the most lucrative major tournament in the current year.
"This has been an fantastic tournament," stated Rybakina.
"Truly couldn't have predicted any result so to win the title was just remarkable."
"Let me offer praise to Aryna for being number one for a second consecutive year in a row, it's an outstanding achievement."
The champion, who was the world number six, hit 16 winners during a dominant first-set display.
The 2022 Wimbledon winner saved a couple of chances before taking every point in the sixth game of the set to go a break up and served out to seal the opening set.
As the second set progressed, the world number one saved another two break points at 4-4 to shift the balance in her favour.
However, having worked so hard to upset Rybakina's rhythm, Sabalenka let her opponent off the hook by wasting a pair of chances in the following game to level the second set at five-all.
Her inability to force a decider impacted her tie-break performance, with Rybakina taking every point to claim the title.
The victory, her sixth triumph over Sabalenka, means Rybakina will move up one spot in the WTA rankings to number five in the world rankings.
A distraught the runner-up appeared to be in tears as she met with her team soon after the final.
"That was not the best performance from me today but Elena you were definitely the superior player," the Belarusian told the audience.
"You literally overpowered me out of the court. I'm happy to see you at your peak. Celebrate this stunning title."
