- 'Not safe' as Brazilian GP qualifying postponed due to heavy rain
- Spain sends thousands more troops to flood zone
- WHO says strike on Gaza vaccination centre wounds four children
- Supporters of Bolivia's ex-leader Morales detain 200 soldiers: government
- Tele'a elated by 'massive' New Zealand win in Twickenham thriller
- Juventus up to third with Udinese win
- Anger at government grows in ground zero of Spain floods
- Trump voters see only two outcomes: 'landslide' or 'fraud'
- Faker's T1 win League of Legends world title
- Strike on Gaza polio vaccine centre wounds four children: WHO
- India denies minister plotted anti-Sikh attacks in Canada
- 'No sense' playing football after deadly floods, says Atletico coach Simeone
- PSG extend lead atop of Ligue 1 with Lens win
- Tele'a at the double as New Zealand edge England again
- Sabalenka maintains Zheng stranglehold in winning WTA Finals start
- Man City suffer shock 2-1 Premier League loss at Bournemouth
- Man City suffer first league loss since December, Arsenal crash as Liverpool go top
- Salah strike beats Brighton to take Liverpool top
- Argentine LGBTQ march targets Milei's 'discriminatory' laws
- Kane double takes Bayern past Union, Frankfurt hit seven
- Norris clips more off Verstappen's title lead after sprint win
- Bangladesh rally says govt failing to protect Hindus, minorities
- Zverev powers past Rune to reach Paris Masters final
- Spain sends thousands more troops to flood epicentre
- Harris, Trump go toe to toe in frenzied final campaign weekend
- Arsenal Premier League hopes hit by Newcastle defeat
- Serbia to demolish 'German' bridge amid outcry
- Hundreds in Myanmar observe All Saints' Day
- 'No sense' playing La Liga games after deadly floods: Simeone
- Van Nistelrooy wants to give Man Utd fans 'joy of winning'
- Pollution level in Pakistan megacity hits new high, says official
- UK's battered Tory party elects Badenoch as new leader
- Deadly Israeli strikes on 'apocalyptic' north Gaza
- Olympic medallist Koki Ikeda vows to clear name after doping suspension
- Cavendish coy on future as Girmay wins in Japan
- Spain braces for more flood deaths, steps up aid
- Japan urges 200,000 people to evacuate due to heavy rain
- Martin closes on MotoGP world title as Bagnaia crashes out
- UK's battered Tory party to reveal new leader
- Gill, Pant fight back for India in third Test against NZ
- UN nature summit agrees on body for Indigenous representation
- Bagnaia clinches pole for Malaysian MotoGP ahead of Martin
- Tatum propels Celtics over Hornets, Lakers hold off Raptors
- War decimates harvest in famine-threatened Sudan
- US-Israeli settlers hope to see a second Trump term
- 'Nobody cares about us': US election doubts in West Bank
- O'Brien bags two Breeders' Cup wins to match Lukas record for a trainer
- Man Utd said 'it was now or never', new manager Amorim says
- Trump, Harris clash over rhetoric as they battle for swing state votes
- Judge tosses New York plastic pollution lawsuit against PepsiCo
Sabalenka maintains Zheng stranglehold in winning WTA Finals start
World number one Aryna Sabalenka commenced her WTA Finals campaign in Riyadh on Saturday with a fifth victory in as many meetings against Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen of China, racing to a 6-3, 6-4 victory.
Facing off for the fifth time in the last 14 months, Sabalenka and Zheng opened the action at the first ever professional women's tennis tournament in Saudi Arabia in front of a near capacity crowd at King Saud University Indoor Arena.
The Belarusian top seed needed just one hour and 24 minutes to defeat Zheng, dropping a mere two points behind her first serve throughout the contest.
A runner-up at the WTA Finals in Texas two years ago, Sabalenka is eyeing a maiden trophy at the prestigious season finale, which would also guarantee her the year-end number one ranking.
"It's going to mean everything for me, that's one of my dreams and I really worked hard in the past years and I really hope that one day I'll be able to hold this beautiful trophy," said 26-year-old Sabalenka on court.
"Qinwen is such a great player and we always had great battles against each other. She's playing really aggressive tennis. I'm super happy with the win, especially against such a tough opponent.
"I think I served really well today and I put her under so much pressure on her serve. So I think my serve helped me tonight."
Saudi Tennis Federation president Arij Mutabagani, tournament director and former world number Garbine Muguruza, and the highest-ranked African and Arab player in history Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, kicked off proceedings by welcoming the crowd and the tennis tour to Riyadh in a pre-match opening ceremony.
Very little separated the players in the opening set as both dominated the points behind their first serves, Sabalenka winning 18/19 and Zheng winning 13/16.
But it was the second serve where Sabalenka found an edge, and after she saved a break point in the third game, the top seed broke for a 4-2 advantage and sealed a one-set lead in 39 minutes.
With Chinese supporters representing the majority of the crowd and rallying behind their Olympic hero, Zheng was near clinical through the first eight games of the second set.
But Sabalenka upped the ante in game nine, converting her second break point opportunity to inch ahead and she closed out the win on her own serve minutes later.
In a bizarre incident, Sabalenka had to wait at the net for a short moment before Zheng realised she had actually lost the match.
Sabalenka, a three-time Grand Slam champion, has now won her last seven consecutive matches against top-10 opposition.
A.Santos--PC