Elena Rybakina will rise to world number two on Monday despite a heartbreaking defeat in the Indian Wells final, losing 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(6) to Aryna Sabalenka in a match that she was within a point of winning. The result represented a significant shift in the narrative between two of the sport’s most powerful players.
Rybakina had entered the final on a 12-match winning streak against top-10 opponents and looked in control for much of the contest. Her first-set victory was commanding, and breaking early in the second set appeared to put her firmly in control of the match.
Sabalenka’s resurgence from a set and a break down was extraordinary. She won four consecutive games in the second set and then maintained that intensity through a third set that went all the way to a tiebreak. Even then, Rybakina saved five break points in a crucial game and served for the match at 5-6 in the tiebreak.
Sabalenka’s backhand match-point save at that moment was exceptional, and she converted on her own first championship opportunity. For Rybakina, the defeat will sting, but she moves to world number two and has established herself as one of the true forces in women’s tennis.
On the men’s side, Sinner completed a dominant run to the Indian Wells title, defeating Medvedev 7-6(6), 7-6(4) in the final without conceding a break point. The Italian completed his set of every major hard-court title in the process.