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Aryna Sabalenka beat Karolina Muchova 7-6 (7-2) 7-5 in the opening Group Two match at the WTA Finals on Monday, despite a shaky serve. Sabalenka, the world number two, produced seven double faults to four aces and won 33 of 44 points behind her first serve, but she recovered from a break down in both sets to win. Muchova, the Wimbledon runner-up, was the only player at the event with a winning head-to-head record against Sabalenka, and she had served for the first set before errors cost her the tie-break. In the same group, Mirra Andreeva beat Elina Svitolina 6-4 6-0 later on Monday, and Coco Gauff beat Jessica Pegula 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 in a three-set match at Indian Wells. Gauff, the 2024 champion, said she was proud of the win despite having no preparation, and she will next face Linda Noskova. Rybakina, the world number one, withdrew before the event because of illness, which left Sabalenka arguably the favourite, according to BBC Sport.