The World Number 1 going into 2027 will not be involved at the WTA Finals after a late withdrawal, but Elena Rybakina can be very happy with her 2026 season.
Her rivals will be looking for a big week in Indian Wells to lay down the marker for the upcoming season with the Australian Open set to begin in a little over two months time.
The opening Group has begun the round robin on Sunday, but the other section gets underway on Monday with two more matches to be played.
Aryna Sabalenka - 2.5 game v Karolina Muchova: The World Number 1 spot in 2026 has already been given to Elena Rybakina, but Aryna Sabalenka will be the highest Seed entering the WTA Finals.
She will need a solid tournament to finish as the World Number 2 and win the biggest title of the season having come up disappointingly short at Grand Slam level over the last eleven months.
Aryna Sabalenka has shown little form in the build up to this tournament in Indian Wells, but won the WTA 1000 event played here earlier this season. Four top 16 wins were produced in that winning run and Sabalenka is opening up this Group Stage with a match against an opponent who is making her debut in the WTA Finals after a strong season.
Karolina Muchova did pick up an injury at Wimbledon, which impacted her over the last three months, but she did reach a career best World Number 6 spot after that run in SW19. A Quarter Final run in Beijing was followed by a relatively early loss in Wuhan, but Muchova may struggle to have an impact on the Sabalenka game if the latter is playing anywhere near her best.
Earlier this season, Aryna Sabalenka beat Karolina Muchova on the hard courts in the build up to the Australian Open and the enjoyment of playing in surroundings where she has thrived before should help the Belarusian come through with a solid opening win.
Mirra Andreeva - 2.5 games v Elina Svitolina: Off court issues and a statement that partly blamed the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war for the break up of her marriage can only fuel the motivation for Elina Svitolina that much more at the WTA Finals.
She is facing two players that she will not shake hands with and Svitolina has always produced her best against those with Russian backgrounds.
That includes beating Mirra Andreeva in straight sets at the Australian Open earlier this year, but the younger player has moved up to World Number 3 since then and won the French Open, her first Slam, since the pair last met.
Mirra Andreeva should also take plenty of confidence from having beaten Elina Svitolina at Indian Wells in 2025 and the court tends to be a slower hard court, although overall conditions keeps the speed pretty high.
She did lose early in Indian Wells back in March, but Mirra Andreeva reached the Final in Beijing in the lead up to her first appearance at the WTA Finals.
You have to respect the fact that Elina Svitolina was a Quarter Finalist in Indian Wells and reached that round in a couple of tournaments played in the Asian swing as the season wound down over the last month.
However, that may not be enough to get the better of Mirra Andreeva in this opening Group match, although the youngster has to beat a top 10 Ranked opponent on the surface for the first time in 2026.
MY PICKS: Aryna Sabalenka - 2.5 Games @ 1.72 William Hill (1 Unit)
Mirra Andreeva - 2.5 Games @ 1.72 William Hill (1 Unit)
Season 2026: 261-217, + 15.51 Units (715 Units Staked, + 2.17% Yield)
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