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Aryna Sabalenka failed to cap off her historic season with a title, but a runner-up finish was enough to set a women’s tennis earnings record.
On Saturday, Elena Rybakina defeated Sabalenka at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to take home $5.23 million, the largest payout in the history of professional tennis, men’s or women’s. Sabalenka took home nearly $2.7 million for finishing second, bringing her 2025 total to $15 million, the largest single-season earnings total in WTA history. The record was previously held by Serena Williams, who made $12.4 million in 2013.
Sabalenka’s largest payday of her career came this year: $5 million for winning the US Open. She also took home more than $1 million five other times this year: wins in Miami and Madrid, runner-up finishes at the French and Australian Opens, and a semifinal appearance at Wimbledon.
The 27-year-old also jumped up to No. 2 in the career earnings ladder. Sabalenka is up to $45.2 million for her career, more than world No. 2 Iga Świątek ($43.6 million), who was eliminated in the group stage of the WTA Finals, and tennis legend Venus Williams ($42.9 million).
She has a long hill to climb before passing No. 1 Serena Williams, who finished her career with $94.8 million, more than twice as much as Sabalenka today.
Before Saturday’s final, Sabalenka said she doesn’t “focus on the money.”
“I never, never thought about that. But it’s, of course, it’s a good check to have,” Sabalenka said.
While the WTA season is over for Sabalenka, she is still expected to play at least one more marquee match before the end of the calendar year. Sabalenka will face Nick Kygrios in the Battle of the Sexes: Dubai Showdown on Dec. 28.
It’s unclear how much she will receive for playing the match, but it will not be counted in her career earnings because it is considered an exhibition. Stuart Duguid, the agent for both Sabalenka and Kygrios, told Front Office Sports that they are “not discussing the economics” of the match.
Djokovic Withdraws From ATP Final
The men’s tennis season finale started Sunday with one notable omission: Novak Djokovic. The 38-year-old pulled out of the ATP Finals, which has a maximum prize of $5.1 million, the largest in men’s tennis, for the second year in a row soon after he defeated Lorenzo Musetti to win the Hellenic Championship in Athens on Sunday.
Djokovic, who leads all tennis players with $191.2 million in career earnings, had already qualified for the tournament, but his withdrawal allowed the world No. 9 Musetti to qualify for his first ATP Finals.
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