(No. 1) Aryna Sabalenka def. (No. 3) Elena Rybakina 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (6)

After falling short in the 2023 and 2025 finals, Aryna Sabalenka finally captured the Indian Wells title on Sunday, saving a championship point to defeat Elena Rybakina 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (6) in the final at the BNP Paribas Open. The win marked Sabalenka’s first title in the California desert, her 23rd career WTA title, and her 10th WTA 1000 trophy. It was also her second title of the 2026 season following her win in Brisbane in January.

The World No. 1 avenged her loss to Rybakina in the 2023 Indian Wells final and snapped a four-match losing streak against Rybakina in championship matches, which included losses at the 2025 WTA Finals in Riyadh and the 2026 Australian Open. Sabalenka sealed the win with a serve that Rybakina sent long, capping a two-and-a-half-hour battle played in temperatures that climbed into the 90s.

Sabalenka’s path to the title was anything but straightforward. She rallied from a set and a break down, worked through early frustration, and withstood Rybakina’s shot-making in a dramatic third set. Serving for the match at 5-4, Sabalenka was broken, allowing Rybakina to claw back to 5-5. Rybakina then saved five break points to move ahead 6-5, but Sabalenka held firm to force a tiebreak in what became one of the best Indian Wells finals in years and the first since 2012 to feature two top-three players.

The deciding tiebreak delivered the drama the match deserved. Rybakina earned a championship point at 6-5 on her serve, only for Sabalenka to erase it with a cross-court backhand winner, one of her 29 winners on the day. Sabalenka then won the final two points to secure the title. The win improved her head-to-head record against Rybakina to 9-7 in their 16th career meeting.