Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The current Wimbledon champion, Linda Noskova, defeated Marta Kostyuk this Sunday 6-2, 6-4 in the opening match of the WTA Finals in Indian Wells, United States.

First modification: 11/08/2026 - 23:23

Noskova, a 21-year-old Czech, only needed 86 minutes to win the Group 1 match against the Ukrainian Kostyuk. Americans Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula will complete the day later.

World number one and current champion Elena Rybakina withdrew on Saturday due to a viral illness. Kostyuk, world number ten, replaced her in this end-of-season competition on the hard court in California.

Noskova, ranked eighth in the world, improved her record to 3-1 against Kostyuk, an opponent she faced for the first time this year. Both debuted in the WTA Finals, which brings together the eight best tennis players of the campaign.

The Czech won in three sets in the fourth round of the US Open, in their last meeting in September, and in the semifinals of Wimbledon, while Kostyuk won on her way to the WTA 1000 clay court title in Madrid.

Gauff, champion of the 2023 US Open and the 2025 French Open, and Pegula, fifth in the WTA rankings, have instead shared their ten head-to-head matches.

The first, current world number four, won her last duels: in the final of the WTA 1000 in Cincinnati and in the quarterfinals of last Wimbledon.

This year's WTA Finals were scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia, but were moved to Indian Wells in July following the US military attacks on Iran in February and the subsequent war in the region.

© 2026 AFP

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