World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka will try to go one step further than last year and claim the 2025 WTA Brisbane International singles title. Trying to stop her will be the revelation of this event, 21-year-old Polina Kudermetova. The young Russian has secured her Top 100 debut and will be approaching this match as a huge underdog. Can she cap off a week of upsets with the biggest one of them all?
WTA Brisbane Final Prediction
Aryna Sabalenka vs Polina Kudermetova
Head-to-head: First meeting
Aryna Sabalenka was the runner-up in Brisbane last year, losing a lop-sided final to Elena Rybakina. But the Belarusian was certainly fine with that turn of events a few weeks later when she won the Australian Open. She’s playing the event again and has been the top contender for the title all week long, proving that status by not dropping a set so far. Only Yulia Putintseva was able to force her into one tie-break; other opponents didn’t manage more than four games in a set.
The bottom half was full of surprises, though, and one of them was Polina Kudermetova. It seems like the 21-year-old is ready to make a living on the main tour now after also finishing 2024 strong (she made the quarterfinals in Seoul again and the final at the W100 ITF in Dubai). She will be ranked higher on Monday than her more accomplished sister, Veronika. Kudermetova has already won seven matches in a row coming from the qualifying draw, including impressive victories over Daria Kasatkina and Liudmila Samsonova.
But can we see past a relatively comfortable win for Sabalenka here? To stand a chance, Kudermetova will have to play as if she had nothing to lose and find even more energy in what’s been a very physical week. The top seed showed against Putintseva that she was ready to face adversity and got herself out of trouble in excellent fashion. It just seems like whatever you throw the way of the World No. 1 at the moment, she’s going to find an answer.
Prediction: Sabalenka in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey – USA TODAY Sports
