Gauff edges Pegula in three sets as Nosková wins WTA Finals debut

The 2026 WTA Finals opened on Sunday with two contrasting matches in Group 1. Coco Gauff was taken the distance by her compatriot Jessica Pegula, before winning 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-2. Earlier in the day, Linda Nosková made a confident debut at the season finale, beating late replacement Marta Kostyuk 6-2, 6-4.

The event is being staged at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in California rather than Riyadh. It was moved from Saudi Arabia because of safety concerns linked to instability in the Middle East, which ended the three-year hosting agreement early.

Gauff holds her nerve in an all-American opener

Gauff, who won the title in 2024, came into the tournament after almost a month away from competition. She needed four set points to take the opening set from the baseline.

Pegula raised her level in the second set and forced a tie-break, which she won 7-5 to send the match into a decider. Gauff then took control of the third set, broke serve, and closed out the match on her third match point when Pegula hit a ball beyond the baseline. That makes three straight wins for Gauff against Pegula.

"Honestly, I was having a lot of fun today. I took a little break, it was my first match in a month," Gauff said afterwards, according to reports. The match was physical enough that she joked about her footwear: "My shoes are pretty torn up now. Some of my shoes are like somewhere on the court there."

Nosková too sharp for Kostyuk

Nosková, the Czech eighth seed, was playing her first match at the WTA Finals. The first set opened with an exchange of breaks, but she soon pulled away with heavy hitting from the baseline and regular trips to the net. Kostyuk struggled to hold serve under that pressure.

Nosková hit 20 winners and finished the match with an unreturnable forehand into the back corner. It was her third win over the Ukrainian this year.

"I definitely wanted to give this week one last push of the season," Nosková said. "It's a long year, we all are kind of drained and injured and all the things together, but it's one of the most important tournaments of the year."

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Kostyuk was only added to the field late. She replaced world No. 1 and defending champion Elena Rybakina, who pulled out with illness on the eve of the tournament. Despite the loss, Kostyuk still has two more round-robin matches to fight for a semi-final place.

Group 2 takes the stage on Monday

Group 1 therefore has Gauff and Nosková on one win each, with Pegula and Kostyuk both needing a result in their next match. In the round-robin format, the top two players from each group of four reach the semi-finals.

Group 2 begins on Monday from noon local time (21:00 CET). Second seed Aryna Sabalenka opens against Karolína Muchová, and Mirra Andreeva then meets Elina Svitolina. The semi-finals are scheduled for Saturday, 14 November, and the title will be decided on Sunday, 15 November.