Aryna Sabalenka maintained her unbeaten record at the Wuhan Open with her third title to close in on Iga Swiatek at the top of the rankings.

Sabalenka had lifted the trophy on both her previous visits in 2018 and 2019 and was unbeatable again following the tournament’s return to the schedule this year.

The Belarusian defeated home favourite Zheng Qinwen 6-3 5-7 6-3 in the final and is now only 69 points behind Swiatek in the rankings, setting up an enticing battle at the WTA Finals next month.

Zheng had failed to win a set in three previous meetings with Sabalenka, including in the final of the Australian Open this year, but this was a much tighter encounter.

The Chinese fifth seed fought back very strongly after going a set and a break down to lead 5-3 in the second, failed to serve it out but then broke Sabalenka for the third time to level the match.

It was Sabalenka on top at the start of the decider, though, and, despite Zheng’s attempts to come back, the top seed clinched victory on her third match point.

“This place definitely feels like home,” said Sabalenka. “I’ll do my best to keep holding this beautiful trophy in this beautiful place.”

What’s coming up on Sky Sports Tennis in October?

• Almaty Open, Kazakhstan – ATP 250 (October 14-20)
• Stockholm Open, Sweden – ATP 250 (October 14-20)
• European Open, Antwerp – ATP 250 (October 14-20)
• Japan Open, Osaka – WTA 250 (October 14-20)
• Ningbo Open, China – WTA 500 (October 14-20)
• Erste Bank Open, Vienna – ATP 500 (October 21-27)
• Swiss Indoors, Basel – ATP 500 (October 21-27)
• Guangzhou Open, China – WTA 250 (October 21-27)
• Toray Pan Pacific Open Tennis, Tokyo – WTA 500 (October 21-27)

Sky Sports+ has officially launched and will be integrated into Sky TV, streaming service NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.