After a quarterfinal at the Zhengzhou Open, she defended her title at the Premier 5 Wuhan Open. During the event, she defeated No. 8 Kiki Bertens in the third round and No. 1 Ashleigh Barty in the semifinals, her first victory over a current world No. 1 player.[56] She won the final over Alison Riske.[57] At the end of the season, Sabalenka qualified for the WTA Elite Trophy for the second consecutive year.