Sabalenka recorded her tour-leading 31st victory this season on the Madrid clay, adding the WTA 1000 trophy to titles in Brisbane and Miami.
Reigning Madrid Open champion Iga Swiatek suffered a crushing semi-final defeat by Coco Gauff on Thursday, with the American triumphing 6-1, 6-1.
World number one Jannik Sinner, who is about to return to action after a three-month doping ban, thought about walking away from tennis even while successfully defending his Australian Open title, but is coming back with a new mentality.
Record 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic will not take part in the Italian Open in Rome from May 7-18, tournament organisers announced Tuesday.
The fourth-seeded Djokovic suffered a second consecutive opening defeat, after losing his opener against Alejandro Tabilo in Monte Carlo two weeks ago.
Djokovic, who is eyeing his 100th tour-level title before the French Open starts on May 25, said no player would ever be bigger than tennis.
World number three Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from the Madrid Open on Thursday with a thigh injury, in a blow for his French Open title defence preparations.
Iga Swiatek admits the strict doping protocols can be stressful for players but feels like she has "been through the worst" after surviving her positive test over contaminated melatonin.
The top-seeded Zverev, appearing in his first final since losing to Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open title decider in January, had little trouble dealing with Shelton, ranked 15 in the world.
Carlos Alcaraz battled into the semi-finals of the Barcelona Open on Friday with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Alex de Minaur after Casper Ruud's title defence was ended by Holger Rune.
Sinner accepted a three-month ban in February following an agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency, which challenged an independent tribunal's decision to clear him of wrongdoing after two positive tests for the anabolic agent clostebol.
World number two Carlos Alcaraz came back from a break down in the second set to defeat Ethan Quinn 6-2, 7-6 (8/6) and reach the Barcelona Open last 16 on Tuesday.
World number two Carlos Alcaraz took aim at his critics on Monday after winning the Monte Carlo Masters at the weekend.
Carlos Alcaraz won his first Monte Carlo Masters title on Sunday with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory over the Italian Lorenzo Musetti.
Carlos Alcaraz booked his place in the final of the Monte Carlo Masters for the first time with a dominant 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 win over fellow Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina on Saturday.
The fifth-ranked Djokovic struggled to find his rhythm in a 6-3, 6-4 loss to Chilean Alejandro Tabilo in the second round, making an inauspicious start to his clay season.
Jannik Sinner will return to the ATP Tour from his doping ban at next month's Rome Masters as world number one after the Italian's closest challenger Alexander Zverev crashed to an early defeat in Monte Carlo on Tuesday.
Carlos Alcaraz said Sunday that the pressure to reclaim the world number one ranking from the suspended Jannik Sinner has had a negative impact on his form this season.
