The eight best-performing tennis gamers of the 2024 season have secured their locations within the prestigious WTA Finals in Riyadh. Let’s dive into this elite group, exploring their latest performances and monitor data on the season’s final showdown.
1. Aryna Sabalenka
The second participant to qualify for the WTA Finals, Aryna Sabalenka is having fun with her comeback to the No. 1 WTA rating this week. Her stellar 2024 season contains two Grand Slam titles (Australian Open and US Open) and two WTA 1000 trophies (Cincinnati and Wuhan). This might be Sabalenka’s fourth consecutive look on the Finals, together with her greatest outcome to this point being a runner-up end in 2022.
2. Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek was the primary to safe her place within the elite eight-woman subject, marking her fourth consecutive qualification for the WTA Finals. The Polish star is the defending champion, having claimed the title final 12 months with a commanding victory over Jessica Pegula within the remaining held in Cancun, Mexico. Swiatek’s journey on the Finals started in 2021, the place she was eradicated within the group stage. She improved her efficiency in 2022, reaching the semifinals earlier than falling to Aryna Sabalenka.
The 23-year-old has gained 5 titles in 2024—Doha, Indian Wells, Madrid, Rome, and Roland Garros—all at WTA 1000 and Grand Slam ranges.
3. Coco Gauff
Twenty-year-old Coco Gauff would be the youngest participant on this 12 months’s WTA Finals draw, marking her third consecutive qualification. In 2022, the younger American struggled within the group stage, shedding all three matches, however confirmed vital progress final 12 months by reaching the semifinals. Gauff’s 2024 season has been sturdy, with two titles underneath her belt (Auckland and Beijing) and semifinal runs on the Australian Open and Roland Garros.
4. Jasmine Paolini
Jasmine Paolini will make her WTA Finals debut after an distinctive 2024 season that catapulted her rating from No. 30 to No. 6 rating. Paolini’s breakthrough got here with a WTA 1000 title in Dubai, nevertheless it was within the Grand Slams the place she actually shined. Previous to this 12 months, she had by no means made it previous the second spherical of a serious, however in 2024, she reached the finals of each Roland Garros and Wimbledon. On high of changing into the primary Italian singles qualifier since Flavia Pennetta in 2015, Paolini has additionally certified in doubles!
5. Elena Rybakina
Elena Rybakina made historical past final 12 months as Kazakhstan’s first singles qualifier. She continued to shine in 2024, reaching 5 finals and claiming three WTA 500 titles (Brisbane, Abu Dhabi, and Stuttgart), whereas additionally competing in two WTA 1000 finals (Doha and Miami).
Regardless of these successes, it’s been a tough season for Rybakina, who has just lately discovered herself embroiled in a turbulent saga involving her now-former coach, Stefano Vukov. The 25-year-old’s three titles this season all got here within the first 4 months of the 12 months. After a semifinal run at Wimbledon, the place she was the 2022 champion, Rybakina has solely performed three matches, profitable only one.
6. Jessica Pegula
Jessica Pegula might be making her third consecutive look on the WTA Finals following a stellar 2024 season. Her achievements embody profitable the WTA 500 ecotrans Girls Open in Berlin, defending her WTA 1000 title in Toronto, and reaching her first Grand Slam remaining on the US Open. Pegula’s greatest outcome on the WTA Finals got here in 2023, the place she completed because the runner-up to Swiatek.
7. Zheng Qinwen
Zheng Qinwen’s 2024 season was undeniably highlighted by her gold medal on the Paris Olympics. Whereas that achievement didn’t straight influence her WTA standings, the Chinese language participant excelled on the Hologic WTA Tour, incomes her first qualification for the season-ending championships.
Zheng began the 12 months sturdy by reaching the Australian Open finals and later defended her title on the 35° Palermo Girls Open. She continued to construct momentum through the Asian swing, reaching the semifinals on the China Open and securing her third remaining of the season on the Wuhan Open.
8. Barbora Krejcikova
World No. 13 Barbora Krejcikova certified for the WTA Finals underneath a newly invoked rule that permits gamers to qualify primarily based on profitable a serious title and ending within the High 20. This 12 months, she captured her second Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon. Krejcikova made her WTA Finals debut in 2021, the place she confronted a troublesome problem, shedding all three of her round-robin matches.
The 2024 WTA Finals, set for November 2-9, will happen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, marking the match’s first look within the metropolis. Along with the season’s high eight singles gamers, the celebrated occasion will showcase the main doubles groups, together with Jelena Ostapenko & Lyudmyla Kichenok, Hsieh Su-Wei & Elise Mertens, Sara Errani & Jasmine Paolini, Gabriela Dabrowski & Erin Routliffe, Katerina Siniakova & Taylor Townsend, Caroline Dolehide & Desirae Krawczyk, Chan Hao-Ching & Veronika Kudermetova, and Nicole Melichar-Martinez & Ellen Perez.
