Aryna Sabalenka overtook Iga Swiatek in the race to Riyadh with her victory at the Wuhan Open 2024. It marked her third consecutive title at the venue, her second WTA 1000 title of the season, and her fourth title of the year.
Sabalenka now has 9,091 points, while Swiatek has 8,285 points. The two were among the first to qualify for the WTA Finals in Riyadh. The latter skipped the Asian swing in light of her split with her coach Tomasz Wiktorowski and hasn’t announced his replacement yet. This will be the fourth straight appearance for the duo at the year-end championships.
While it isn’t official yet, the next five spots are also mathematically decided. Coco Gauff punched her ticket to the WTA Finals for the third year in a row after a strong showing during the Asian swing. She won the China Open and was a semifinalist at the Wuhan Open. She’s now third in the race to Riyadh with 5,358 points.
Jasmine Paolini’s quarterfinal finish in Wuhan moved her up a spot to No. 4, and she has 5,145 points to her name. She’s in this position thanks to her win in Dubai, and two runner-up finishes at the Majors. She will now make her debut at the WTA Finals in singles, as well as doubles.
Even though Elena Rybakina missed a lot of tournaments this season, she has still qualified for the WTA Finals. It is a testament to her consistency when healthy, and she is fifth in the race to Riyadh with 4981 points. Jessica Pegula is in sixth place with 4,706 points.
Barbora Krejcikova is currently 12th in the race with 2,706 points. However, she’s guaranteed a place in the WTA Finals due to her Wimbledon victory, as long as she finishes in the top 20. She’s unlikely to drop below that mark and is set to return to the year-end championships for the second time.
Zheng Qinwen has the edge over Emma Navarro for the final spot in the race to Riyadh
Zheng’s runner-up finish in Wuhan helped her overtake Navarro in the race to Riyadh for the WTA Finals. The former has 4,111 points compared to the latter’s 3,568 points. Both are in action at this week’s Ningbo Open.
Zheng could seal the deal with a title and lock the field for the WTA Finals. However, a potential second-round date with Karolina Muchova could bring an end to her campaign, and give Navarro a ray of hope. The American will need to win the title, and then make a deep run in Tokyo next week as well to stand a chance.
Daria Kasatkina and Paula Badosa are also in contention but have a lot of ground to make up. The former has 2,878 points, while the latter has 2,714 points. Both of them will need to win titles in Ningbo and Tokyo and hope that Navarro loses early as well to make the cut for the WTA Finals.
To view the current race to Riyadh update, click here.
