The first qualifiers for the WTA Finals in Cancun have been announced: Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina. The four women will be joined by four more in the elite field comprising the 2023 season’s eight most successful players.
Aryna Sabalenka
Aryna Sabalenka qualified for the prestigious tournament for the third consecutive time. The Belarusian has enjoyed her best year ever, highlighted by her maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, the US Open final, and an ascent to the No.1 ranking. In addition, she won the WTA 1000 Mutua Madrid Open and WTA 500 Adelaide International.
Last year, at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Sabalenka finished runner-up to Caroline Garcia.
Iga Swiatek
Until recently, Iga Swiatek firmly held onto the No.1 WTA ranking for 75 consecutive weeks. In 2023, the Pole executed three title defenses (Roland Garros, Doha and Stuttgart) and triumphed in her home event in Warsaw. At the moment, she is the WTA leader in match wins this season with a 56-10 win-loss record.
Coco Gauff
For the second year in a row, Coco Gauff has qualified for the WTA Finals in both singles and doubles. The 19-year-old recently won her first Grand Slam title at the US Open, adding to three WTA singles titles she won earlier in the season (Auckland, Washington DC and Cincinnati).
In doubles, her year was marked by two titles won with Jessica Pegula (Doha and Miami) and two runner-up finishes (Madrid and Rome). Earlier in September, the American pairing became the first co-ranked WTA world No.1s since 2019.
Elena Rybakina
Last year when she won Wimbledon, Elena Rybakina didn’t manage to qualify for the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, but now she’s become the first representative of Kazakhstan to secure a spot in the singles field of the prestigious tournament (Yaroslava Shvedova qualified in doubles in 2016).
In 2023, Rybakina won Indian Wells and Rome, in addition to runner-up finishes at the Australian Open and Miami Open. In June, she reached a career-high ranking of No.3.
The 2023 WTA Finals will take place from October 29 to November 5 in the famous holiday destination of Cancun, Mexico. The draw will feature the Top 8 singles players and doubles teams on the Race to the WTA Finals. The singles champion will win the WTA Finals Billie Jean King Trophy and the doubles champions will take home the WTA Finals Martina Navratilova Trophy.
