Players, tickets, prize money, Guadalajara: 10 questions about the 2021 WTA Finals
All you need to know about the 2021 WTA Finals, the traditional finale to the women’s tennis season, which will be played in Guadalajara
November 8, 2021, GUADALAJARA, MEXICO: Anett Kontaveit of Estonia, Garbine Muguruza of Spain, Maria Sakkari of Greece, Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic, Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic, Iga Swiatek of Poland & Paula Badosa of Spain pose for the iconic photo ahead of the draw ceremony of the 2021 Akron WTA Finals Guadalajara WTA tennis tournament (Credit Image: © Rob Prange/AFP7 via ZUMA Press Wire) || 212198_0019 2021 finals Guadalajara MEXICO PRESS sport tennis WTA zagency zlast24 zselect ZSPORT ZTENNIS Zuma ZUMAPRESS.com zwire
What are the WTA Finals?
The WTA Finals are the year-end finale to the women’s tennis season.
Where are the WTA Finals held?
Usually they are held in Shenzhen, China, hence their official name the Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen. However, due to the ongoing problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic, in 2021 the WTA Finals will be held in Guadalajara, Mexico.
When will the WTA Finals be held?
The WTA Finals will be held between November 10 and November 17. Details of the tournament schedule are available on this link on the official website, with the order of play available here.
Can I get tickets for the WTA Finals?
Details on how to purchase tickets for the event are available on the official website of the tournament at this link.
Who will be playing?
The WTA Finals are contested by the top eight singles players and doubles teams.
Here are the players who will compete for the 2021 WTA Finals trophy:
- Aryna Sabalenka
- Barbora Krejcikova
- Karolina Pliskova
- Maria Sakkari
- Iga Swiatek
- Garbine Muguruza
- Paula Badosa
- Anett Kontaveit
The groups for the round-robin stage are as follows:
Group Chichen Itza: Sabalenka, Sakkari, Swiatek, Badosa
Group Teutihuacan: Krejcikova, Pliskova, Muguruza, Kontaveit
Ons Jabeur, who missed out on the final berth to Kontaveit in a nail-biting race, was planning to travel to Guadalajara as the alternate, but has now decided to end her season.
World No 1 Barty, who has earned the most points in 2021, also qualified for the event but has decided not to defend her title with the aim of recovering for the 2022 season. The Aussie has said she will return to competition during the Australian summer in January.
Her coach Craig Tyzzer had earlier said he was unimpressed by the potential conditions at Guadalajara.
“We only just found out it’s in Mexico at 1500 metres (above sea level) and they’re using pressure-less balls,” he told the Australian Associated Press. “Pressure-less balls absolutely fly. It’s a ball that, if you use it in normal conditions, it doesn’t bounce. It’s not the greatest advertisement for the best girls in the world to be playing something they’ve never done before, in conditions they’ve never played, in a country they don’t play and at altitude – I just feel it’s ridiculous. As a spectacle, it’s just frightening.”
The list of qualified pairs for the doubles finals:
- Barbora Krejcikova / Katerina Siniakova
- Shuko Aoyama / Ena Shibahara
- Nicole Melichar-Martinez/ Demi Schuurs
- Elise Mertens/ Hsieh Su-Wei
- Samantha Stosur/ Zhang Shuai
- Desirae Krawczyk/ Alexa Guarachi
- Andreja Klepac/ Darija Jurak
- Sharon Fichman/ Giuliana Olmos
What surface are the WTA Finals played on?
The WTA Finals are played on indoor hard courts.
Who are the defending champions?
Ash Barty is the defending singles champion, having won the title in 2019 by beating Elina Svitolina in the final 6-4, 6-3; Kristina Mladenovic and Timea Babos are the doubles champions, having beaten Hsieh Su-wei and Barbora Strycova in the final 6-1, 6-3.
What prize money is on offer?
There is a financial commitment of $14,000,000 at the WTA Finals.
What ranking points are on offer?
An undefeated champion can receive 1,500 ranking points. Here the breakdown of the ranking points awarded during the tournament:
- 125 points for each match played during the round robin
- 125 points for each match won during the round robin
- +330 points in case of qualification for the final
- +420 points in case of title
Who are the previous champions?
Some of the biggest names in women’s tennis have won the WTA Finals. Here is a list of the singles champions together with the year in which they won:
- Chris Evert (1972, 1973, 1977)
- Evonne Goolagong Cawley (1974)
- Martina Navratilova (1978, 1979, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986)
- Tracy Austin (1980)
- Sylvia Hanika (1982)
- Steffi Graf (1987, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1996)
- Gabriela Sabatini (1988, 1994)
- Monica Seles (1990, 1991, 1992)
- Jana Novotna (1997)
- Martina Hingis (1998, 2000)
- Lindsay Davenport (1999)
- Serena Williams (2001, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014)
- Kim Clijsters (2002, 2003, 2010)
- Maria Sharapova (2004)
- Amelie Mauresmo (2005)
- Justine Henin (2006, 2007)
- Venus Williams (2008)
- Petra Kvitova (2011)
- Agnieszka Radwanska (2015)
- Dominika Cibulkova (2016)
- Caroline Wozniacki (2017)
- Elina Svitolina (2018)
- Ash Barty (2019)
Below is a list of the doubles champions along with the year in which they won:
- 1972 – no doubles played
- Rosemary Casals/ Margaret Court (1973)
- Rosemary Casals/ Billie Jean King (1974)
- Margaret Court/ Virginia Wade (1975)
- Billie Jean King/ Betty Stove (1976)
- Martina Navratilova/ Betty Stove (1977)
- Billie Jean King/ Martina Navratilova (1978)
- Françoise Durr/ Betty Stove (1979)
- Billie Jean King / Martina Navratilova (1980)
- Martina Navratilova/ Pam Shriver (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985)
- Hana Mandlikova/ Wendy Turnbull (1986 – March)
- Martina Navratilova/ Pam Shriver (1986 – November, 1987, 1988, 1989)
- Kathy Jordan/ Elizabeth Smylie (1990)
- Martina Navratilova/ Pam Shriver (1991)
- Arantxa Sanchez Vicario/ Helena Sukova (1992)
- Gigi Fernandez/ Natalia Zvereva (1993, 1994)
- Jana Novtona/ Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (1995)
- Lindsay Davenport/ Mary Joe Fernandez (1996)
- Lindsay Davenport/ Jana Novotna (1997)
- Lindsay Davenport/ Natasha Zvereva (1998)
- Martina Hingis/ Anna Kournikova (1999, 2000)
- Lisa Raymond/ Rennae Stubbs (2001)
- Elena Dementieva/ Janette Husarova (2002)
- Virginia Ruano Pascual/ Paola Suarez (2003)
- Nadia Petrova/ Meghann Shaughnessy (2004)
- Lisa Raymond/ Samantha Stosur (2005, 2006)
- Cara Black/ Liezel Huber (2007, 2008)
- Nuria Llagostera Vives/ Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez (2009)
- Gisela Dulko/ Flavia Pennetta (2010)
- Liezel Huber/ Lisa Raymond (2011)
- Maria Kirilenko/ Nadia Petrova (2012)
- Hsieh Su-wei/ Peng Shuai (2013)
- Cara Black/ Sania Mirza (2014)
- Martina Hingis/ Sania Mirza (2015)
- Ekaterina Makarova/ Elena Vesnina (2016)
- Timea Babos/ Andrea Hlavackova (2017)
- Timea Babos/ Kristina Mladenovic (2018, 2019)
- 2020 – not held due to COVID-19 pandemic
