"When I read that I was officially out for the WTA Finals in Cancun, it hurt a little. I wanted to try to defend my title. My goal is to come back next year." Caroline Garcia, still expected at WTA Elite Trophy (via @tennismajorsfr)
"It hurt a little": Caroline Garcia on missing chance to defend her WTA Finals title in Cancun
WTAFriday, 20 October 2023 at 12:21
Caroline Garcia has shared her thoughts after she missed out on a chance to defend her WTA Finals title in Cancun, Mexico.
The World No. 10 had a successful season in 2022, winning the Cincinnati Open and making it to the semi-finals of the US Open to book her spot among the season's Top 8 players at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas.
Once there, she defeated Coco Gauff, Daria Kasatkina, and Maria Sakkari to set up a clash with Aryna Sabalenka in the final. The French player downed the current World No. 1 in straight sets to claim the title.
Difficult season leads to disappointment for Garcia
However, 2023 was a much more difficult year for the 30-year-old. Her time on the North American swing was full of early exits, crashing out of the DC Open and Canadian Open in the first round before doing the same in Cincinnati, for which she lost a lot of ranking points as the defending champion.
However, a place in the WTA Finals moved out of reach after her opening-round defeat to Yafan Wang at the US Open. Although Garcia was able to make up some ground with a run to the semi-finals at the WTA 1000 Guadalajara Open in September, it was not enough to bring her back into contention.
The former World No. 4 recently shared her thoughts regarding this missed opportunity, saying that although it was painful, she still hoped to return next year.
"When I read that I was officially out for the WTA Finals in Cancun, it hurt a little. I wanted to try to defend my title. My goal is to come back next year," she said.
Garcia also admitted that her situation this year was "logical" given her results.
"I've known for several weeks that I wasn't going to qualify for the Finals this year. Compared to the latest results, we will say that it is logical. Even though I had it in the back of my mind, I knew that I had to obtain extraordinary results and that by coming out in the first round of the US Open, it was going to be very complicated," she explained.
Garcia is still expected to compete at the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai, China. The tournament brings together the Top 12 players who did not qualify for the WTA Finals.
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