The fifth
day of the
WTA Finals begins with the clash that will decide the second
semifinalist of the Purple Group, as Italy's
Jasmine Paolini (No. 4) faces
22-year-old Chinese player
Zheng Qinwen (No. 7). The winner will advance in
second place behind
Aryna Sabalenka.
World No. 1
Aryna Sabalenka is preparing for a new showdown against
Elena Rybakina, who is
already out of the competition. Sabalenka recently secured her position as the
year-end No. 1 and will seek another dominant performance against the
eliminated Kazakh player.
Paolini faces
Zheng in decisive battle for semifinals
Paolini and
Zheng will kick off the evening in search of the second spot in the
tournament’s semifinals. Both players were defeated by Aryna Sabalenka in
straight sets, eliminating them from leading the group, while they each secured
a win over Elena Rybakina, who returned after more than two months off and has
appeared out of rhythm so far.
The Italian
delivered a solid performance against Sabalenka in her last match, challenging
the world No. 1 at times, though it wasn’t enough to take a set. Paolini may be
at a disadvantage on the indoor hard court, as her game relies on building up
points, and she struggles to win free points or secure aces on serve.
Nevertheless, her service variations have yielded positive results thus far.
Against
Zheng Qinwen, Paolini will once again face one of the best servers on the Tour,
with Zheng winning over 70% of her service games throughout the season and
ranking second in aces on the Tour, trailing only Sabalenka. Zheng was
decisively outplayed by the Belarusian in her opener and encountered challenges
against Rybakina, largely due to a low first-serve percentage in both matches.
Zheng Qinwen at Wuhan Open few weeks ago.
Currently,
Zheng leads the head-to-head series 3-0, with all matches played in 2023,
including a recent encounter in the Wuhan Open semifinals (6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in
favor of the 21-year-old Chinese player). ‘Queen Wen’ is slightly favored,
considering her consistency over recent months and her stronger adaptation to
the court type. However, Paolini has the skills to defeat Zheng, setting up an
exciting showdown to determine the tournament's third semifinalist, who will
join Coco Gauff and Sabalenka.
Sabalenka aims
to solidify year-end No. 1 against out-of-form Rybakina
World No. 1
Aryna Sabalenka remains in impressive form, and her match against Rybakina
offers a great chance to secure her year-end No. 1 status. The three-time Grand
Slam champion has already secured comfortable wins against Zheng Qinwen and
Jasmine Paolini, maintaining an unstoppable run in the tournament. She faces
her 'easiest' matchup so far in the Finals, given that Rybakina has had the
least playing time among the eight participants.
Any doubts
regarding Sabalenka’s favoritism before the tournament have been dispelled in
Riyadh, as she’s shown that she’s still the most in-form player as the season
wraps up. Sabalenka leads the head-to-head against Rybakina 6-3, including a
three-set win in the WTA Finals 2023 Round Robin stage. However, Rybakina’s
current state is vastly different from last year.
Elena Rybakina at 2023 Indian Wells final.
Rybakina
qualified on the strength of an excellent first half of the year, despite
injuries and physical challenges throughout the season. Her last event was the
US Open, and she returned after more than two months away from competition. In
her defeats against Zheng and Paolini, she had moments of good tennis but
remains out of rhythm.
Sabalenka
is more favored than ever against Rybakina, but the Kazakh player, now with
nothing to lose, could play more freely, especially after facing two
high-caliber opponents. Nonetheless, a Rybakina victory would not threaten
Sabalenka’s top-ranking lead.