WTA Finals Riyadh 2024 Final Preview: Can Zheng shock the world or will Gauff finish strong?

The title decider at the WTA Finals between young stars Coco Gauff and Zheng Qinwen will be played on Saturday. Both had strong performances in the semifinals, winning in straight sets, and will meet for their second professional showdown.

The Paris 2024 gold medallist took on Barbora Krejcikova in the first match and overcame the Czech's resistance to defeat her 6-3, 7-5. Gauff then followed up with a huge win over top title favourite Aryna Sabalenka, who had previously guaranteed to finish the season as world No. 1 anyway.

Zheng Qinwen entered the tournament as one of the least experienced players, as she and Paolini were the only debutants at the WTA Finals. The Chinese player, in great form during the second half of the year, continues to shine and has reached a new final after defeating Barbora Krejcikova 6-3, 7-5. Zheng had another impressive performance in her victory over Krejcikova, where her serve was particularly dominant.

Zheng did have moments of doubt around the middle of the second set when things seemed to be going her way with the score at 6-3, 3-0. However, unforced errors and a dip in her serving were well exploited by Krejcikova, who won five of the next six games and turned the match around. Nevertheless, Zheng accelerated again and closed the win in straight sets 6-3, 7-5 to advance to the final. Earlier in the Round Robin stage, she beat Paolini and Rybakina but lost her opener to Sabalenka.

A well-deserved performance from Zheng, who, although she entered as the 7th seed, cannot be considered a surprise. Her titles at the Palermo Open and Tokyo Open, alongside reaching the Australian Open and Wuhan Open finals, semifinals at the Beijing Open, and a 44-17 season record, speak for themselves—this without considering her Olympic gold medal at Paris 2024, which doesn't count for WTA Tour points.

Zheng is likely to feel more comfortable facing Coco Gauff than her "nemesis" Aryna Sabalenka, with whom she has a 0-5 record (1-10 in sets), including the Australian Open final earlier this year and the Wuhan Open a few weeks ago. The American surprised world No. 1 Sabalenka, who had an inconsistent performance, and Gauff capitalized to eliminate her 7-6(4), 6-3.

World No. 3 Gauff has already beaten Pegula, Swiatek, and Sabalenka, the three players who joined her in the 2023 semifinals and appeared to be the strongest title contenders. Gauff will be the more experienced player in the final, with slight favoritism over the 22-year-old Chinese debutant Zheng.

A well-earned performance from Gauff, who rediscovered her best tennis towards the end of the year, winning her second WTA 1000 title in Beijing a few weeks ago. With semifinals appearances at the Australian Open and French Open, along with three WTA 1000 titles, Gauff has been consistent for much of the year, but faltered at times in the final stages, which kept her down in the rankings for several months.

The American enters the final in great form. Her recent win over Sabalenka is her third over a world No. 1 in her career, and she has accumulated 12 wins in her last 14 matches. However, unforced errors, especially from her forehand, have been an issue throughout the tournament. The 20-year-old had 27 unforced errors against Sabalenka, 29 against Krejcikova, 33 against Swiatek, and 28 against Pegula—something that could cost her in the final against Zheng.

Zheng not only has one of the most powerful forehands on tour (though this wasn’t enough to beat Sabalenka), but she also possesses variety in her shots, which could complicate matters for Gauff in cross-court rallies. On the other hand, Gauff seems superior to her rival in the backhand department, which might be Zheng’s biggest area to work on.

The American must reduce her unforced errors if she hopes to overcome Zheng, a player who also feels more comfortable with long rallies when the match demands it. The world No. 7’s main goal will be to maintain a strong first serve percentage, especially against one of the most notable defenders on tour like Gauff.