WTA Race to Riyadh Update: Iga Swiatek clinches WTA Finals berth six months ahead

Iga Swiatek's French Open title guaranteed her spot in the year-end WTA Finals, six months before the competition. The Polish player's season has been impeccable, winning four out of the six WTA 1000 tournaments this year and adding a new Grand Slam to her achievements.

Meanwhile, Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina are far behind her. The Belarusian is almost 3,000 points away from Swiatek, who is unattainable throughout the Grass swing, making it unlikely for anyone to catch up to the Polish star in the coming months.

Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina struggle to keep up with prolific Swiatek

Swiatek can boast of WTA 1000 titles at the Doha Open, Indian Wells, Madrid Open, and Rome Open, in addition to Roland Garros. She currently has 7,335 ranking points, exceeding the projected qualification threshold of 7,170 points, which guarantees her presence in Riyadh as the defending champion in the Finals.

Far behind is Sabalenka with 4,358 points. The world No. 2 was surprised by the teenager Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinals, allowing Swiatek to double her lead in the Race before the French Open. A similar situation applies to Elena Rybakina, who fell in the quarterfinals to Jasmine Paolini and remains with 4,013 points.

In fourth place is the recent semifinalist Coco Gauff with 3,163 points. As in the Rome Open a few weeks ago, she faced an unstoppable Swiatek in the semifinals, leaving her on the brink of her third Grand Slam final. Nevertheless, she added significant points, keeping her in fourth place with 3,163 points.

Coco Gauff at Roland Garros semifinal, she lost 2-6, 4-6 against Swiatek.

Very close is the surprising Jasmine Paolini, one of the season's revelations. With her Roland Garros final, she reached 3,010 points and sits in 5th place in the Race. The Italian won her first WTA 1000 title at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships a couple of months ago and, at 28 years old, seems ready to secure a regular spot among the top players.

Close behind is Danielle Collins with 2,927 points. Her second-round defeat to Olga Danilovic was one of the major upsets of the early rounds, but her previous months with titles at the Miami Open and Charleston Open support her sixth place.

Completing a hypothetical draw for the Finals is Australian Open finalist Zheng Qinwen with 2,200 points, despite her third-round exit at Roland Garros. A little behind the former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko (1,959 points) would be the last classified at the moment. However, players like Marta Kostyuk (1,766), Emma Navarro (1,628) and Daria Kasatkina (1,613) remain close behind and having good campaigns in the Grass swing could take them into the qualification zone for Riyadh.

WTA Race to Riyadh as of 10/06/2024

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