WTA Finals Winners & Losers: Coco Gauff & Zheng Qinwen star, Iga Swiatek exits early

Oli Dickson Jefford 09 Nov 2024 8:08 PM

Coco Gauff and Zheng Qinwen meet at the net.

The WTA Finals ended in spectacular fashion on Saturday, with Coco Gauff battling past Zheng Qinwen in a final for the ages.

Gauff’s 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(2) victory over Qinwen will surely be remembered as one of the best matches of 2024, and brings an entertaining year-end championships to a close.

With the dust beginning to settle, we look at the winners and losers from action in Riyadh.

Big Winners

Coco Gauff: Gauff battled her way to the title, downing Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka before forcing her way past Qinwen in the final. One of the biggest moments of her career so far, and a sublime way to finish a season that she should reflect on with positivity.

Zheng Qinwen: Defeat in the final will be painful, but Qinwen can take huge encouragement from how she competed on her WTA Finals debut. She looked at home in Riyadh and seems set to be an established force towards the top of the WTA Tour.

Barbora Krejcikova: Many questioned whether Krejcikova should have been allowed to play, but strong performances in all four singles matches – won two, lost two – proved the new WTA rule is a fair one. She finishes the season as the world No 10; watch out for her if she stays fit in 2025.

WTA Tour News

Zheng Qinwen’s coach sends ‘60% potential’ warning after 2024 surge

Ons Jabeur sends ‘motivated’ warning as she targets ‘amazing’ 2025

Big Losers

Iga Swiatek: Two wins from three is not a bad return for Swiatek, but she becomes the first woman since Caroline Wozniacki in 2018 to exit the group stage in her title defence. A disappointing loss to Gauff ultimately cost her.

Jessica Pegula: Pegula was far from her best in two heavy defeats and then had to pull out of the event due to a knee issue. She will hope to rediscover her summer form at the start of next season.

Jasmine Paolini: Paolini’s campaign started brightly with victory over Elena Rybakina, but she missed a couple of openings against Sabalenka and was then beaten heavily by Qinwen. The Italian seemed to run out of gas after a busy season in singles and doubles.

Winner…and loser?

Aryna Sabalenka: Sabalenka made it to the semi-final and also sealed a deserved finish as the year-end No 1, but it’s hard not to feel she missed her chance of a maiden WTA Finals title after a dominant three months.

Elena Rybakina: Rybakina failed to make it out of her group for the second straight year, but an encouraging win over Sabalenka in her final match bodes well for an exciting 2025 under new coach Goran Ivanisevic.