WTA Finals 2024 draw: Iga Swiatek & Coco Gauff in same group, Aryna Sabalenka with Elena Rybakina

Ewan West 30 Oct 2024 9:35 AM

Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina

The draw for the group stage of the 2024 WTA Finals has been made, with Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina all in action.

The season-ending championships, which will be staged in Saudi Arabia’s capital city Riyadh for the first time, will get underway on Saturday November 2.

Sabalenka, who has held the WTA world No 1 position since last week, has been drawn with No 4 seed Jasmine Paolini, No 5 seed Rybakina, and No 7 seed Zheng Qinwen in the Purple Group.

Swiatek, who is seeded second, has been joined by No 3 seed Gauff, No 6 seed Jessica Pegula and No 8 seed Barbora Krejcikova in the Orange Group.

Gauff and Sabalenka won the WTA 1000 events this month in Beijing and Wuhan respectively, while Swiatek and Rybakina have not played since the US Open.

Play in the Purple Group will begin on Saturday, with Sabalenka facing Zheng and Paolini taking on Rybakina.

On Sunday, Swiatek will play Krejcikova, while Gauff will meet Pegula, in the opening Orange Group matches.

WTA News

WTA Finals Power Rankings: Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff top 3

WTA Rankings: Aryna Sabalenka stretches lead over Iga Swiatek, Jasmine Paolini up to No 4, Sofia Kenin +67

Sabalenka, Swiatek, Gauff, Rybakina and Pegula all featured at last year’s WTA Finals in Cancun, Krejcikova played at the 2021 edition, while Paolini and Zheng are making their debuts at the event.

Swiatek is the defending champion, having steamrolled Pegula 6-1, 6-0 in the 2023 final to claim her maiden WTA Finals crown. The Polish star is the only player in the draw who has won the WTA Finals.

The top two players from each group will advance to the knockout stage, with the group winners facing the player who finished second in the other group in the semi-finals.

The year-end world No 1 ranking will be decided at the WTA Finals, with Sabalenka and Swiatek both in contention.

Sabalenka is a strong favourite to finish the season in top spot as she holds a 1,046-point lead over Swiatek.

The Belarusian also entered last year’s WTA Finals on top of the rankings, but Swiatek leapfrogged her after her unbeaten run to the title. Swiatek defeated Sabalenka in the semi-finals last year, and the duo could face off again in either the last four or the final this time.