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Wednesday, November 13, 2024

¦wiatek's rivals in the background. An absolute curiosity at the WTA Finals Tennis draw

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There was chaos in Cancun, there is a curiosity in Riyadh – this is how you can briefly compare memories from last year's edition of the WTA Finals in Mexico with the first impressions from this year's edition in Saudi Arabia. These impressions concern various aspects, and the overall assessment of the tournament starting on Saturday must wait, but for one reason this first impression is not the best. Iga Świątek coped brilliantly with the powerful wind and rain from last year. Now the weather shouldn't be an obstacle, but it's unclear what to expect from the Pole herself.

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Świątek returns to the competition almost exactly two months after the last match – on September 4, she lost quite easily to Jessica Pegula (2:6, 4:6) in the quarterfinals of the US Open, and on October 3, she will start playing in the WTA Finals. In the meantime, a lot was happening in the life of the 23-year-old player – separation from coach Tomasz Wiktorowski, resignation from subsequent tournaments, employment of Wim Fissette and loss of the position of leader of the world ranking. How did all this affect her tennis? We will find out in the coming days.

The eight best players of the year meet in the season-ending Masters event, and although there are no complete outsiders, the situation of individual tennis players in the fall can be very different. Hence, before the groups are drawn, analyzes are traditionally carried out regarding the potentially best or worst-case scenario. How did Świątek come across? In short – it could have been better, but also worse.

On the one hand, she will have the opportunity to take revenge on Pegula for the previously mentioned defeat in New York, but for some time this has been a rather uncomfortable rival for her. Previously, the Pole was the American's nightmare – in the amazing 2022 she had a 4-0 record against her, but those times are gone. Since the beginning of last year, they have faced each other five times and the sixth-ranked racket in the world has prevailed three times. What can a 30-year-old from the US afford now? It's hard to say for sure, because after reaching the final of the US Open she lowered her hopes a bit – since then she has made two appearances and has not even reached the quarterfinals in either of them. Świątek's fans will keep their fingers crossed that the WTA Finals will remain the domain of their favorite player – in last year's final she defeated Pegula, giving her just a game.

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Gauff's revival, question mark over Krejcikova

Coco Gauff, the second American in the Orange Group, has obviously dealt with the problems she had in the summer. The 20-year-old, who was placed just behind Świątek in this ranking, after a disappointing performance at the US Open, in which she defended her title (she was eliminated in the 1/8 finals), also made an important change – she broke up with coach Brad Gilbert after just over a year. The beginning of cooperation with the duo of Jean Christophe Faurel – Matt Daly was very impressive – she won the “thousander” in Beijing, and then was eliminated in the semi-finals in an event of the same rank in Wuhan. In the last match, she lost to Aryna Sabalenko, who has been in great shape since August, after a three-set fight.

Barbora Krejcikova is also undoubtedly an uncomfortable rival for Świątek. The Czech won their last two meetings. But the question is whether the winner of this year's Wimbledon will be able to play the entire match in Riyadh. In mid-October she retired due to an injury in the quarterfinals in Ningbo, and in her last three appearances she won only two matches in total.

While Krejcikova, who is currently having her problems, seems to be a much better option than the Chinese Qinwen Zheng, who has been doing very well for most of this season, it seems that, at least in the case of the Gauff – Jasmine Paolini pair, it would be easier to choose the latter. The Italian with Polish roots has had the best season of her career, but recently she has been clearly feeling the effects of it. Especially since he also competes successfully in doubles and will also perform in Riyadh.

A much bigger mystery than Pegula's current form is Jelena Rybakina's disposition. The representative of Kazakhstan – just like Świątek – has been suspended since the US Open, which she lost in the second round, losing sensationally to Jessica Ponchet, 143rd in the WTA ranking. Before the New York event, she broke up with her long-time coach, Stefano Vukov. Back then, there was a lot of talk about their complicated relationships, which were said to have an impact on the player's mental state. Additionally, she had been suffering from various health problems for a long time, which was not conducive to the stability of the game.

Regardless of her rivals, what is now crucial for Świątek's fans and herself is her own game. It can be assumed that initially she will mainly lack match rhythm. Two months off during the season takes its toll. The question is also whether it will implement any changes proposed by Fissette, who is very experienced in working on tour.

Another failure at the WTA Finals. Media silence from the hosts

We still have to wait to assess the sports level of the WTA Finals, which debuts this year in Saudi Arabia. For now, the hosts are not receiving positive opinions due to the media coverage of the event. There was no traditional gala before the start of the season-ending tournament, but this can be explained by cultural issues. It is difficult to find an explanation for the fact that on Tuesday morning many people were asking what time the group draw would take place.

A few days ago, the organizers answered one of the Internet users' question about the date of the draw on a specially created account on the X portal, but subsequent numerous questions about the time remained unanswered. There was no broadcast of the ceremony itself. In fact, two hours after the drawing, there was still no information about the ceremony posted on that account. Journalists and fans from all over the world were left to frantically check the online activity of Saudi media representatives present on site.

A year ago, just before the start of the WTA Finals, there were videos circulating online from the construction site, which was the area where the tennis players were to compete in Cancun almost until the very end. The assembly of the stands was completed at the last minute, but the problems did not end there, because the main factor was the sometimes crazy weather. Matches were sometimes interrupted due to strong wind and rain. Players also sometimes complained about the quality of the court. Now the situation should not repeat itself – playing conditions should be much better. However, the behind-the-scenes and interesting facts about this prestigious event may be a problem if the hosts maintain their approach to covering it. And if this is the case, the WTA will once again lose the opportunity to properly promote its top product.



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