While that loss ended Swiatek’s 75-week reign at No 1, ushering Arnya Sabalenka to the top of the rankings for the first time, it was also something of a blessing in disguise for the Pole, allaying the pressure and expectation surrounding her after the glories of last year, when she won at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows and compiled a 37-match winning streak. For the first time in 17 months, the 22-year-old was not the WTA player with the biggest target on her back. 

With the shackles cast off, Swiatek returned to the practice court with renewed zeal, sharpening her game technically and tactically. When she subsequently won in Beijing, the four-time grand slam champion spoke of her relief at once again being able to play with freedom, unencumbered by the baggage that goes with being No 1. Swiatek could once more look to the future with optimism.

On Monday night in Cancún, that future arrived. With a thumping 6-1, 6-0 victory over Jessica Pegula, Swiatek claimed a maiden WTA Finals crown and returned to the top of the rankings, clinching year-end No 1 for the second year in a row. It was the most one-sided final in the 51-year history of the season-ending showpiece and also the most dominant title run, the Pole conceding just 20 games across her five matches, which included a season-defining win over Sabalenka in the last four.

“It’s weird, because sometimes things in life come when you don’t expect them, and actually this is that kind of situation,” said Swiatek, whose tour-leading sixth title of the season – and 17th in all – means she will begin next year on an 11-match winning streak. 

“After the US Open, I was able to reset and think about what actually makes me a better player. I stopped thinking about rankings and points, and I started to feel a little bit more free on court. 

“So for sure, these past tournaments showed me that this is the right way to go, and I guess rankings and points come after that. I’m just really proud of myself that I can finish the year as world No 1.”

As Swiatek’s excellence drained the contest of suspense, Pegula endured the toughest of nights. Given the New Yorker’s form, and her victories over Swiatek this year at the United Cup and the Canadian Open, where she went on to win the second WTA 1000 title of her career, the match was widely expected to be a tight affair; instead, it was a rout more in line with her 6-3, 6-0 defeat to Swiatek in February’s Qatar Open final.

“I think it was a great week, looking at all [of it],” said Pegula, who ends the season ranked fifth, two spots below her career best. “There’s a lot more positives than negatives. Really, the only negative was today. But I’d much rather lose in the final against the No 1 player than go out early, like I did last year [when she lost all six of her matches in singles and doubles]. So to me it’s still an improvement, and I’m just trying to look at the positives of the entire year.”

She will not want for choice in that regard. The 29-year-old American has played some wonderful tennis this season, not least in Cancún, where her calm disposition, flawless technique and tactical nous have come into their own. Making light of the squally conditions and unpredictable playing surface, she advanced to the biggest final of her career without dropping a set, claiming a notable win over Sabalenka along the way as well as defeating Elena Rybakina, Maria Sakkari and, in the semi-finals, her close friend and doubles partner Coco Gauff.

In Swiatek, though, Pegula faced an opponent likewise at the top of her game and, on the day, superior in every department. A performance reminiscent of her victory over Lidumila Samsonova in the China Open final saw Swiatek struck a perfect balance between aggression and consistency, giving nothing away while dominating the baseline exchanges with her heavy, whipped forehand and extraordinary movement.

Time and again Pegula found herself scurrying furiously but fruitlessly into the corners, her misery compounded by the Pole’s immaculate serving and forceful returns. The New Yorker’s dismal evening was summed up midway through the second set, when she bounced her racket in frustration only for it to rebound up off the court and hit her in the face, knocking off her visor.

As Swiatek won 82% of her first serve points and made just seven unforced errors, Pegula’s best hope seemed to lie in the distant prospect of the Pole being weighed down by thoughts of reclaiming No 1. But the court and the conditions have kept all the players on their toes this past week, and although the final was played in brilliant sunshine, Swiatek’s focus remained unwavering.

“I would say [thoughts of the No 1 ranking] played a lot [on my mind] in the US Open and tournaments before,” admitted Swiatek. “But I learned my lesson, and this time I didn’t want it to have an impact on me. 

“It’s hard not to think about stuff like that, but when I went on court, I knew I had to focus on different things. The conditions here, which were kind of tricky, helped me to focus just on my footwork, my shots, and that kept me busy from thinking about all of that. 

“Today was like the highlight of this mentality, just being narrow with your head, only thinking about the right stuff.” 

The sobering reality for Swiatek’s rivals is that, for all her brilliance last season, she won one more match in 2023 than she did last year. Once again on top of the world, she remains the woman to beat. 

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So when a chest-beating, arm-waving Swiatek capered joyfully across Cancún’s Estadio Paradisus, her elation mirrored in the stands by the bearlike Wiktorowski, who brandished a tightly-clenched fist as he rose to his feet, teeth bared, the magnitude of Swiatek’s bold and brilliant victory over Aryna Sabalenka at the WTA Finals was lost on no one.

On a night when the ghastly weather conditions finally subsided, affording the best two players in the world free rein to showcase their talents, Swiatek produced a season-defining performance just when the need was greatest. With a 6-3, 6-2 win over the Belarusian, Swiatek not only moved into the final of the season-ending showpiece for the first time, but also struck a telling blow in her tussle with Sabalenka for the year-end No 1 ranking. 

Victory for Swiatek in Monday’s final against Jessica Pegula would see the 22-year-old reclaim top spot, just 56 days after Sabalenka ascended to the crown, ending the Pole’s 75-week reign at No 1. While Swiatek has won five of her eight meetings with Pegula, she has fallen to the American twice this season, at January’s United Cup and again three months ago in Montreal. Neither woman has dropped a set in Cancún, and Swiatek is taking nothing for granted as she attempts to end the season on the top of the pile for a second successive year. 

“I feel like it’s still a long way, because [Monday]’s match should be the toughest one,” said Swiatek, who has dropped just 19 games en route to the final, matching the tournament record set by Justine Henin in 2007.

“It’s not going to be easy against Jessie, she really showed she can play in any conditions, so it’s still a long way. 

“For now I’m just really focused on continuing what I have been doing for the past days. I managed to do that tonight, even though this match was with a lot of hype, so I’m pretty sure tomorrow’s going to be similar for me in terms of my mentality.”

The sense of expectation surrounding Swiatek’s showdown with Sabalenka was further magnified when heavy rain forced a suspension of play after just three games on Saturday. Even in the wet conditions, those initial exchanges offered a tantalising glimpse of the drama to come, Sabalenka fashioning an early break point only to clobber a return long. In a match of fine margins, it felt like a costly error even at that stage. Play was stopped with Swiatek leading 2-1 and Sabalenka precariously poised at 30-30 on serve. 

Given the score, a fast start promised to be crucial for both women on the resumption, and it was the Pole who got it. A Sabalenka miss brought up a break point that Swiatek converted beautifully with a nailed backhand pass, and although the Belarusian carved out an opportunity to level in the next game, she squandered the chance with a netted forehand.

Helped along by the stadium DJ, who inadvertently interrupted proceedings, Swiatek went on to consolidate her advantage. Marija Cicak, the formidable Croatian chair umpire, directed a withering look up towards the soundsmith after Maniac, Michael Sembello’s Flashdance hit, twice blared out over the sound system. The delay forced Cicak to give Swiatek another crack at a first serve on game point, and the Pole gleefully sent down an unreturnable delivery. Sabalenka could only shake her head in dismay. 

“Starting the match at 30-30 on my serve, that’s not easy,” said Sabalenka, whose contempt for the temporary playing surface has been a recurrent motif in Cancún. “She had her opportunity and she used it. After those two points, she just started putting so much pressure on me and I was just trying to come back. 

“It’s tough, sometimes you feel on this court it’s a lottery. One wrong bounce on an important point and you’re done. That’s why I give really huge credit to Iga, because she really adjusted really well. She was definitely better than me.”

That much was undeniable. Swiatek’s intensity, both physical and mental, was off the charts. Her scampering footwork enabled her to absorb Sabalenka’s pace and redirect the ball seemingly at will, while the quality of her shot-making placed intolerable pressure on the top seed. As she ran the Belarusian from side to side, keeping Sabalenka off balance so that she never had a stable platform from which to bring her heavy artillery to bear, Swiatek’s focus was unrelenting. She berated herself furiously for even the most minor of lapses, and finished the match with just nine unforced errors to Sabalenka’s 18.

No less decisive was Swiatek’s willingness to step inside the baseline and take on her returns, an approach that limited Sabalenka to just 25% of her second serve points.

“I’m really proud of myself, because it wasn’t easy mentally or physically,” said Swiatek. “Playing against Aryna is always tough, so I’m happy that I was really focused and I didn’t have any point during the match where I [was] making mistakes.

“I didn’t give any points for free, so I’m just happy that I was really solid and focused on myself. I really showed my game.”

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On another windswept, rain-lashed night in Cancún, the 29-year-old American stormed into the biggest final of her career, a 6-2, 6-1 demolition of Coco Gauff, her close friend and doubles partner, maintaining her flawless record at what is, by common consent, the most challenging edition of the season finale since its inception more than half a century ago.

The sternest of challenges awaits the winner of the second semi-final between Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek, which was held overnight with the Pole leading 2-1 after the latest tropical deluge took hold. While all around her have struggled to contend with the atrocious weather conditions and unpredictable temporary playing surface during a chaotic week in the Caribbean, Pegula has been a model of serenity and composure. 

Yet to be taken to a decider in four outings, and still unbeaten in the 51 matches in which she has won the opening set this season, the imperturbable American stands within touching distance of a notable milestone. A straight-sets victory in the final, which has now been pushed back to Monday, would see Pegula join Serena Williams as only the second woman in history to claim the title without conceding a set. The mere fact that she has a chance to match that milestone is a measure of how spectacularly she has turned things around since last year’s catastrophic showing in Texas.

“I did a good of resetting before I came here,” said Pegula in the aftermath of her 59-minute win. “I think I improved that a lot compared to last year, where it was a new experience for me, and I wasn’t sure what I was doing or how I was playing. I’m glad I’m turning the tables this year. 

“It’s tough being 0 and 6 and then coming here, and being like, ‘Well, I could go 0 and 6 again.’ I mean, it was a possibility. It’s there, in the back of your mind, and it takes a lot of mental strength to battle through that.”

Together with her clean, powerful ball-striking and formidable consistency, Pegula’s ability to adapt to circumstance, both tactically and mentally, has long been a signature characteristic. That quality has been firmly in evidence in Cancún, and against Gauff she once again made light of the challenging conditions, serving with precision and authority, drilling her returns from inside the baseline, and volleying with aplomb.

“I’m still undefeated in Mexico, which is crazy to think of,” said Pegula, who won the first of her two WTA 1000 titles in Guadalajara last year. “I’m not really sure why. I like the conditions, I think it reminds me of where I’m from in the south of Florida. I’m close to Miami, so it’s very similar – it’s humid, it’s hot, it’s windy, it’s rainy sometimes, especially this time of year. 

“So maybe it just feels very familiar to me and that’s why I like it. I think the courts suit my game, too. They’re not too fast, but they’re a little slick, a little faster, which I like too. I love tacos, margueritas, so maybe that helps.”

For Gauff, it was the most sobering of nights. The 19-year-old has worked so hard to shore up her occasionally wayward forehand and improve the reliability of her second serve, yet there are few sterner tests of technique and temperament than the kind of blustery, wet conditions that have descended on Cancún this week. Even so, it would be foolhardy to attach any long-term significance to her difficulties. Less than two months after her sensational US Open triumph, Gauff’s trajectory remains unrelentingly upward.

“I think she was playing well with the wind and I wasn’t,” said Gauff. “She was timing the ball well and getting that extra ball back in the court, and I think I made a lot of errors. But overall, I’m really happy – not with today necessarily, but with the whole season.”

Come what may in Monday’s final, Pegula will leave Mexico with a similar sense of satisfaction. Despite drawing a blank in the six grand slam quarter-finals she has contested since 2021, the late-blooming New Yorker continues to improve, and there is a clear sense that she has turned a corner this week. There is surely more to come.

“It’s probably my biggest final ever,” said Pegula after winning her seventh match in a row against top-10 opposition, a run that includes victories over Swiatek and, for the first time in three years, Sabalenka.

“I know I haven’t made it deeper in the grand slams, for a semis or finals, but to get through here in such a tough field is going to give me a lot of confidence for next year. 

“I think I’ve been able to handle all the opponents that I’ve faced really well, even in the conditions and stuff like that, so it should give me a lot of confidence. It’s my biggest win.”

The post Pegula storms past Gauff to make WTA Finals decider appeared first on Love Game Tennis.

Twelve months ago at the WTA’s season-ending showpiece, Aryna Sabalenka ended a four-match losing streak against Iga Swiatek to reach what was, at the time, the biggest final of her career. Now the pair will once again meet in the last four – this time with the year-end No 1 ranking on the line. 

A win for Sabalenka, who defeated Elena Rybakina 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 to advance from Bacalar Group in second spot, would reaffirm the Belarusian’s place at the top of the pile. Should Swiatek prevail, however, victory in the final would secure not only a first WTA Finals crown but also a return to No 1 ranking she held for 75 weeks, until Sabalenka overtook her at the US Open. 

The showdown has arrived a round earlier than anticipated but, after a week when the WTA has fought fires on multiple fronts, the governing body of the women’s game could hardly have hoped for more. Widely scorned for staging the jewel in its crown in a Caribbean beach resort at the height of the hurricane season, the organisation has also been forced to weather accusations of disrespect and indifference from its leading players. Now it is time for the tennis to do the talking, as the top two go head to head for the right to face either Coco Gauff, a 5-7, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 winner over Marketa Vondrousova, or Jessica Pegula, who rounded off a perfect run in Chetumal Group with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Maria Sakkari.

Sabalenka and Swiatek both vowed to approach the match in similar vein, making allowances for the conditions while focusing on themselves rather than letting the magnitude of the occasion dictate their approach. They were also united in the belief that last year’s meeting in Fort Worth, where Sabalenka triumphed in three sets on a slow indoor court, would have no bearing on the latest instalment of a rivalry that Swiatek leads by five wins to three.

“It’s completely two different tournaments, two different conditions,” said Sabalenka, who was beaten by Caroline Garcia in last year’s final. 

“This year, I have to focus on myself and not let all these thoughts, all these challenges, go to my mind and destroy me. So I’ll just focus on myself and do everything I can to keep winning.

“Of course, [year-end No 1] is important, and of course that’s something I really want. But I’m just trying to focus on myself, and I know that if I’m able to fight for every point and do everything I can to make it happen, I know that I’m able to do it. The rest, I just leave it and we’ll see at the end of this week where I am.” 

The pair have faced each other twice this season, both times on clay, with Swiatek winning in Stuttgart before Sabalenka exacted revenge in Madrid. They were also seeded to meet in the final of the US Open, where Sabalenka was beaten in the title round by Coco Gauff after Swiatek, the defending champion, was upset by Jelena Ostapenko in the last 16. The Belarusian said at the time she would rather have played her arch-rival to decide the top ranking; now, she will belatedly get her wish.

“As I said at the US Open, I didn’t want her to lose that match, I really wanted to play against her to decide who is the No 1 in the world,” said Sabalenka, speaking before Swiatek’s 6-1, 6-2 victory over Ons Jabeur. 

“[Now] I have the opportunity to make that happen, it’s a possibility that we’re going to play for the No 1 spot. I would love to play against Iga, that would be a really incredible match. I hope that the stadium will be full and they will keep screaming ‘Sabalenka!’”

There has certainly been no shortage of support for the 25-year-old in Cancún, where the locals appear to have fallen under the spell of her withering power and heart-on-sleeve expressiveness. Yet a sizeable Polish presence in the stands has ensured that Swiatek, too, has been buoyed by the fans in what few difficult moments she has faced. The Pole was in steely mood against Jabeur, just as she has throughout a tournament where she has yet to drop a set.

“Against Aryna it’s never easy,” said Swiatek, who claimed love sets against Gauff and Marketa Vondrousova in her two previous matches. “I’m just going to do my best and focus on myself and what I want to do on court. We usually have these matches that are really exciting and really tough, both mentally and physically. 

“I’m just going to be ready and see how the wind is going to look and what’s going to happen on court. For sure, I can take the feeling that I can deal with any conditions and really play well no matter what, and that I’m able also to focus on the right things and do the right things.”

Those qualities were firmly in evidence against Jabeur, where Estadio Paradisus resembled a circus at times. The first of three early rain delays came at the end of the warm-up, a brief but heavy downpour resulting in a frenzied round of court-drying as the stadium reverberated to the strains of YMCA. As Jabeur looked on in amusement at the ball girls, who briefly downed their towels to perform the iconic dance to the Village People track, Swiatek retained a steely focus. The crowd had barely performed a Mexican wave before Swiatek speared a forehand winner to stave off a break point and then broken to love with some aggressive returning. She would not look back.

Sabalenka, trailing the second set 5-3 overnight, was obliged to take a more circuitous route to victory against Rybakina. As the fourth-seeded Kazakh drilled a forehand winner to complete a quick hold on the resumption, the stats made grim reading for Sabalenka, who won just 40% of her first serve points in the second set, making 13 unforced errors. 

The decider began with a blizzard of big winners and big misses from Sabalenka, who battled for more than 15 minutes, saving two break points, before finally sealing what proved to be a crucial hold. Rybakina had been the better player up to that point but, having steadied the ship, Sabalenka earned a break in the fourth game behind a barrage of heavy groundstrokes. Rybakina quickly broke back, but a flurry of mistakes in her next service game proved terminal for the former Wimbledon champion, whose week ended as it began, with dark mutterings about the conditions.

“For me, it’s difficult to comment,” said Rybakina, who has declined all non-mandatory interviews in Cancún. “The quality of the matches has not been the greatest. You can see it even by the score – tough match, but you could see that in the rallies we were both making mistakes. I’m not really happy with the week of tennis, I would say – here, it’s difficult to show anything.”

The reality of that last statement may yet determine the outcome between Sabalenka and Swiatek. The pair have gone about their business in contrasting fashion this week, the Belarusian relying on her sledgehammer shot-making to hit through the wind, while Swiatek has combined her trademark aggression with a keen awareness of the damage that can be done with her heavy topspin and rapidly improving net game. 

For all the determination of both women to focus on themselves, their ability to handle the elements is likely to have a significant influence on the final result. As Sabalenka put it, “Sometimes in these conditions, it’s not about you.” 

It remains to be seen whether Sabalenka’s bludgeoning force and ferocious determination to retain the position she has worked so hard to attain will give her the edge over Swiatek’s greater margin and more consistent form.

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As her rivals lambasted the governing body of the women’s game over the 11th-hour scheduling of the showpiece event on a hastily-constructed court in a Caribbean beach resort at the height of the hurricane season, Swiatek merely ventured that the uneven playing surface was “not a positive” and the wider situation “not comfortable”.

But that stance changed following the Polish world No 2’s 6-0, 7-5 victory over Coco Gauff on Wednesday, as Swiatek took aim at the organisation over next season’s restructured calendar.

A revamped programme, announced during Wimbledon, will see more WTA 1000 events become mandatory in 2024, with a 10th tournament in the tour’s top-tier category pencilled in for October. Seven WTA 1000 tournaments will be extended to take place over two weeks, mirroring this year’s expansion of the ATP 1000 events in Madrid, Rome and Shanghai. Factor in the four grand slams and the addition of four new WTA 500 events, and it is a lot of tennis; too much, according to Swiatek.

“We are participating in a season that is very taxing, and the next one will be even more intense,” the 22-year-old told Polish media. “We feel like we’re beating our heads against the wall. Everything has already been decided without consulting us, and now we are looking for a solution how we can reach a compromise. 

“It would be nice if the WTA shared its plans with us before making decisions. It’s supposed to be an organisation of women’s players, but we have nothing to say. It took us some time to gather into one group and take joint action.”

“We’re really united to have an impact and to do something,” Swiatek added during the English phase of her press conference. “We are not happy with some things, and we want to change the schedule for next year. 

“We’re going to have [many] more mandatory tournaments and it’s going to have a huge negative impact on our health and wellbeing. I’m 22, and I played two of the most intense seasons in my life. I already feel like it’s going to be tough for me to continue for so many years ahead if the WTA is going to go that way, to increase the amount of mandatory tournaments. 

“Most of the tournaments are going to be 1000 tournaments, and are going to be two weeks in future years, which is also going to affect our time at home and time in between the tournaments. I feel like everything is just based on wanting to have more and more, but not really taking care of our wellbeing and health. 

“Most of us, even the young ones, the older ones, we all know that this is not good that we’re going to have more mandatory tournaments, and so we want to really have an impact, because when it happens, it’s going to stay forever and it’s going to get worse. So hopefully we’re going to be able to push.”

Swiatek’s intervention came just when it seemed a tough week for the beleaguered WTA couldn’t get any worse. Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, has questioned the safety of a playing surface that was only completed the day before the finals began, limiting practice time, and has accused the organisation of “another level of disrespect”. Marketa Vondrousova, meanwhile, the Wimbledon champion, has claimed the governing body is “absolutely not interested in how we feel”.

Sabalenka, Vondrousova and Elena Rybakina, the world No 4, were among 20 signatories to a three-page letter submitted to the WTA last month that highlighted concerns about issues including pay and scheduling. There was also a demand for formal recognition of the Professional Tennis Players’ Association, the organisation co-founded by Novak Djokovic to “promote, protect and represent the interests of its players”, of which many of the complainants are members.

In a written response, Steve Simon, the WTA chief executive, assured the players this week that they had “been heard” and said the decision to stage the finals in Cancún was “based upon a number of complicated factors”.

Simon offered assurances that there would be further “discussion and consideration” at board level around the number of mandatory events, minimum income guarantees and scheduling. He also promised to address a number of priorities identified by the players, including greater consistency in the type of balls used during the different phases of the season and “improved marketing and social media efforts”.

“It is clear that you are not happy with the decision to be here in Cancún,” wrote Simon. “It is not a perfect event, we understand the conditions are a challenge, and the WTA will of course accept responsibility for that.”

Aside from the questionable playing surface and a swirling wind that has rendered conditions almost unplayable at times, the tournament has also been blighted by swathes of empty seats, the inevitable consequence of a lead-up period of barely seven weeks. While that was largely due to deliberations about whether to stage the event in Saudi Arabia, where the finals are likely to be staged next season, the sight of the world’s best female players competing in a sparsely populated arena has once again raised questions about the marketing of the women’s tour. 

“It’s a pretty weird situation, where we have meetings with the WTA and we kind of explain to them what should be done,” said Swiatek. “For sure, there’s potential to work on that. Obviously, they decided late that we’re going to play here and, for sure, the marketing should be better. 

“It’s a shame that we don’t have a full stadium and we can’t really feel like we’re on a tennis celebration for the whole week. But it is what it is, and hopefully for the future there’s not going to be any more situations like that, and they’re going to work to improve that. 

“We’re doing our best in every tournament, and in grand slams we have full stands basically from even, sometimes, second rounds. Here, it’s different than sometimes in the WTA tournaments, so there’s room for improvement, for sure.”

For its part, the WTA is not blind to the problem. While next year’s schedule changes may be unpopular, they were conceived with the aim of regularly showcasing the best players at the best tournaments, maximising commercial growth and paving the way for increased prize money. The organisation has also formed a $150m (£118m) partnership with CVC Capital Partners, a global private equity firm, with improved commercial rights and prize money high on the agenda.

None of that will be of any immediate solace to WTA executives in Cancún, however, where play was barely underway before the organisation was forced to release a statement defending the quality of the rapidly erected Estadio Paradisus. 

“We’re pleased to host the WTA Finals in Cancún for the first time and worked hard to construct a stadium,” read the statement. “The team has worked diligently on an expedited timeline amid weather challenges to ensure the stadium and court meet our strict performance standards.”

Whether those standards are consistent with those of the players the organisation represents is likely to remain the subject of fierce debate.

The post ‘Beating our heads against the wall’: Swiatek takes aim at WTA appeared first on Love Game Tennis.

The 29-year-old Tunisian said after her 6-4, 6-3 win that she also has plans to set up a foundation to “help people in different situations”. 

“I haven’t been very happy lately to be honest,” said Jabeur in her post-match interview. “The situation in the world doesn’t make me happy.

“It’s very tough seeing children, babies, dying every day. It’s heart-breaking. So I have decided to donate part of my prize money to help the Palestinians. I cannot be happy with just this win.”

Addressing the crowd, she continued: “I’m sorry guys, it’s supposed to be about tennis, but it’s very frustrating looking at videos every day. I’m sorry, it’s not a political message here, just humanity. I want peace in this world and that’s it.”

Jabeur later posted a video of the emotional aftermath of the match on Instagram, writing that she hoped to make the win – which brought a measure of payback for this summer’s agonising defeat to Vondrousova in the Wimbledon final – “count beyond a tennis court”. 

After suffering a decisive defeat to Coco Gauff in her opening match in Chetumal Group, Jabeur will face Iga Swiatek on Friday with her hopes of advancing to the semi-finals still intact. Victory would take her earnings for the tournament to roughly half a million dollars and potentially open a path to the final, where the winner will received an additional $1.4m. Any donation could therefore be sizeable, but prize money and points standings were far from Jabeur’s thoughts as she reflected on the situation in the Middle East.

“A tennis match doesn’t mean anything in front of what’s happening right now,” the sixth seed said in press. “I try to stay off social media as much as I can, but it’s very tough. You go through video, photos, videos – there are horrible, horrible photos every day. It doesn’t help me sleep or recover very well.

“The worst thing is, I feel hopeless, I feel like I cannot do anything. I wish I could have a magic hand and just end all this and [create] peace for everybody. It is frustrating. Maybe donating some money would help a little bit with what they’ve been going through, but I know money doesn’t mean anything right now to them. I wish freedom for everybody, and peace for everyone.”

Jabeur expressed support for Palestine on social media last month, condemning violence on both sides but insisting she could not support “people having their lands taken”. Her words drew a sharp response from the Israel Tennis Federation, which accused her in a Facebook post of supporting “a murderous terrorist organisation”. Israeli officials subsequently filed a formal complaint to the WTA.

“What Palestinians have been going through during the last 75 years is indescribable,” Jabeur wrote on Instagram. “What innocent civilians are going through is indescribable; no matter what their religion is, or what their origin is. 

“Violence will never bring peace; I cannot stand with violence, but I also cannot stand with people having their lands taken.”

Jabeur will have her work cut out against Swiatek, who exuded physical and mental intensity as she assumed control of the group with a 6-0, 7-5 against Gauff. Despite the blustery conditions, the Polish world No 2 began at full throttle, storming through a one-sided first set before Gauff claimed a break early in the second. With the American finding her range, Swiatek continued to press, hitting through the wind and making some impressive forays to the net. 

Gauff survived an attritional 12-minute service game to hold for 4-2, and although some stout defensive play hauled Swiatek level in the eighth game, Gauff subsequently broke for a second time with a precise forehand pass. A decider looked inevitable, but four straight double faults from the US Open champion handed Swiatek a reprieve and, with Gauff’s frustration evident, the Pole surged for the line.

“I would say this match wasn’t consistent, in terms of the level,” said Swiatek, who later hit out at the WTA over changes to next season’s tournament schedule. “So for sure, adjusting to everything that happened was the most important thing. It took me a while, because I was a break down in the second set. I’m happy that I could problem solve.

“The key was being confident and mentally not focusing on the score, but really just sticking with the plan that worked in the first set.”

Jabeur will need to come up with a plan of her own if she is to find a way past Swiatek and claim a place in the semi-finals. Yet the Tunisian, who was frequently at war with herself against Vondrousova as she struggled to come to terms with the conditions, is also looking beyond the immediate.

“It’s part of my plan to not be just an athlete but also a good ambassador, a good human being,” said Jabeur. “After all, the tennis career will stop [one day] and all I want to do is help people in different situations. I will be creating my own foundation very soon.”

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At the turn of the year, when Pegula demolished Iga Swiatek at the United Cup to claim the biggest win of her career, it felt like a seminal moment for the New Yorker. A cornerstone of the US team that went on to win the inaugural mixed team event, Pegula looked a shoo-in to advance beyond the last eight of a major for the first time at the ensuing Australian Open. 

Things did not quite work out that way, the American falling in the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park for a third successive year. For now, the last eight remains her grand slam ceiling. Yet, for a player with a game to beat the best, that record feels ever more anomalous. 

Pegula’s landmark win over Swiatek was no fluke. She scored another success against the Pole this autumn in Cincinnati, going on to win the second WTA 1000 title of her career, and on Tuesday evening in Cancún the 29-year-old offered another powerful reminder of her quality, snapping a four-match losing streak against Aryna Sabalenka, the Belarusian world No 1, to make the last four at the WTA Finals for the first time.

It was a milestone victory for Pegula, who failed to claim a win in six singles and doubles matches on her maiden appearance at the season-ending jamboree last year in Fort Worth. With an assured 6-4, 6-3 win, she not only ended a three-year barren spell against Sabalenka but also became the fourth American woman this century to notch up three wins against the No 1 player in the world in the same season, joining Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport and Jennifer Capriati. 

Last October, when asked about her prospects of winning a grand slam title after her maiden WTA 1000 title in Guadalajara, Pegula jokingly alluded to her quarter-final defeats against Swiatek at Roland Garros and the US Open. “As long as I don’t play Iga in the quarters, hopefully I’ll get there,” quipped the American. It was a throwaway comment and yet, given the largely one-sided nature of those defeats, there was more than a hint of gallows humour. Things are different now, though; once again, a big title feels within reach for Pegula.

“Even though I was a top player last year, I think I feel more comfortable playing [the world No 1] this year, I feel more confident,” she said. “I don’t think it feels such a big deal, and maybe that’s just because I’ve experienced it longer. 

“I think last year, when I became top five, I felt maybe I psyched myself out a little bit. Not a lot, but just a little bit. You have a couple of thoughts in your head, if you really belong at that level. I was always good at beating everyone below me but it’s like, now you have to beat the one or two before you, and I think you put bigger emphasis on that. 

“I think this year I’ve just not really cared, and I’ve just had more confidence in those matches. That’s why I think I’ve had some better top wins this year as far as beating No 1 players in the world, or [No] 2 or whatever it is – and in big moments too, like here, in Montreal and stuff like that. So I think that’s where I feel I’ve improved a little bit.”

For Sabalenka, whose efforts were undermined by 33 unforced errors, the defeat was not only a step backwards after Sunday’s thumping win over Maria Sakkari, but also a blow to her hopes of keeping Swiatek at bay in the race to claim the year-end No 1 ranking. A perfect group record would have consigned the Pole to second spot; instead, Sabalenka will now square off against Elena Rybakina, who claimed a 6-0, 6-7 (4-7), 7-6 (7-2) win over Maria Sakkari, with a semi-final place on the line for both women. The Belarusian has led criticism of the temporary playing surface and, while she hailed the quality of Pegula’s performance, she once again made her unhappiness with the conditions plain. 

“I think this court fits her perfectly,” said Sabalenka. “The bounce is super low and I think she feels much more comfortable in these conditions. On this court, it’s like leather, you never know what’s going to happen, if the bounce will help you or play against you. 

“I guess today was the day when it didn’t work well for me, but it’s OK. I still have a chance to pass the group, so I’m trying to stay strong and motivated.”

Sabalenka struggled to bring her haymaker forehand to bear in the early stages, with 11 of her 21 unforced errors in the first set coming off that wing. Pegula showed notable boldness, taking her returns on the rise, serving with consistency and penetration, and going toe-to-toe with the Australian Open champion in the baseline exchanges. Sabalenka roused herself late in both sets, narrowly failing to fight back from 5-2 down in the first and saving six match points in the second. 

In truth, though, once Pegula had sealed the opener, the outcome felt almost inevitable: she is now unbeaten in 49 matches after winning the first set this season, and her steadiness of mind and stroke, and flat, penetrative ball-striking, seem tailor-made for the conditions. Pegula once again looks like she will take some stopping. 

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If the stars align for the 22-year-old Pole in the Mexican beach resort of Cancún, she may have an opportunity to reclaim the world No 1 ranking she relinquished to Aryna Sabalenka following last month’s US Open. But Swiatek, who is likely to need a near-perfect run to keep that hope alive, had her back to the wall in the early stages of her Chetumal Group opener against Marketa Vondrousova, dropping five of the first seven games to the Czech seventh seed.

At an event where the hastily-laid stadium court has been roundly criticised by the eight-woman field, Swiatek laboured in vain to strike a balance between consistency and aggression. Once she found her range, though, the four-time grand slam champion moved smoothly through the gears, producing a timely first ace to bring up three set points before pulling away to win 7-6 (7-3), 6-0.

“It doesn’t happen often, so for sure I’m going to take a lesson from that, that I can come back from any score,” said Swiatek following her recovery from 2-5 down. 

“Even during the first part of the match, I wasn’t feeling like I was playing bad, I just felt like I was making mistakes. Overall, I was building up the rally, but then the last shot I was missing.

“So I thought that there is for sure room for improvement. It’s not like I had to change a lot, I just wanted to be more precise and more solid and not play risky, just keep my margins.”

The numbers bore out that analysis. Fifteen of Swiatek’s 22 unforced errors came in the opening set, and the bulk of those came early on as she struggled to come to terms with the tricky combination of Vondrousova’s southpaw spin and her first competitive appearance on a court where practice time has been at a premium.

Even as Vondrousova forged ahead, though, she was solid rather than spectacular. And after the 24-year-old Wimbledon champion delivered the third of her five double faults at 3-6 down in the tiebreak, her intensity and belief quickly waned. It was an all too familiar tale for Vondrousova, who lost to Swiatek by a near-identical scoreline this summer in Cincinnati after twice serving for the opening set, just as she did here.

Short of inspiration but not short of opinions, Vondrousova had much to say afterwards. Like Sabalenka, who remarked after her opening-day win over Maria Sakkari that she feels unsafe moving on a playing surface that was barely laid in time for the tournament’s commencement, Vondrousova took aim at both the court and the WTA.

“The court is honestly very bad, it’s very crazy,” said Vondrousova. “It bounces everywhere, and I feel like it’s almost like, I don’t know, bad clay or grass courts, it’s not even hard courts. I’m not saying that because I lost, I felt the same way in practice also. I don’t think this court is very good for the WTA Finals to be honest.”

Vondrousova later took to social media to elaborate on her criticism.

“My first WTA Finals is not at all what I imagined,” she wrote on Instagram. “We work hard all year to get to the finals and in the end it’s just a disappointment.

“[The] stadium is not at all ready for the matches, and to me it feels like the people from the WTA are absolutely not interested in how we, who are supposed to play on that court, feel. We do not feel that anyone listens to us and is interested in our opinions. Very sad.”

Even Swiatek, who has so far been more measured than most of her rivals in her assessment of the event’s chaotic organisation, acknowledged that the situation was less than ideal.

“Obviously it’s not a positive thing for any of us, but I think the main thing is not focusing on that and just doing your job,” said the French Open champion. “Sometimes it bounces weirdly on clay or on the grass as well, so I try to think in that perspective and just do my job. 

“For sure it’s not comfortable, and the fact that we also didn’t have time to practise on this court. But at the end it doesn’t really matter, because all of us have the same court and the same conditions.”

Coco Gauff, the American third seed, enjoyed a more comfortable start to her group campaign, claiming a maiden win at the finals with a 6-0, 6-1 demolition of Ons Jabeur. The Tunisian was off the pace from the outset, struggling to find her customary touch and consistency, and although she returned from an hour-long rain delay to make a belated impression on the scoreboard, Gauff was not to be denied.

“She played really good today,” said Jabeur, who will face Vondrousova on Wednesday. “Not my best day on the court, but that’s tennis sometimes, unfortunately.”

Gauff afterwards confirmed that she has parted ways with Pere Riba, the Spanish coach with whom she has worked for the past five months. Riba, who together with Brad Gilbert guided the American teenager to her first grand slam title at last month’s US Open, ended the arrangement due to “family issues of a personal nature”. 

“Unfortunately, it wasn’t my decision, but we had to end the partnership,” said the 19-year-old. “I had a great time with him and I wish him the best in his next chapter. If it was up to me, I would have loved to have him here but, you know, things happen, life happens. No bad terms on our end.  

“Sometimes people think it’s bigger than it is, but some things just didn’t work out and that’s all. I still think that he was a great guy, and obviously he did amazing things for me personally and also for my game.”

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On the eve of her opening match against Maria Sakkari, the Belarusian world No 1 led a chorus of disapproval over the tournament’s chaotic organisation, calling on the governing body of the women’s game to “do a better job” after the stadium court was barely laid in time for the players to complete a short practice on it.  

In Sakkari, Sabalenka appeared to find an outlet for her frustration, demolishing the Greek eighth seed 6-0, 6-1 with a ruthless, relentless performance that spoke volumes for her determination to retain the top ranking ahead of the chasing Iga Swiatek. 

But a statement victory did not mean the 25-year-old had nothing left to say, and afterwards Sabalenka doubled down on her criticism of the WTA.

“It’s another level of disrespect from the WTA for the players, because sometimes I don’t even feel safe to move on this court,” said Sabalenka. “That’s not the level I expect from the WTA Finals. 

“I mean, thank you for this challenge I’m facing right now, to kind of like learn how to adapt quick to the conditions,” she added caustically. “Thank you for that. But this is not something I expect from such a high-level tournament. 

“I’m really happy that I’m able to ignore all this and do everything I can to win every point I play.”

Sabalenka certainly did that, battling to an early break and then fending off four break points on her own serve to establish a lead that she went on to protect with tigerish ferocity. Despite an awkward wind and a quick, high-bouncing playing surface, many of the early rallies were well contested. But Sabalenka went about her business with unwavering intensity, immediately extinguishing the few opportunities her opponent was able to create, and as game after game rolled by it was impossible not to feel sympathy for Sakkari, who became visibly distraught in the latter stages.

“I was not feeling my game, not feeling comfortable out there,” said the 28-year-old, who qualified for the eight-woman event as the first alternate following Karolina Muchova’s withdrawal with a wrist injury. 

“Just a very, very bad day in the office. Hopefully it’s going to be better for Tuesday [when she faces Jessica Pegula].”

While Sakkari was left to lick her wounds, Sabalenka took to social media to elaborate on her concerns about the event’s organisation.

“I am very disappointed with the WTA and the experience so far at the WTA Finals,” the top seed wrote on Instagram. “As I said in my press conference tonight, as a player I feel disrespected by the WTA. I think most of us do. This is not the level of organisation we expect for the finals.

“To be honest, I don’t feel safe moving on this court a lot of the time, the bounce is not consistent at all, and we weren’t able to practise on this court until yesterday for the first time. It’s just not acceptable to me with so much on the line and so much at stake.”

A strong run in Bacalar Group would significantly bolster Sabalenka’s prospects of retaining the top ranking she inherited from Swiatek after the US Open. With 125 points on offer for each match played, and a further 125 allotted for each group stage win, three group victories would guarantee Sabalenka the coveted year-end No 1 ranking, bolstering her existing 630-point lead by 875 points to make a total of 1,505, even if she lost in the semi-finals. With an undefeated title win worth 1,500 points, Swiatek would be powerless to overtake her. 

Two group wins combined with a run to the final would also be enough for Sabalenka, giving her 950 points to extend her overall lead to 1,580 points – again, more than her Polish rival could amass even in a best-case scenario.

In the opening match of Bacalar Group, Pegula saw off Elena Rybakina, the fourth seed, in straight sets. Rybakina served for the opening set at 5-3 only for the American to break back before reeling off 10 of the final 12 games.

“I think she made maybe a couple of loose points, and I was able to kind of jump on it and find my momentum,” Pegula, seeded fifth, said of the turnaround. “I think I started serving a lot better after that, and was able to get a read on her serve and start finding my rhythm.”

Pegula refused to be drawn into a debate about the event’s organisation, simply remarking that the stadium court was “not good” while the 11th-hour decision to stage the finals in Cancún, announced last month, meant there was “no time to fix anything”. The WTA Tour addressed Sabalenka’s criticisms in a statement, however, insisting the court met the governing body’s performance standards.

“We’re pleased to host the WTA Finals in Cancún for the first time and worked hard to construct a stadium where the world’s top eight women’s tennis players and doubles teams compete head-to-head,” read the statement. “The team has worked diligently on an expedited timeline amid weather challenges to ensure the stadium and court meet our strict performance standards.”   

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Given the blustery conditions in the Mexican resort city of Cancún, Jabeur’s quick hands and exquisite feel may well put her among the title favourites. To most observers, however, the figure that really matters is No 1. That is the position Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek will dispute at the final stop on this season’s WTA Tour, where the champion will pocket up to 1,500 points – enough to either bridge or expand the 630-point gap between the two best players on the planet.

For the past seven weeks, bragging rights in the race to claim the year-end No 1 ranking have belonged to Sabalenka, who will be hoping to end the year in the same triumphant vein she began it when she stormed to a maiden grand slam title at the Australian Open. The mighty Belarusian, the first woman since Serena Williams in 2016 to reach the semi-finals or better at all four majors in the same calendar year, realised a lifelong ambition at last month’s US Open, rising to top spot for the first time despite losing to Coco Gauff in the final. The magnitude of that achievement is not lost on the 25-year-old, but neither has it gone to her head. 

“I wish I had known earlier that I can play that good,” quipped Sabalenka on the eve of her opener against Sakkari. “It’s just [been a] super great season, I think the best season in my life so far.

“[But] I think ranking, it’s just ranking, you know? It’s not like I go on court right now and everyone will be, ‘OK, I’m not playing, you’re No 1, good luck in the next round.’ It’s not changing anything. I still need to work hard. I still need to bring my best tennis on court. I think I even need to work more, because right now I feel like I’m a target for everyone.”

The latter sentiment is one Swiatek will recognise only too well. The Pole spoke of the pressures of playing with a target on her back as long ago as March, long before a fourth-round defeat to Jelena Ostapenko at Flushing Meadows drew a line under her 75-week reign at No 1. Swiatek reiterated that stance earlier this month at the China Open, her only tournament since, expressing her relief at being able to return to the practice court unencumbered by the “baggage” that goes with the top ranking. She certainly had the air of a player liberated, showcasing some intriguing technical and tactical improvements as she claimed her first WTA 1000 title of the season. 

That newfound adaptability, evident in Beijing in a relentless display of net-rushing against Sara Sorribes Tormo, and a flawless exhibition of controlled aggression in the final against Liudmila Samsonova, bodes well for Cancún, where the combination of swirling wind and a hastily-laid playing surface that has allowed scant practice time will be challenging for all the players. The need for Swiatek to tailor her game accordingly will be particularly acute given that she starts against Marketa Vondrousova, the wily Czech southpaw who outfoxed Jabeur at Wimbledon to become the first unseeded women’s champion in history. Not given to complacency, the French Open champion will be taking nothing for granted.

“You can always say the first two seeds are going to be the favourites, or the first seed,” said Swiatek, who has also been drawn alongside Gauff and Jabeur in Chetumal Group. “But honestly, so many things can happen this week. Overall, in any tennis tournament, I stopped thinking that way. I think any one of us can win this tournament. 

“I felt like [last year, when Swiatek compiled a 37-match winning streak and won Roland Garros and the US Open] was just kind of ridiculous, because people got used to me winning. It’s not like it’s going to happen all the time. So I think this season was kind of more normal, I would say, like most of the seasons we play, for even the top players.  

“The main thing I want to avoid is forgetting that this was also a good season and I still won some great tournaments. 

“Expectations from the outside, it was the thing that really sometimes stopped me this season. I’m going to work on not letting it stop me this time.”

In truth, little has stopped the 22-year-old this season. While Sabalenka has been the dominant force at the majors – although not in Paris, where Swiatek was crowned champion for the third time in four years – the Pole has won five titles and 63 matches, more than any of her peers. Samsonova, against whom Swiatek did not make a single unforced error in the Beijing final, caused quite a stir when she recently branded her rival “the real No 1”, yet it was easy to see what the Russian meant. Sabalenka’s superior grand slam record this season unquestionably makes her the rightful No 1 and yet, in the hard currency of trophies and victories, Swiatek has been the more successful player. 

If Sabalenka is to alter that skewed perception, she will need to combine a strong showing in Bacalar Group with a repeat of last year’s run to the final. Should she collect two wins from a group that includes Elena Rybakina, Jessica Pegula and Sakkari and then advance to the final, Swiatek will be powerless to stop her. Anything less, and the Pole will be in charge of her own destiny, although she would still probably need to win the title with an unblemished group record.

Yet, if the tournament unfolds along similar lines to recent editions, the battle for No 1 could yet be overshadowed. Should range and adaptability prove the determining factors, Jabeur and Vondrousova could emerge as disruptors-in-chief. With no previous winners in the field, either woman would be a fitting addition to a roster of left-field champions that includes Caroline Wozniacki, Elina Svitolina, Garbiñe Muguruza and Caroline Garcia. 

Victory for Jabeur would mark a fairy-tale conclusion to a chequered season that has included knee surgery and a heart-breaking defeat in the Wimbledon final for the second successive year. Neither a first French Open quarter-final nor title wins in Charleston and Ningbo – the latter her first on hard courts – have brought solace in the face of a loss that the Tunisian has described as the most painful of her career. If there has been an upside, it is that she has acquired a knack of adjusting to circumstance. 

“I learned to just adapt to everything,” said Jabeur, who opens against Gauff on Monday. “As a tennis player, I always try to adapt and not complain about a lot of things. Hopefully it will help me to play better. Definitely I will figure out how to play my best tennis in the wind.”

Vondrousova, whose quarter-final run at the US Open underlined how impressively she has adapted to life as a grand slam winner, will likewise look to make the most of her guile and tactical intelligence.

“I’m more crafty,” said the 24-year-old. “I don’t have as much power as other girls, maybe. I feel like I’m the smallest here, too. It’s a bit tough sometimes.  

“Since I was small, I was always the smallest, so I had to find ways. I feel like my lefty [style] is also a bit annoying for other players. That’s what I’m trying to do, just to be annoying.”

Gauff, meanwhile, is hopeful that an upbringing in the swirling winds of Delray Beach, Florida will work to her advantage as she seeks to reproduce the winning blend of defence and attack that earned her the US Open title.

“I will need to adjust because the wind is quite heavy,” said the 19-year-old, who lost all through of her group matches in straight sets last year in Fort Worth. “For the past few days, when I’ve been trying to practice here, it’s been really tough.

“For sure, I’m going to stick to my game. I’m going to try to still play aggressive. Of course, the serve is a weapon, so I’ll try to do my best to adjust.”

With Swiatek the favourite, adjustment is likely to be the watchword in Chetumal Group, potentially giving Jabeur or Vondrousova a slight edge. Conversely, Bacalar Group will be shaped by a collision of irresistible forces, in the shape of Sabalenka and Rybakina, and immovable objects, in the form of Pegula and Sakkari. A quarter-final loss to Rybakina in Beijing notwithstanding, a Sabalenka wobble would be a major surprise. The wider outlook is harder to predict. Pegula has little to lose after drawing a blank on her debut in Fort Worth last year, while Rybakina, the fourth seed and former Wimbledon champion, has admitted to struggling with the wind in practice. 

That leaves Sakkari, in as an alternate following the withdrawal of Karolina Muchova with a wrist injury, as a potential fly in the ointment for the trio of top-five players with whom she finds herself bracketed. A semi-finalist in each of her two previous appearances at the finals, the Greek world No 9 not only has the pedigree to get out of the group but also has a deep affinity for the host country, which she has come to see as a home for home. That feelgood factor, underlined by last month’s title win in Guadalajara, her first at WTA 1000 level, deepens the suspicion that Sakkari, effectively playing with house money, could emerge as the surprise package of the group.

“I just feel like the crowd loves me here, and I love them too,” said Sakkari. “I’ve said it many times: there’s a special connection. This week is like a celebration for me. I’m grateful to be here, to be competing again in the finals, because three times in a row is I think a great achievement.  

“I’m just going to go out there and enjoy. It would be amazing to win the whole thing, that’s my ultimate goal, of course, but I don’t want to think of winning or losing. I just want to feel like, ‘You know what, I was given that great opportunity’ – and make the most out of it.”

Semi-finals: Swiatek to defeat Sakkari; Jabeur to defeat Sabalenka.

Final: Swiatek to beat Jabeur.

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