WTA Finals: preliminary in group purple
In the second round robin round, two players meet at the WTA finals in Shenzhen on Wednesday with Karolina Pliskova and Bianca Andreescu in the group purple, who would probably be eliminated prematurely in the event of a defeat. Simona Halep and Elina Svitolina, meanwhile, can reach an early semi-final qualification.
by Robert M. Frank
last edit: Oct 30, 2019, 08:03 am
At 1.00 pm (CEST), Wednesday's WTA finals in Shenzhen, China will start a big nail-biter: Only the winner of the match between Karolina Pliskova (WTA 2) and Bianca Andreescu (WTA 4) still has a realistic chance for a semi-final qualification , In return, the loser from this match from the second Round Rubin round of the group purple can almost certainly plan the trip home.
The two opponents have each lost their start. While Andreescu (WTA 4) defeated Simona Halep (WTA 5) 6: 3, 6: 7 (6), 3: 6, Pliskova had a 6: 7 (12), 4: 6 defeat Elina Svitolina (WTA 8).
Halep or Svitolina likely to qualify early on victory
Also at the other end of the table in the group purple there is a preliminary decision in the match before (11.30 CEST) between Halep and Svitolina. Who decides the duel of the two winners, is almost certainly prematurely in the semifinals. Both sides have each won four times in the eight previous encounters between the two top players.
For Halep, a success and the associated early qualification for the semi-final would be a positive signal. The improvement of the balance sheet of the former world number one would be the Romanian good face. Since her Wimbledon win in July, the 28-year-old has not achieved any outstanding results. The 19-time WTA tournament winner never got past the knockout stages in her last four starts in Beijing, Wuhan, the US Open and Cincinnati, reaching the quarter-finals in Toronto.
Defending champion Svitolina is waiting for the first tournament victory in 2019
The Formkuve looks a bit different with their upcoming opponent Svitolina. The 25-year-old from Ukraine did not confirm her four tournament victories from 2018 in the current season. However, recent results have been positive. The WTA final defending champion has at least reached the quarter-finals four times in her last six tournament appearances, and Svitolina even reached the semi-finals at the US Open. However, the final tournament victory of the 13-time WTA tournament champion, who has been in the top ten since May 2017, has also been over a year (at the WTA final in Singapore).