Wikipedia

WTA Finals

The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships[3] or WTA Championships) is the season-ending championship of the WTA Tour. It is the most significant tennis event in the women's annual calendar after the four majors, as it features the top eight singles players and top eight doubles teams based on their results throughout the season.

WTA Finals
Current event 2024 WTA Finals
Tournament information
Founded1972; 52 years ago (1972)
Editions53 (2024)
LocationRiyadh, Saudi Arabia (2024–26)
CategoryWTA Finals[1]
SurfaceHard - outdoors
Draw8S / 8D (since 2014)
Prize money$15.25M [2]
Websitewtafinals.com
Current champions (2024)
SinglesUnited States Coco Gauff
DoublesCanada Gabriela Dabrowski
New Zealand Erin Routliffe

The tournament predates the WTA Tour and started in 1972 as the championship tournament of the Tour's predecessor: the Virginia Slims Circuit. Since 2003, the tournament has used a unique format not seen in other WTA Tour events: the players are separated into two groups of four, within which they each play three round-robin matches. The top two players or teams from each group after the round-robin stage move on to a knock-out format in the semifinals and final to determine the champion.

The WTA Finals has the largest prize money and ranking points after the majors. The most successful player in both singles and doubles history is Martina Navratilova, with eight singles and 13 doubles titles.

In the tournament's current format, the champion can earn a maximum of 1,500 ranking points, if they win the event as an undefeated champion in the round-robin stage.

Tournament

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History

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The championships were held for the first time in October 1972 in Boca Raton, Florida (USA) as a climactic event at the end of a series of tournaments sponsored by Virginia Slims, called the Virginia Slims Circuit.[4] From 1972 to 1974, the event was held in October, before switching to March from 1975 until 1986. The WTA then decided to adopt a January–November playing season, and so the event was switched to being held at the end of each year. As a consequence, there were two championships held in 1986.

The event was held in Los Angeles, California from 1974 to 1976 before moving to Madison Square Garden in New York City in 1977. With the exception of a one-year move to Oakland, California in 1978, the Championships remained at MSG until 2000. The event then briefly moved to Munich, Germany in 2001. More recently, it moved back to Los Angeles from 2002 to 2005. The 2006 and 2007 editions were held in Madrid, Spain. Doha, Qatar hosted the 2008–2010 editions before passing the flag to Istanbul, Turkey, which hosted the 2011–2013 editions.[5] For the right to host the 2014 edition and beyond, 43 cities expressed an interest before a short list comprising Kazan, Russia; Mexico City, Mexico; Singapore; and Tianjin, China was drawn up in late 2012.[6] Kazan and Mexico City were ruled out in early 2013[7] before Singapore was announced in May 2013 as the new host city for five years.[8][9] In 2018, the WTA announced the host city from 2019 to 2028 would be Shenzhen, China,[10] however due to COVID-19 and later the disappearance of Peng Shuai, the tournament was cancelled in 2020 and had to find alternative hosting sites from 2020–2023.[11][12] In April 2024, the WTA announced that the host city from 2024–2026 would be Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.[13]

Format

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From 1984 to 1998, the final of the championships was a best-of-five-sets match, making it the only tournament on the women's tour to have had a best-of-five match at any round of the competition.[14] It was the first time since the 1901 U.S. National Championships that the best-of-five format was used in women's matches.[15] In 1999, the final reverted to being a best-of-three-sets match. From the 1974 until the 1982 edition the doubles draw consisted of four teams; then from 1983 to 2002 the draw increased to eight teams; was decreased back to four teams until 2013 and from the 2014 edition onward it has been made up of eight teams. From its first inception in 1973 until 2018 the doubles draw was played in a single elimination format. In 2015 and from 2019 until the present the doubles draw has been played in a round robin format.[9]

Qualified players and teams participate in a round-robin format in two groups of four. The winners and runners-up of each group advance to the semifinals. The semifinal winners progress through to the finals where they compete for the title.

Qualification

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To qualify for the WTA Finals, players compete throughout the year in WTA events throughout the world, as well as the ITF-sanctioned events, such as the four Grand Slams. Players earn ranking points on the leaderboard, and the top seven singles players and top seven doubles teams on this leaderboard at the conclusion of the WTA season (as of the Monday following the final regular season tournament) earn the right to compete in the WTA Finals. The eighth spot in the WTA Finals is awarded to the highest-ranking Grand Slam winner (and highest-ranking Grand Slam winning team for doubles) ranked 8-20 in the standings. If no player (and/or doubles team) meets this criterion, then the 8th ranked player (and/or doubles team) in the standings qualifies.[16]

In singles, point totals are calculated by combining points from up to 18 tournaments. Of these tournaments, a player's point total is calculated based on the following: the four Grand Slam events, best six results of the seven combined WTA 1000 tournaments, best result of the three non-combined WTA 1000 tournaments, and lastly the next best seven results from all non-125 WTA tournaments. In doubles, point totals are calculated by the 12 best results among any of the non-125 WTA tournaments and Grand Slams.[17]

Venues

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Years City Country Venue Surface Capacity
1972–73 Boca Raton United States Boca Raton Hotel & Club Clay
1974–76 Los Angeles United States Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Carpet 14,800
1977 New York City United States Madison Square Garden Carpet 18,000
1978 Oakland United States Oakland Arena Carpet 13,200
1979–2000 New York City United States Madison Square Garden Carpet 18,000
2001 Munich Germany Olympiahalle Hard (i) 12,000
2002–05 Los Angeles United States Staples Center Hard (i) 17,000
2006–07 Madrid Spain Madrid Arena Hard (i) 10,500
2008–10 Doha Qatar Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex Hard 6,911
2011–13 Istanbul Turkey Sinan Erdem Dome Hard (i) 16,410
2014–18 Singapore Singapore Singapore Indoor Stadium Hard (i) 10,000
2019 Shenzhen China Shenzhen Bay Sports Center Hard (i) 12,000
2021 Guadalajara Mexico Panamerican Tennis Center Hard 6,639
2022 Fort Worth United States Dickies Arena Hard (i) 14,000
2023 Cancún Mexico Estadio Paradisus Hard 4,300
2024–26 Riyadh Saudi Arabia King Saud University Indoor Arena Hard

Prize money and points

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The total prize money for the 2024 WTA Finals is US$15,250,000, an increase of 69.44% compared to the 2023 edition.[18] The tables below break down the prize money, participation fees are prorated on a per match basis.

Stage Prize money Points
Singles Doubles[a]
Champion RR[b] $2,500,000 RR[b] $520,000 RR 900
Runner-up RR $1,270,000 RR $255,000 RR 400
Round robin win per match $350,000 $70,000 200
Participation Fee $335,000 $140,000 —
Alternates $250,000 $106,000 —
  1. ^ Prize money for doubles is per team.
  2. ^ a b RR means prize money or points won in the round-robin round.
  • An undefeated champion would earn the maximum 1,500 points and $3,885,000 in singles or $870,000 in doubles.
  • Participation fees are prorated on a per match basis. Singles: 1 match = $225,000 2 matches = $275,000 and 3 matches = $335,000. Doubles: 1 match = $94,000 2 matches = $116,000 and 3 matches = $140,000.
  • Alternate fees are also prorated on a per-match basis. Singles: 0 matches = $140,000, 1 match = $200,000, 2 matches = $250,000. Doubles: 0 matches= $60,000, 1 match = $84,000, 2 matches= $106,000

Since 2014, the singles and doubles winners of the tournament receive the Billie Jean King Trophy[19][20] and the Martina Navratilova trophy,[21][22] respectively.

List of finals

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Singles

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‡ From 1984 to 1998, the final match in singles was held in a best-of-five-sets format.[9]
Year Champion Runner-up Score
1972   Chris Evert (1/4)   Kerry Melville 7–5, 6–4
1973   Chris Evert (2/4)   Nancy Richey Gunter 6–3, 6–3
1974   Evonne Goolagong (1/2)   Chris Evert 6–3, 6–4
1975   Chris Evert (3/4)   Martina Navratilova 6–4, 6–2
1976   Evonne Goolagong Cawley (2/2)   Chris Evert 6–3, 5–7, 6–3
1977   Chris Evert (4/4)   Sue Barker 2–6, 6–1, 6–1
1978   Martina Navratilova (1/8)   Evonne Goolagong Cawley 7–6(7–2), 6–4
1979   Martina Navratilova (2/8)   Tracy Austin 6–3, 3–6, 6–2
1980   Tracy Austin (1/1)   Martina Navratilova 6–2, 2–6, 6–2
1981   Martina Navratilova (3/8)   Andrea Jaeger 6–3, 7–6(7–3)
1982   Sylvia Hanika (1/1)   Martina Navratilova 1–6, 6–3, 6–4
1983   Martina Navratilova (4/8)   Chris Evert 6–2, 6–0
1984‡   Martina Navratilova (5/8)   Chris Evert 6–3, 7–5, 6–1
1985‡   Martina Navratilova (6/8)   Helena Suková 6–3, 7–5, 6–4
1986
(Mar.)‡ 		  Martina Navratilova (7/8)   Hana Mandlíková 6–2, 6–0, 3–6, 6–1
1986
(Nov.)‡ 		  Martina Navratilova (8/8)   Steffi Graf 7–6(8–6), 6–3, 6–2
1987‡   Steffi Graf (1/5)   Gabriela Sabatini 4–6, 6–4, 6–0, 6–4
1988‡   Gabriela Sabatini (1/2)   Pam Shriver 7–5, 6–2, 6–2
1989‡   Steffi Graf (2/5)   Martina Navratilova 6–4, 7–5, 2–6, 6–2
1990‡   Monica Seles (1/3)   Gabriela Sabatini 6–4, 5–7, 3–6, 6–4, 6–2
1991‡   Monica Seles (2/3)   Martina Navratilova 6–4, 3–6, 7–5, 6–0
1992‡   Monica Seles (3/3)   Martina Navratilova 7–5, 6–3, 6–1
1993‡   Steffi Graf (3/5)   Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 6–1, 6–4, 3–6, 6–1
1994‡   Gabriela Sabatini (2/2)   Lindsay Davenport 6–3, 6–2, 6–4
1995‡   Steffi Graf (4/5)   Anke Huber 6–1, 2–6, 6–1, 4–6, 6–3
1996‡   Steffi Graf (5/5)   Martina Hingis 6–3, 4–6, 6–0, 4–6, 6–0
1997‡   Jana Novotná (1/1)   Mary Pierce 7–6(7–4), 6–2, 6–3
1998‡   Martina Hingis (1/2)   Lindsay Davenport 7–5, 6–4, 4–6, 6–2
1999   Lindsay Davenport (1/1)   Martina Hingis 6–4, 6–2
2000   Martina Hingis (2/2)   Monica Seles 6–7(5–7), 6–4, 6–4
2001   Serena Williams (1/5)   Lindsay Davenport walkover
2002   Kim Clijsters (1/3)   Serena Williams 7–5, 6–3
2003   Kim Clijsters (2/3)   Amélie Mauresmo 6–2, 6–0
2004   Maria Sharapova (1/1)   Serena Williams 4–6, 6–2, 6–4
2005   Amélie Mauresmo (1/1)   Mary Pierce 5–7, 7–6(7–3), 6–4
2006   Justine Henin (1/2)   Amélie Mauresmo 6–4, 6–3
2007   Justine Henin (2/2)   Maria Sharapova 5–7, 7–5, 6–3
2008   Venus Williams (1/1)   Vera Zvonareva 6–7(5–7), 6–0, 6–2
2009   Serena Williams (2/5)   Venus Williams 6–2, 7–6(7–4)
2010   Kim Clijsters (3/3)   Caroline Wozniacki 6–3, 5–7, 6–3
2011   Petra Kvitová (1/1)   Victoria Azarenka 7–5, 4–6, 6–3
2012   Serena Williams (3/5)   Maria Sharapova 6–4, 6–3
2013   Serena Williams (4/5)   Li Na 2–6, 6–3, 6–0
2014   Serena Williams (5/5)   Simona Halep 6–3, 6–0
2015   Agnieszka Radwańska (1/1)   Petra Kvitová 6–2, 4–6, 6–3
2016   Dominika Cibulková (1/1)   Angelique Kerber 6–3, 6–4
2017   Caroline Wozniacki (1/1)   Venus Williams 6–4, 6–4
2018   Elina Svitolina (1/1)   Sloane Stephens 3–6, 6–2, 6–2
2019   Ashleigh Barty (1/1)   Elina Svitolina 6–4, 6–3
2020 No competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021   Garbiñe Muguruza (1/1)   Anett Kontaveit 6–3, 7–5
2022   Caroline Garcia (1/1)   Aryna Sabalenka [a] 7–6(7–4), 6–4
2023   Iga Świątek (1/1)   Jessica Pegula 6–1, 6–0
2024   Coco Gauff (1/1)   Zheng Qinwen 3–6, 6–4, 7–6(7–2)

Doubles

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Year Champions Runners-up Score
1972 No Doubles Played
1973   Rosemary Casals (1/2)
  Margaret Court (1/2) 		  Françoise Dürr
  Betty Stöve 		6–2, 6–4
1974   Rosemary Casals (2/2)
  Billie Jean King (1/4) 		  Françoise Dürr
  Betty Stöve 		6–1, 6–7(2–7), 7–5
1975   Margaret Court (2/2)
  Virginia Wade (1/1) 		  Rosemary Casals
  Billie Jean King 		6–7(2–7), 7–6(7–2), 6–2
1976   Billie Jean King (2/4)
  Betty Stöve (1/3) 		  Mona Guerrant
  Ann Kiyomura 		6–3, 6–2
1977   Martina Navratilova (1/13)
  Betty Stöve (2/3) 		  Françoise Dürr
  Virginia Wade 		7–5, 6–3
1978   Billie Jean King (3/4)
  Martina Navratilova (2/13) 		  Françoise Dürr
  Virginia Wade 		6–4, 6–4
1979   Françoise Dürr (1/1)
  Betty Stöve (3/3) 		  Sue Barker
  Ann Kiyomura 		7–6(7–1), 7–6(7–3)
1980   Billie Jean King (4/4)
  Martina Navratilova (3/13) 		  Rosemary Casals
  Wendy Turnbull 		6–3, 4–6, 6–3
1981   Martina Navratilova (4/13)
  Pam Shriver (1/10) 		  Barbara Potter
  Sharon Walsh 		6–0, 7–6(8–6)
1982   Martina Navratilova (5/13)
  Pam Shriver (2/10) 		  Kathy Jordan
  Anne Smith 		6–4, 6–3
1983   Martina Navratilova (6/13)
  Pam Shriver (3/10) 		  Claudia Kohde-Kilsch
  Eva Pfaff 		7–5, 6–2
1984   Martina Navratilova (7/13)
  Pam Shriver (4/10) 		  Jo Durie
  Ann Kiyomura 		6–3, 6–1
1985   Martina Navratilova (8/13)
  Pam Shriver (5/10) 		  Claudia Kohde-Kilsch
  Helena Suková 		6–7(4–7), 6–4, 7–6(7–5)
1986
(Mar.) 		  Hana Mandlíková (1/1)
  Wendy Turnbull (1/1) 		  Claudia Kohde-Kilsch
  Helena Suková 		6–4, 6–7(4–7), 6–3
1986
(Nov.) 		  Martina Navratilova (9/13)
  Pam Shriver (6/10) 		  Claudia Kohde-Kilsch
  Helena Suková 		7–6(7–1), 6–3
1987   Martina Navratilova (10/13)
  Pam Shriver (7/10) 		  Claudia Kohde-Kilsch
  Helena Suková 		6–1, 6–1
1988   Martina Navratilova (11/13)
  Pam Shriver (8/10) 		  Larisa Savchenko
  Natalia Zvereva 		6–3, 6–4
1989   Martina Navratilova (12/13)
  Pam Shriver (9/10) 		  Larisa Savchenko
  Natalia Zvereva 		6–3, 6–2
1990   Kathy Jordan (1/1)
  Elizabeth Smylie (1/1) 		  Mercedes Paz
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 		7–6(7–4), 6–4
1991   Martina Navratilova (13/13)
  Pam Shriver (10/10) 		  Gigi Fernández
  Jana Novotná 		4–6, 7–5, 6–4
1992   Arantxa Sánchez Vicario (1/2)
  Helena Suková (1/1) 		  Jana Novotná
  Larisa Savchenko Neiland 		7–6(7–4), 6–1
1993   Gigi Fernández (1/2)
  Natalia Zvereva (1/3) 		  Jana Novotná
  Larisa Neiland 		6–3, 7–5
1994   Gigi Fernández (2/2)
  Natasha Zvereva (2/3) 		  Jana Novotná
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 		6–3, 6–7(4–7), 6–3
1995   Jana Novotná (1/2)
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario (2/2) 		  Gigi Fernández
  Natasha Zvereva 		6–2, 6–1
1996   Lindsay Davenport (1/3)
  Mary Joe Fernández (1/1) 		  Jana Novotná
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 		6–3, 6–2
1997   Lindsay Davenport (2/3)
  Jana Novotná (2/2) 		  Alexandra Fusai
  Nathalie Tauziat 		6–7(5–7), 6–3, 6–2
1998   Lindsay Davenport (3/3)
  Natasha Zvereva (3/3) 		  Alexandra Fusai
  Nathalie Tauziat 		6–7(6–8), 7–5, 6–3
1999   Martina Hingis (1/3)
  Anna Kournikova (1/2) 		  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
  Larisa Neiland 		6–4, 6–4
2000   Martina Hingis (2/3)
  Anna Kournikova (2/2) 		  Nicole Arendt
  Manon Bollegraf 		6–2, 6–3
2001   Lisa Raymond (1/4)
  Rennae Stubbs (1/1) 		  Cara Black
  Elena Likhovtseva 		7–5, 3–6, 6–3
2002   Elena Dementieva (1/1)
  Janette Husárová (1/1) 		  Cara Black
  Elena Likhovtseva 		4–6, 6–4, 6–3
2003   Virginia Ruano Pascual (1/1)
  Paola Suárez (1/1) 		  Kim Clijsters
  Ai Sugiyama 		6–4, 3–6, 6–3
2004   Nadia Petrova (1/2)
  Meghann Shaughnessy (1/1) 		  Cara Black
  Rennae Stubbs 		7–5, 6–2
2005   Lisa Raymond (2/4)
  Samantha Stosur (1/2) 		  Cara Black
  Rennae Stubbs 		6–7(5–7), 7–5, 6–4
2006   Lisa Raymond (3/4)
  Samantha Stosur (2/2) 		  Cara Black
  Rennae Stubbs 		3–6, 6–3, 6–3
2007   Cara Black (1/3)
  Liezel Huber (1/3) 		  Katarina Srebotnik
  Ai Sugiyama 		5–7, 6–3, [10–8]
2008   Cara Black (2/3)
  Liezel Huber (2/3) 		  Květa Peschke
  Rennae Stubbs 		6–1, 7–5
2009   Nuria Llagostera Vives (1/1)
  María José Martínez Sánchez (1/1) 		  Cara Black
  Liezel Huber 		7–6(7–0), 5–7, [10–7]
2010   Gisela Dulko (1/1)
  Flavia Pennetta (1/1) 		  Květa Peschke
  Katarina Srebotnik 		7–5, 6–4
2011   Liezel Huber (3/3)
  Lisa Raymond (4/4) 		  Květa Peschke
  Katarina Srebotnik 		6–4, 6–4
2012   Maria Kirilenko (1/1)
  Nadia Petrova (2/2) 		  Andrea Hlaváčková
  Lucie Hradecká 		6–1, 6–4
2013   Hsieh Su-wei (1/1)
  Peng Shuai (1/1) 		  Ekaterina Makarova
  Elena Vesnina 		6–4, 7–5
2014   Cara Black (3/3)
  Sania Mirza (1/2) 		  Hsieh Su-wei
  Peng Shuai 		6–1, 6–0
2015   Martina Hingis (3/3)
  Sania Mirza (2/2) 		  Garbiñe Muguruza
  Carla Suárez Navarro 		6–0, 6–3
2016   Ekaterina Makarova (1/1)
  Elena Vesnina (1/1) 		  Bethanie Mattek-Sands
  Lucie Šafářová 		7–6(7–5), 6–3
2017   Tímea Babos (1/3)
  Andrea Hlaváčková (1/1) 		  Kiki Bertens
  Johanna Larsson 		4–6, 6–4, [10–5]
2018   Tímea Babos (2/3)
  Kristina Mladenovic (1/2) 		  Barbora Krejčíková
  Kateřina Siniaková 		6–4, 7–5
2019   Tímea Babos (3/3)
  Kristina Mladenovic (2/2) 		  Hsieh Su-wei
  Barbora Strýcová 		6–1, 6–3
2020 No competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021   Barbora Krejčíková (1/1)
  Kateřina Siniaková (1/1) 		  Hsieh Su-wei
  Elise Mertens 		6–3, 6–4
2022   Veronika Kudermetova [b] (1/1)
  Elise Mertens (1/1) 		  Barbora Krejčíková
  Kateřina Siniaková 		6–2, 4–6, [11–9]
2023   Laura Siegemund (1/1)
  Vera Zvonareva [b] (1/1) 		  Nicole Melichar-Martinez
  Ellen Perez 		6–4, 6–4
2024   Gabriela Dabrowski (1/1)
  Erin Routliffe (1/1) 		  Kateřina Siniaková
  Taylor Townsend 		7–5, 6–3
  1. ^ On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Belarus will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Belarus following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Aryna Sabalenka thus competed as neutral player since then.[23]
  2. ^ a b On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list.[24]

List of champions

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Singles

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Titles Player Years
8   Martina Navratilova 1978–79, 81, 83–86(Nov.)[a][b]
5   Steffi Graf 1987, 89, 93, 95–96
  Serena Williams 2001, 09, 12–14
4   Chris Evert 1972–73, 75, 77
3  /  Monica Seles 1990–92
  Kim Clijsters 2002–03, 10
2   Evonne Goolagong Cawley 1974, 76
  Gabriela Sabatini 1988, 94
  Martina Hingis 1998, 2000
  Justine Henin 2006–07
1   Tracy Austin 1980
  Sylvia Hanika 1982
  Jana Novotná 1997
  Lindsay Davenport 1999
  Maria Sharapova 2004
  Amélie Mauresmo 2005
  Venus Williams 2008
  Petra Kvitová 2011
  Agnieszka Radwańska 2015
  Dominika Cibulková 2016
  Caroline Wozniacki 2017
  Elina Svitolina 2018
  Ashleigh Barty 2019
  Garbiñe Muguruza 2021
  Caroline Garcia 2022
  Iga Świątek 2023
  Coco Gauff 2024


Doubles

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Titles Player Years
13   Martina Navratilova 1977–78, 80–86(Nov.),[b] 87–89, 91
10   Pam Shriver 1981–86(Nov.),[b] 87–89, 91
4   Billie Jean King 1974, 76, 78, 80
  Lisa Raymond 2001, 05–06, 11
3   Betty Stöve 1976–77, 79
 /  Natasha Zvereva 1993–94, 98
  Lindsay Davenport 1996–98
  Liezel Huber 2007–08, 11
  Cara Black 2007–08, 14
  Martina Hingis 1999–00, 2015
  Tímea Babos 2017–19
2   Rosemary Casals 1973–74
  Margaret Court 1973, 75
  Gigi Fernández 1993–94
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario 1992, 95
  Jana Novotná 1995, 97
  Anna Kournikova 1999–00
  Samantha Stosur 2005–06
  Nadia Petrova 2004, 12
  Sania Mirza 2014–15
  Kristina Mladenovic 2018–19
1   Virginia Wade 1975
  Françoise Dürr 1979
1986(Mar.)[a]
1990
  Helena Suková 1992
  Mary Joe Fernández 1996
  Rennae Stubbs 2001
2002
2003
  Meghann Shaughnessy 2004
2009
2010
  Maria Kirilenko 2012
2013
2016
  Andrea Hlaváčková 2017
2021
2022
2023
2024
  1. ^ a b In 1986 the WTA adopted a January–November playing season, thereby the event switched to being held at the end of each year. Consequently, there were two championships held in 1986. First edition was played in March.[26]
  2. ^ a b c Second edition was played in November.
  3. ^ a b On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list.[25]

Records and statistics

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Note: Active players indicated in bold.

Singles

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# Titles
8   Martina Navratilova
5   Steffi Graf
  Serena Williams
4   Chris Evert
3  /  Monica Seles
  Kim Clijsters
# Finals
14  /  Martina Navratilova
8   Chris Evert
7   Serena Williams
6   Steffi Graf
4   Gabriela Sabatini
 / /  Monica Seles
  Martina Hingis
  Lindsay Davenport
# Matches won
60  /  Martina Navratilova
34   Chris Evert
31   Steffi Graf
29   Serena Williams
21   Gabriela Sabatini
# Editions played
21  /  Martina Navratilova
13   Chris Evert
  Steffi Graf
  Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
12   Zina Garrison
  Conchita Martínez

Youngest & oldest champions

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Singles[27] Youngest   Monica Seles 16 years, 11 months 1990
Oldest   Serena Williams 33 years, 1 month 2014
Doubles Youngest   Anna Kournikova 18 years, 5 months 1999
Oldest   Vera Zvonareva [a] 39 years, 1 month 2023
  1. ^ On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list.[28]

Longest and shortest matches

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Singles

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Best-of-five-sets system:
Longest match by time played
1990 final, 3 hours and 47 minutes[29][30]
  Monica Seles 6 5 3 6 6
  Gabriela Sabatini 4 7 6 4 2
Best-of-three-sets system:
Longest match by time played[31]
2012 round robin, 3 hours and 29 minutes
  Agnieszka Radwańska 66 7 6
  Sara Errani 78 5 4
Longest match by games won[31]
2017 round robin, 37 games
  Venus Williams 7 63 7
  Jeļena Ostapenko 5 77 5
Shortest match by games won
2007 round robin, 12 games
  Justine Henin 6 6
  Marion Bartoli 0 0

Doubles

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Longest match by games won
1985 final, 36 games
  Martina Navratilova
  Pam Shriver 		64 6 77
  Claudia Kohde-Kilsch
  Helena Suková 		77 4 65
Shortest match by games won
2014 final, 13 games
  Cara Black
  Sania Mirza 		6 6
  Hsieh Su-wei
  Peng Shuai 		1 0

Year-end championships double & triple

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Winning three or two out of the four Year-ending championships since its inception in 1972: WTA Championships/Finals, Series-Ending Championships, Grand Slam Cup, WTA Tournament of Champions/Elite Trophy indicated in bold.

Double crown

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Winning the Year-end championships in both singles and doubles in the same year.

No. Player Years won
5   Martina Navratilova 1978, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986(Nov)[a]
1   Jana Novotná 1997
  Martina Hingis 2000
  1. ^ In 1986 the event was held twice because of a change of schedule by the WTA. First edition was played in March, the second in November. Navratilova would go on to win the second edition in both singles and doubles that year.[26]

Year-end championships triple

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No. Player WTA Championships/Finals Grand Slam Cup WTA Elite Trophy
1   Venus Williams 2008 1998 2015

WTA Championships – Series-Ending Championships Double

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No. Player WTA Championships/Finals Series-Ending Championships
1   Chris Evert 1972 1977
2   Martina Navratilova 1978 1979
3   Tracy Austin 1980 1980

WTA Championships – Grand Slam Cup Double

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No. Player WTA Championships/Finals Grand Slam Cup
1   Serena Williams 2001 1999
2   Venus Williams [a] 2008 1998
  1. ^ she later completed a YEC Triple.

WTA Championships – WTA Elite Trophy Double

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No. Player WTA Championships/Finals WTA Elite Trophy
1   Venus Williams [a] 2008 2015
2   Petra Kvitová 2011 2016
3   Ashleigh Barty 2019 2018
  1. ^ with the 2015 WTA Elite Trophy she also completed a YEC Triple.

Grand Slam Cup – WTA Elite Trophy Double

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No. Player Grand Slam Cup WTA Elite Trophy
1   Venus Williams [a] 1998 2015
  1. ^ with the 2015 WTA Elite Trophy she also completed a YEC Triple.

Titles by country

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Singles

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21 
   United States (7 players)
6 
   West Germany / Germany (2 players)
5 
   Belgium (2 players)
3 
   Australia (2 players),   Yugoslavia /   Yugoslavia (1 player)
2 
   Argentina (1 player),   Czech Republic (2 players),   France (2 players),   Poland (2 players),    Switzerland (1 player)
1 
   Denmark,   Russia,   Slovakia,   Spain,   Ukraine

Doubles

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Note: Titles, won by a team of players from same country, count as one title, not two.

29 
   United States (11 players)
7 
   Australia (5 players)
6 
   Czechoslovakia / Czech Republic (6 players),   Russia (6 players)[a]
4 
   Spain (4 players)
3 
   Belarus (1 player),   France (2 players),   Hungary (1 player),   Netherlands (1 player),    Switzerland (1 player),   Zimbabwe (1 player)
2 
   Argentina (2 players),   India (1 player)
1 
   Belgium,   Canada,   China,   Chinese Taipei,   Germany,   Great Britain,   Italy,   New Zealand,   Slovakia
Note
  1. ^ On 1 March 2022, the WTA announced that players from Russia will not be allowed to compete under the name or flag of Russia following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Veronika Kudermetova and Vera Zvonareva thus competed as neutral players since then and their first and only titles are not attributed to Russia in the "Titles by country" list.[32]

Sponsors

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The event has a more than 40-year history of corporate sponsorship with the finals named after the sponsoring company.[4]

Years Sponsor Name Refs
1972–1978 Virginia Slims Virginia Slims Championships
1979–1982 Avon Avon Championships
1983–1994 Virginia Slims Virginia Slims Championships
1995 None WTA Tour Championships
1996–2000 Chase Chase Championships
2001 Sanex Sanex Championships
2002 The Home Depot Home Depot Championships
2003 Bank of America Bank of America WTA Tour Championships
2004 None WTA Tour Championships
2005–2010 Sony Ericsson Sony Ericsson Championships
2011–2013 BNP Paribas and Türk Ekonomi Bankası TEB–BNP Paribas WTA Championships Istanbul
2014–2018 BNP Paribas and SC Global BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global [33]
2019 Shiseido Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen [34]
2021 Akron Akron WTA Finals Guadalajara [35]
2022 Hologic Hologic WTA Finals Fort Worth [36]
2023 GNP Seguros GNP Seguros WTA Finals Cancun [37]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "WTA Tour 2021 Media Guide" (PDF). WTA Tour. p. 20. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 February 2021. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Saudi Arabia to host WTA Finals with record prize money for the next three years". Fox News. 4 April 2024.
  3. ^ "WTA re-launches year-end Championships as WTA Finals" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. May 27, 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 6, 2014.
  4. ^ a b "TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup" (PDF). WTA Tour. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 August 2014.
  5. ^ "2011 Calendar Announced". WTA Tour. 2 July 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  6. ^ "WTA narrows 2014 Championships host field to three finalists" (PDF). www.wtatennis.com. WTA. 29 January 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2014.
  7. ^ "Three cities still in running to host WTA Championships". www.wtatennis.com. WTA.
  8. ^ "WTA picks Singapore to host its tennis Championships from 2014". BBC News. 8 May 2013.
  9. ^ a b c "2021 SHISEIDO WTA FINALS SHENZHEN". www.shiseidowtafinalsshenzhen.com. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
  10. ^ "Shenzhen, China to host WTA Finals starting in 2019". Retrieved 2021-12-02.
  11. ^ "2021 WTA Finals moved from Shenzhen to Guadalajara". Reuters. 2021-09-13. Retrieved 2021-12-02.
  12. ^ "Where, Oh Where, Are the WTA Finals?". The New York Times.
  13. ^ @WTA (April 4, 2024). "Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, will host the next three editions of the WTA Finals from 2024-2026. The 2024 season-ending Finals will take place November 2-9, featuring the top 8 singles players and doubles teams in the Race to the #WTAFinals" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  14. ^ "40 Love History: Five Set Finals". Women's Tennis Association (WTA). 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  15. ^ "It's the Way It's (Almost) Always Been". New York Times. 3 September 2012. Retrieved 26 September 2012.
  16. ^ "WTA confirms 2024 calendar with increase in prize money for players". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  17. ^ "WTA Race Singles Ranking Page". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  18. ^ "WTA Finals Prize Money 2024". Retrieved 2024-10-30.
  19. ^ "BILLIE JEAN KING NAMED OFFICIAL AMBASSADOR OF WTA FINALS IN SINGAPORE". AFRICAN SPORTS MONTHLY. 30 June 2014. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
  20. ^ "Makers of Billie Jean King Trophy | WTA Finals | Tennis | Thomas Lyte - Thomas Lyte". www.thomaslyte.com. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
  21. ^ Merrell, Chloe (7 November 2021). "WTA Tour Finals 2021 preview: everything you need to know". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
  22. ^ "Evert, Navratilova to serve as WTA Finals legend ambassadors". Women's Tennis Association. 4 November 2021. Retrieved 2021-11-08.
  23. ^ "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  24. ^ "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  25. ^ "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  26. ^ a b "About WTA Finals". Akron WTA Finals Guadalajara. Archived from the original on 2021-11-11.
  27. ^ "WTA Finals 2021: By the Numbers - Tennis Now". www.tennisnow.com. 9 November 2021. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
  28. ^ "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  29. ^ "November 18, 1990: Seles and Sabatini go five". www.tennismajors.com. 18 November 2020. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
  30. ^ "Return Winners: A look back at the 1990 WTA Finals". www.tennis.com. 29 October 2016. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
  31. ^ a b "Venus outlasts Ostapenko in marathon Singapore epic". www.wtatennis.com. 24 October 2017. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
  32. ^ "Joint Statement by the International Governing Bodies of Tennis". WTA Tour. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  33. ^ "Tennis-BNP Paribas extends WTA Championship sponsorship". Reuters. Singapore. 11 March 2014. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
  34. ^ "Shiseido signs on as title sponsor of WTA Finals Shenzhen". wtatennis.com. Shenzhen. 23 July 2019.
  35. ^ "WTA Finals: Making Guadalajara Before the World". smallcapnews.co.uk. Guadalajara. 21 September 2021.
  36. ^ "Hologic partners with WTA Tour in landmark title sponsorship". wtatennis.com. Fort Worth. 3 March 2022.
  37. ^ "GNP Seguros WTA Finals Cancun 2023". boletomovil.com. Cancun. 15 October 2023.
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