The 55th WTA Finals are set. The list of singles finalists may not have surprised you yesterday, but a medical withdrawal by No.1 seed Elena Rybakina opens up the field. The current eight competitors can be thought of in so many different ways. We’ll examine the past champions, the first-timers and the only mom in the list.

Before we dive in, let’s back it up a bit. What are the Finals? How are they decided, and how long have they been contested?

Almost every year since 1972, the Women’s Tennis Association has hosted a competition that features the top eight women in the world. There are two exceptions: In 1986, the finals were hosted twice when moving from a March contest to November, and in 2020, the tournament was canceled due to the COVID pandemic.

Across those 54 contests, twenty-eight players have won it, and ten of them have won more than one championship, including Martina Navratilova, who won it a record eight times, while Steffi Graf and Serena Williams each won it five times.

Players are separated into two groups. Over six days, the players compete against every other player in their group. The top two finishers in each group advance to the semi-finals on Saturday, Nov. 14.

Every day, matches begin at noon: two singles matches followed by two doubles matches.

In order, the eight who qualified are

No. 1 Elena Rybakina
No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka
No. 3 Mirra Andreeva
No. 4 Coco Gauff
No. 5 Jessica Pegula
No. 6 Elina Svitolina
No. 7 Karolina Muchova
No. 8 Linda Noskova
No. 10 Marta Kostyuk (moved into the field when Rybakina withdrew)

Past Champions

A different player has won the tournament each of the past ten contests, and this year two of those ten have a shot at winning their second WTA Finals: Elina Svitolina (2018 winner) and Coco Gauff (2024).

Last year’s champion Elena Rybakina announced a medical withdrawal. In 2025, Rybakina not only won the final, she went a perfect 5-0 in the tournament. Rybakina maintains her No. 1 ranking regardless of tournament outcome.

First-Timers

Four newcomers join the top eight: 2026 French Open champion Mirra Andreeva, Wimbledon champ Linda Noskova, Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Muchova, and Marta Kostyuk. Muchova qualified in 2023, but a wrist injury prevented her from competing.

The Mom

Svitolina is the only mom in the group. She has a four-year old daughter named Skaï with French tennis player Gaël Monfils. The couple announced their divorce in October of this year.

Youngest and Oldest

At 19 years old, Andreeva is the youngest and only teenager in the group. At 32 years and 265 days, Pegula is the oldest. Svitolina is also 32, but 32 years 65 days.

The Czech Connection

Muchova and Noskova are from Czechia, a relatively small country of 11 million that has a storied history of producing the world’s best women’s tennis players.

The Ukranian Connection

Svitolina and Kostyuk are from Ukraine, invaded by Russia in 2022. This is the first time two players from Ukraine have made the WTA finals.

Who’s Missing

Four players made the finals last year but did not make the field this year: Iga Swiatek, Amanda Anisimova, Madison Keys and Jasmine Paolini. However, Paolini made the cut this year in doubles with partner and fellow Italian Sara Errani.

The WTA Finals were set to be hosted in Saudi Arabia this year, but the agreement was canceled, allowing Indian Wells to host for the 2026 edition only. The next three years will be hosted in Charlotte, N.C.

ORDER OF PLAY – SUNDAY, 8 NOVEMBER 2026
Indian Wells Tennis Garden, starting at 12:00 PM

[10] Marta Kostyuk (Ukr) vs. [8] Linda Noskova (Cze)

[4] Coco Gauff (USA) vs. [5] Jessica Pegula (USA)

[2] Katerina Siniakova (Cze)/Taylor Townsend (USA) vs. [8] Sara Errani (Ita)/Jasmine Paolini (Ita)

[4] Cristina Bucsa (Esp)/Nicole Melichar-Martinez (USA) vs. [6] Ellen Perez (Aus)/Demi Schuurs (Ned)

ORDER OF PLAY – MONDAY, 9 NOVEMBER 2026
Indian Wells Tennis Garden, starting at 12:00 PM

[2] Aryna Sabalenka vs. [7] Karolina Muchova (Cze)

[3] Mirra Andreeva vs. [6] Elina Svitolina (Ukr)

[1] Gabriela Dabrowski (Can)/Luisa Stefani (Bra) vs. [7] Elise Mertens (Bel)/Shuai Zhang (Chn)

[3] Hanyu Guo (Chn)/Kristina Mladenovic (Fra) vs. [5] Su-Wei Hsieh (Tpe)/Jelena Ostapenko (Lat)