Reaching the final at the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai, Venus Williams is very close to finish the year in the top 10 for the first time since 2010. At 35, she would be the oldest top 10 after Martina Navratilova. Winning in the final against Pliskova, Venus has to win to make sure to achieve the feat.
The WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai has its 2 finalists. Venus Williams will face-off Karolina Pliskova in the very last premier tournament of the 2015 season for women’s tennis. 35-year-old Venus has set some new records for herself dominating Roberta Vinci in the semifinals on Saturday. The 7-time Grand Slam champion beat the US Open finalist by 6-2 6-2 in just 66 minutes.
Too strong on serve and too proactive the American for the tired Italian in Zhuahai. If there were sparks and drama the last time the two met on court in Wuhan, this time the match went on fast and smooth for Venus. Solid on both her ground strokes, Williams was hardly ever challenged by the Italian’s sliced one-handed backhand. Venus closed with 3 aces and over 60% of the points won on her first serve, meaning she didn’t have a brilliant day on her serve, but moved so fast and was so consistent on court that she didn’t even need her best weapon to dominate top 20′ competition.
Here the highlights of the match:
https://youtu.be/dqCAXiuMS68
With the win against Vinci, Venus could close the season as high as World No.7 in the WTA rankings, overtaking another Italian, Flavia Pennetta, if she were to win the final on Sunday against Karolina Pliskova. At 35, Venus hasn’t had enough of tennis and wants to win more, famished as she was when she approached the sport as a young teenage gun. Williams is currently ranked at No.10 in the WTA live rankings.
The American holds the 10th spot with 3530 points after reaching the final. Angelique Kerber and Lucie Safarova, ranked respectively 8th and 9th, are both just 60 points away with 3590 points. If Venus beats Pliskova in the final on Sunday, she will have a grand total of 3790 points, enough to overtake No.7 Flavia Pennetta. who currently holds the spot with 3621 points.
Venus will be bidding to close her first top 10 season in 5 years, after finishing at World No.5 in 2010. The oldest player to close the year in the top 10 was Martina Navratilova, who finished the season as No.8 in 1994, when she was 38 years old. Venus is three years away from tying Martina, but surely a top 10 season at 35, considering how modern tennis is all about physicality, would be an impressive achievement and one to be very proud of.
Unfortunately for the American, her direct competition in the rankings will also be her opponent in the final. Karolina Pliskova has dominated Elina Svitolina in the semi-finals in Zhuhai in straight sets, winning by 6-3 6-1. Pliskova played better when it mattered the most, like when she fired a backhand cross-court winner to take the first set. The Czech stayed strong on her serve and forehand in the second, cutting the rallies short, stopping Svitolina in trying to drag the match into a battle.
Here the last game won by Pliskova:
https://youtu.be/-bXrd3Kt4sM
Reaching the final Karolina currently sits on the World No.11 spot in the live WTA rankings with 3285 points. If she wins the final against Venus, she will overtake the American and close for the first time a season in the top 10, with a total of 3545 points (15 more than Venus).
Who will finish the year in the top 10?
