US Open champion Sloane Stephens will be one out of nine top 20 players featuring in the third edition of the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai next week.
Hosted at the Hengqin Tennis Center, the event features the highest ranked players after those who has qualified for this week’s WTA Finals as well as a Chinese wild card. World No.10 Kristina Mladenovic will be the top seed in the tournament. The Frenchwoman won the St. Petersburg Open earlier this year, but injury issues has resulted in a decline in her form in recent months. Mladenovic hasn’t won back-to-back matches in a tournament since June.
Two grand slam champions will be present at the draw. Reigning US Open champion Stephens is aiming to win her second title of 2017 after Flushing Meadows. The 24-year-old hasn’t won a match since her triumph at the major, suffering back-to-back losses in Wuhan and Beijing. Angelique Kerber is the only former world No.1 to feature in the tournament. The two-time grand slam champion will be aiming to end 2017 on a high note following a roller coaster season on the tour. Her win-loss for the year currently stands at 29-22.
“We are pleased to welcome the third edition of the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, featuring many of the top athletes on the WTA,” WTA CEO Steve Simon said in a statement. “This signature event showcases top players along with up and coming stars, all joining together and celebrating their successes of the 2017 WTA season.”
Other entrants include Coco Vandeweghe, Elena Vesnina and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Chinese world No.27 Peng Shuai is the wild card for the event. Overall, the Zhuai field have won a total of 11 WTA titles between them this season. Vandeweghe, Kerber and Slovakia’s Magdaléna Rybáriková are the only players to have not won a title.
“After an amazing season of women’s tennis, all the players that have gained their spot to play in Zhuhai are amongst the best players in the world. Great tennis is guaranteed for all the fans coming to Zhuhai and everyone following from home all over the world.” Said tournament director Jose Miguel Garcia.
Similar to Singapore, the Elite Trophy is a round-robin competition. The 12 players will be split into four groups of three with the winners progressing to the semifinals. A similar format will occur with the six doubles teams, but the winner of each group qualifies for the final.
More than $2.2 million in prize money will be up for grabs in the tournament, which will take place between October 31se – November 5th.
Full list of entries
Kristina Mladenovic FRA
Coco Vandeweghe USA
Sloane Stephens USA
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova RUS
Anastasija Sevastova LAT
Elena Vesnina RUS
Julia Goerges GER
Angelique Kerber GER
Ashleigh Barty AUS
Magdalena Rybarikova SVK
Barbora Strycova CZE
Peng Shuai CHN
Here is the player field for your 2️⃣0️⃣1️⃣7️⃣ #WTAEliteTrophy to #ShineInZhuhai ! Welcome All! 👏🏻
🇫🇷🇺🇸🇺🇸🇷🇺🇱🇻🇷🇺🇩🇪🇩🇪🇦🇺🇸🇰🇨🇿🇨🇳 pic.twitter.com/JpN1jfIq2X— WTA Elite Trophy (@WTAEliteTrophy) 25 October 2017
