Unfortunately, the world’s best top player will be absent. Simona Halep has missed the past month of action due to a back injury, and withdrew from the WTA Finals as well. Although the world No.1 hasn’t won a match since August, she already has enough points to secure the year-end top ranking for the second straight year. While we’re missing this year’s French Open champion, Singapore will host the winners of the other three Majors in 2018, as well as the other five biggest point accumulators not named Halep. With 1,665 points separating these eight players, and players able to earn up to 1,500 points in this tournament, the next eight days offer a golden opportunity for them to position themselves for success heading into 2019.
Petra Kvitova vs. Elina Svitolina
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Coming into this tournament, Kvitova is tied with countrywoman Karolina Pliskova for the most match wins on tour this year with 47. The majority of those took place in the first six months of the year, where Petra won five titles. But since July, Kvitova is just 8-7. Her opponent though also doesn’t come into Singapore with much confidence, as Svitolina hasn’t won a title since Rome in May. This will be Elina’s second WTA Finals appearance. Last year, she went only 1-2 in the round robin phase, and did not advance. Kvitova meanwhile qualified in five straight years, but this is her first time she’ll play at the WTA Finals in three years. Petra won this tournament in 2011, and was a finalist in 2015. Kvitova holds a decisive 7-1 record over Svitolina, and has won their last seven meetings. Petra will be the favorite in this opening match, yet considering both players’ lack of recent success, there’s an air of unpredictability in this matchup.
Caroline Wozniacki vs. Karolina Pliskova
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2018 Australian Open Champion Caroline Wozniacki is also the defending champion of this tournament, which at the time was the biggest title of her career and helped propel her to win her first Major. This is the sixth time she has qualified for the WTA Finals. She struggled with injuries over the past few months, and suffered early upsets at Wimbledon and the US Open. But she rediscovered her form just in time for this tournament, having won the Premier Mandatory tournament in Beijing only a few weeks ago. She didn’t drop a set in Beijing, though she also didn’t face a seeded player. Karolina Pliskova is back in Singapore for the third straight year, even though she didn’t have the strongest of seasons in 2018. However she has played well in Asia over the past five weeks. Pliskova won her second title of the year in Tokyo, ending US Open Champion Naomi Osaka’s winning streak in the final. And she then advanced to the final in Tianjin, where she was defeated by Caroline Garcia. Pliskova made the semifinals last year in Singapore, where she was defeated by Wozniacki, which was the last time these two played. Caroline owns a 6-3 record over Karolina, but they’ve split their last six matches, which all took place in 2017. The slower-playing hard court in Singapore should favor Wozniacki, as it did last year. But I expect Wozniacki will also feel pressure as the defending champion. While it’s only the first day of competition, this match could be crucial in deciding who advances out of this group.
