GNP Seguros WTA Finals Cancun, Mexico, 2023

[tented]

DATE: October 29 - November 5, 2023
SURFACE: Hard
PRIZE MONEY: $9,000,000
FIELD SIZE: 8
DEFENDING CHAMPION: Caroline Garcia

Singles:

1. Aryna Sabalenka
2. Iga Swiatek
3. Coco Gauff
4. Elena Rybakina
5. Jessica Pegula
6. Ons Jabeur
7. Marketa Vondrousova
8. Karolina Muchova
8. Maria Sakkari

Doubles:

1. Coco Gauff / Jessica Pegula
2. Storm Hunter / Elise Mertens
3. Shuko Aoyama / Ena Shibahara
4. Barbora Krejcikova / Katerina Siniakova
5. Desirae Krawczyk / Demi Schuurs
6. Laura Siegemund / Vera Zvonareva
7. Gabriela Dabrowski / Erin Routliffe
8. Nicole Melichar-Martinez / Ellen Perez

The Tournament:

The 2023 WTA Finals is the professional women's championship tennis tournament run by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). It is the 52nd edition of the singles event and the 47th edition of the doubles competition and is scheduled to take place in Cancún, Mexico between 29 October and 5 November, marking the return to Mexico for the second time after the 2021 edition was held in Guadalajara, and the fourth consecutive finals to be held in a different staged city (Shenzhen in 2019, Guadalajara in 2021, and Fort Worth in 2022). Other than Cancún, there were four other cities that were in contention to host the WTA Finals but the bid from the organizers in Cancún was selected ahead of the other contenders such as Riyadh, Ostrava, Cluj Napoca and Washington DC. The tournament is held on an indoor hardcourt and is contested by the eight highest-ranked singles players and doubles teams of the 2023 WTA Tour.

About Cancun:

Cancún is a city in southeast Mexico on the northeast coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. It is a significant tourist destination in Mexico and the seat of the municipality of Benito Juárez. The city is on the Caribbean Sea and is one of Mexico's easternmost points.

Cancún is just north of Mexico's Caribbean coast resort area known as the Riviera Maya.

Tourism Guide:

 

[PhiEaglesfan712]

I wish I would have waited, lol. I was here in this past January (during the Australian Open) with my 2 sisters for the younger one's 30th birthday. We stayed at the Iberostar.

I wish Philadelphia would have put a bid instead of Washington DC, so I could attend. I miss the days when we had a Virginia Slims tournament (I think it was 1991-94), and it was in early November to boot, so a WTA Finals in Philadelphia is doable.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Karolina Muchova has withdrawn with an ongoing wrist injury, that has not healed sad to say
Maria Sakkari will replace her in the tournament

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Main draw ceremony will take place today at 7pm EST

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Singles Draw,

Bacalar Group,
Sabalenka
Rybakina
Pegula
Sakkari

Chetumal Group
Swiatek
Gauff
Jabeur
Vondrousova

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Doubles Draw,
Mahahaul Group,
1. Gauff and Pegula
4. Krejcikova and Siniakova
6. Zvonareva and Siegumund
7. Dabrowski and Routliffe

Maya K'an Group.
2. Hunter and Mertens
3. Aoyama and Shibahara
5. Schuurs and Krawcyzk
8. Melichar-Martinez and Perez

 

[the AntiPusher]

DATE: October 29 - November 5, 2023
SURFACE: Hard
PRIZE MONEY: $9,000,000
FIELD SIZE: 8
DEFENDING CHAMPION: Caroline Garcia

Singles:

1. Aryna Sabalenka
2. Iga Swiatek
3. Coco Gauff
4. Elena Rybakina
5. Jessica Pegula
6. Ons Jabeur
7. Marketa Vondrousova
8. Karolina Muchova
8. Maria Sakkari

Doubles:

1. Coco Gauff / Jessica Pegula
2. Storm Hunter / Elise Mertens
3. Shuko Aoyama / Ena Shibahara
4. Barbora Krejcikova / Katerina Siniakova
5. Desirae Krawczyk / Demi Schuurs
6. Laura Siegemund / Vera Zvonareva
7. Gabriela Dabrowski / Erin Routliffe
8. Nicole Melichar-Martinez / Ellen Perez

View attachment 8892

The Tournament:

The 2023 WTA Finals is the professional women's championship tennis tournament run by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). It is the 52nd edition of the singles event and the 47th edition of the doubles competition and is scheduled to take place in Cancún, Mexico between 29 October and 5 November, marking the return to Mexico for the second time after the 2021 edition was held in Guadalajara, and the fourth consecutive finals to be held in a different staged city (Shenzhen in 2019, Guadalajara in 2021, and Fort Worth in 2022). Other than Cancún, there were four other cities that were in contention to host the WTA Finals but the bid from the organizers in Cancún was selected ahead of the other contenders such as Riyadh, Ostrava, Cluj Napoca and Washington DC. The tournament is held on an indoor hardcourt and is contested by the eight highest-ranked singles players and doubles teams of the 2023 WTA Tour.

About Cancun:

Cancún is a city in southeast Mexico on the northeast coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. It is a significant tourist destination in Mexico and the seat of the municipality of Benito Juárez. The city is on the Caribbean Sea and is one of Mexico's easternmost points.

Cancún is just north of Mexico's Caribbean coast resort area known as the Riviera Maya.

View attachment 8893

Tourism Guide:

I have been to Cancun quite a few times.. probably the best area for coral reef in the 90s..I hope it's still beautiful because the water was the color of azure blue

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

WTA Finals,
Starting at 2.30pm Sunday 29th October,
The SFs will feature the top 2 finishers from each group, with the top finisher from one group facing the 2nd place finisher from the other.The SFs and final will follow a standard knockout format.

S.Aoyama/E.Shibahara (3) vs D.Krawczyk/D.Schuurs (5)

Not before 5pm

E.Rybakina (4) vs J.Pegula (5)

Not before 6pm,

A.Sabalenka (1) vs M.Sakkari (8)
Followed by,
C.Gauff/J.Pegula (1) vs G.Dabrowski/E.Routliffe (7)

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Aoyama/Shiba (3) win all 9 deciding points to defeat Krawczy/Schuurs (5) 75 62 to win in the opening match in the Maya Ka'an Group in Cancun

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

From 3-5 down, Pegula takes the first set against Rybakina 7-5 in the first singles match in Cancun
I could not post the final score as I had to go to the dentist, a appointment I forget
Ugly 2nd set from Rybakina quite frankly, Jess wins 75 62
BTW Pegula is now 47-0 when she wins the 1st set in 2023. Crazy stat, conditions seem to suit Pegula in Cancun

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

No 1 Aryna Sabalenka making a statement in her first match defeating Sakkari 60 61, note Sakkari was brought in as a alternate as Muchova withdrew to an ongoing wrist injury

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

In the last match at Cancun No 1 doubles Gauff/Pegula were defeated by No 7 seeds Dabrowski/E.Routliffe 76(2) 63

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Order of play,
Monday 30th October,
Starts at 2.30pm,

S.Hunter/E.Mertens (2) vs S.Aoyama/E.Shibahara (3)
I.Swiatek (2) vs M.Vondrousova
C.Gauff (3) vs O.Jabeur (6)
D.Krawczyk/D.Schuurs (5) vs N.Melichar-Martinez/E.Perez (8)

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

For the life of me why didnt the WTA hold their finals at Guadalajara in Mexico, instead of Cancun. Most of the players have complained about the court conditions( though Jess Pegula hasnt after her match). The WTA decided to build a main stadium at Cancun with many setbacks, and players arrived and could not practice on the main court, apart from the high altitude, and different balls, players have to get use to the conditions, still they had a ready made complex at Guadalajara and to me they should have used that and saved money, and stop the whinging from the players

 

[Kieran]

For the life of me why didnt the WTA hold their finals at Guadalajara in Mexico, instead of Cancun. Most of the players have complained about the court conditions( though Jess Pegula hasnt after her match). The WTA decided to build a main stadium at Cancun with many setbacks, and players arrived and could not practice on the main court, apart from the high altitude, and different balls, players have to get use to the conditions, still they had a ready made complex at Guadalajara and to me they should have used that and saved money, and stop the whinging from the players

Well I think they were struggling to find a host for their year end tourney. Negotiations with the Saudis - of all people - broke down at a late stage and they went around the world with their begging bowl looking for a home:

World number one Aryna Sabalenka has criticised the Women's Tennis Association over the organisation of its season-ending Finals in Mexico.

The venue for the Finals was only confirmed in early September after talks between the WTA and Saudi Arabia failed to yield an agreement for 2023.

Players had been mostly supportive of playing the tournament in Saudi Arabia, but there was criticism from the likes of Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert of the WTA potentially going to a country where women face discrimination.

Evert and Navratilova were right, but the whole mess is an example of why the women don’t pay their players equal pay to the men: the men’s game is more in demand. It’s unthinkable that men’s tennis would be in such disarray over a prestigious annual event…

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Well I think they were struggling to find a host for their year end tourney. Negotiations with the Saudis - of all people - broke down at a late stage and they went around the world with their begging bowl looking for a home:

World number one Aryna Sabalenka has criticised the Women's Tennis Association over the organisation of its season-ending Finals in Mexico.


Evert and Navratilova were right, but the whole mess is an example of why the women don’t pay their players equal pay to the men: the men’s game is more in demand. It’s unthinkable that men’s tennis would be in such disarray over a prestigious annual event…

Thank God the negotiations broke down with the Saudis! though there are still people high up in the WTA still wanting to hold tournaments there in the future!
Building a stadium with setbacks in Cancun to me is just stupid as they already have a good complex at Guadalajara in Mexico where they hold a WTA1000 event, and would have saved money and time etc, just my thoughts., and the players would not have complained about the court conditions etc

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

No 2 seeds Mertens/Hunter defeated the No 3 seeds Aoyama/Shibahara64 62
Storm Hunter and Elise Meretns, won the WTA1000 titles in Rome and Guadalajara this year.
Elise Mertens has now won her last 6 doubles matches at the WTA Finald, last year she and Veronika Kudermetova were underfeated 5-0 en route to the title

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Iga Swiatek (2) with a straight sets win over Marketa Vondrousova 76(3) 60
Rain has suspended play in Cancun, next singles match between Gauff v Jabeur suspended.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Coco Gauff and Ons Jabeur are finally on court for their singles match, which was suspended due to rain

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

More bakery in the WTA Finals as Gauff hands Jabeur a 6-0 1st set. Coco looking good
3 of the 7 sets played in singles so far in Cancun were 6-0
Oh players leaving the court as the rain comes down