World number three Coco Gauff and number seven Zheng Qinwen will face each other in the final of the WTA Finals in Riyadh after winning their semi-final matches on Friday.
The 20-year-old Gauff defeated world number one Aryna Sabalenka with a score of 7-6(7/4), 6-3. This victory makes her the youngest player to reach the finals of this year-ending tournament since Caroline Wozniacki in 2010.
Zheng, who won a gold medal in singles at the Olympics this year, reached the final in her first appearance at the WTA Finals by beating Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova, winning 6-3, 7-5.
Gauff now leads their head-to-head matches against Sabalenka at 5-4 and showed great stability in the semi-final, saving nine out of 13 break points. “I’m happy with my performance. I know Aryna is a tough opponent. She is number one for a reason,” said Gauff, who won the US Open in 2023.
Gauff has previously beaten Zheng in their only meeting this season on clay in Rome. She was coached in the past by Pere Riba, who now works with Zheng. “She’s playing great tennis,” Gauff mentioned about Zheng. “Feeling confident will help me have a good chance to win. I’m not too nervous. To be here at the end of the year is already a privilege.” The match between Gauff and Zheng on Saturday will feature the youngest combined age of the finalists, at 42 years and 271 days, since Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams in 2004.
At the packed King Saud University Indoor Arena, Sabalenka faced challenges right from the start, taking over eight minutes to win her first service game after saving two break points. Gauff made some mistakes, allowing Sabalenka to break first and go ahead 2-1, but then Sabalenka was broken in return.
The players were evenly matched until Sabalenka broke in game 11, but Gauff pushed the set into a tiebreaker. Gauff took an early lead in the tiebreak, finally winning the first set after 59 minutes on her fourth attempt. The second set saw Gauff take control, breaking Sabalenka twice to lead 4-1.
Sabalenka fought hard, trying to break back, but Gauff maintained her advantage to secure the win after one hour and 49 minutes of play. Earlier in the day, Zheng, aged 22, took one hour and 40 minutes to beat Krejcikova in her semi-final, hitting nine aces in the match.
Zheng was ahead 6-3, 3-0, but Krejcikova nearly made a comeback. Zheng managed to regain control to win their second meeting. “It’s really special for me as this is my first WTA Finals, and now I’m in the final, which feels unbelievable. She is a strong player, and we put on a good match today,” Zheng said. She aims to be the first player to win the WTA Finals on her debut since Ashleigh Barty in 2019. “It got tricky at 3-0 when my performance dropped a bit, and she started to play more freely, going ahead to 3-4. I had to focus and not panic too much. It shows I was mentally strong,” she added. Since the WTA Finals started in 1972, Zheng is only the second Asian player to reach the final, following Li Na in 2013.
