Swiatek, Muguruza, Badosa qualify for 2021 WTA Finals

The WTA announced on Monday that Iga Swiatek, Garbine Muguruza and Paula Badosa have qualified for the 2021 WTA Finals Guadalajara.

The trio will join Aryna Sabalenka, Barbora Krejcikova, Karolina Pliskova and Maria Sakkari in the singles field, leaving one qualification place remaining following Ashleigh Barty's withdrawal.

Five of the eight doubles teams have also confirmed their attendance in Guadalajara, which include Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova, Shuko Aoyama and Ena Shibahara, Hsieh Su-Wei and Elise Mertens, Nicole Melichar-Sanchez and Demi Schuurs, and Samantha Stosur and Zhang Shuai.

Swiatek will be making her debut appearance at the WTA Finals and is the first Polish woman to qualify since Agnieszka Radwanska in 2016. She has won two titles this season, at the Adelaide International in February and the Internazionali BNL d'Italia (Rome) on clay in May.

Muguruza is set to appear at the WTA Finals in singles for the fourth time. The Spaniard has reached four finals across the 2021 season, lifting the title at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships (her biggest title since winning the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati in 2017) and the Chicago Fall Tennis Classic.

Joining Swiatek in making her debut in the WTA Finals this year is Spain's Paula Badosa, and with compatriot Muguruza also appearing in Guadalajara, this marks the first time two Spanish women have qualified in singles in the same year since 2000 (Conchita Martinez and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario).

Guadalajara is playing host to the season-ending tournament for this year only, with the event returning to its home in Shenzhen, China in 2022.

( With inputs from ANI )

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