All articles tagged with #wta
The Brisbane International features a strong field with top players like Sabalenka and Keys, promising exciting matches and potential showdowns, including a possible quarterfinal between Sabalenka and Keys, as the tournament serves as a key lead-up to the Australian Open.
Serena Williams, the legendary tennis player with 23 major singles titles, is preparing for a potential return to professional tennis in 2026 after applying for reinstatement and rejoining the testing pool, despite her recent tweet denying plans to come back. Her return could impact her Hall of Fame induction and is linked to her recent activities, including her use of weight loss drugs, which are under monitoring by WADA.
The ATP and WTA Tours are urged to hold an urgent meeting to address serious issues with the tennis calendar, including player withdrawals due to fatigue and illness, as well as tournament organization problems highlighted by the Cincinnati Open. These issues threaten the health of players and the quality of the sport, prompting calls for immediate action to prevent further problems. The 2025 tennis season is nearing its end with 20 tournaments remaining, including the US Open starting August 24.
Iga Swiatek, the reigning Wimbledon champion, was unexpectedly defeated by Clara Tauson at the Canadian Open, but she responded graciously on social media and remains a strong contender for the US Open, aiming to continue her successful tennis career.
Venus Williams returned to professional tennis primarily to maintain her health insurance coverage through COBRA, highlighting the high costs and complexities of healthcare even for wealthy athletes. Despite her success and earnings, she emphasized the importance of insurance due to her ongoing medical needs, such as treatment for uterine fibroids, illustrating the broader issue of healthcare affordability and access.
The WTA Tour has introduced a policy to protect the world rankings of women tennis players undergoing fertility treatments, allowing players ranked inside the top 750 who miss at least 10 weeks to use a Special Entry Ranking for up to three events, supporting players balancing family planning and their careers.
The WTA has introduced a ranking protection policy for female tennis players who freeze their eggs or embryos, allowing them to maintain their ranking while taking time off for fertility treatments, aiming to reduce pressure and support family planning among players.
Iga Swiatek, a five-time Grand Slam champion, accepted a one-month suspension after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine, which was found to have contaminated her melatonin medication. The International Tennis Integrity Agency acknowledged her low level of fault, and Swiatek will serve the remaining days of her suspension, allowing her to return to competition by December 4. The WTA expressed support for Swiatek, emphasizing the challenges athletes face with medication compliance. Swiatek was also fined her Cincinnati Open prize money.
Iga Swiatek, the world No. 2 in women's tennis, has been handed a one-month ban after testing positive for the banned substance trimetazidine, which was found to be due to contaminated melatonin medication. The International Tennis Integrity Agency ruled the violation as unintentional with minimal fault, leading to a reduced suspension. Swiatek had already served a provisional suspension and missed three tournaments. The case underscores the importance of athletes ensuring the safety of their supplements and medications.
Former World No.1 Simona Halep's four-year ban for doping has been reduced to nine months by the Court for Arbitration for Sport, allowing her to immediately resume her tennis career. The ban was reduced after Halep's appeal, which argued that she tested positive for a banned substance due to a contaminated nutritional supplement. The CAS ruled that Halep had established, on the balance of probabilities, that the substance entered her body through the supplement and that her anti-doping violations were not intentional. The WTA has expressed support for the CAS decision and welcomed Halep's return to play.
Naomi Osaka triumphed in her first elite tennis match since maternity leave, defeating Tamara Korpatsch at the Brisbane International. Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1, expressed a new appreciation for life on and off the court as a mother. She highlighted her desire to be a strong role model for her daughter and to return the love she's received from fans and supporters. Osaka is set to face former No. 1 Karolina Pliskova in the next round, marking a significant step in her comeback journey.
The Women's Tennis Association (WTA) has announced a new tour calendar and pathway to equal prize money, with the goal of attaining equal prize money at combined WTA 1000 events by 2027 and single-week WTA 1000 and 500 events by 2033. The revised calendar structure will showcase the top players consistently playing the top events, while providing a structure for player mobility and growth opportunities, and facilitate the acceleration of WTA commercial growth and provide a sustainable economic model for tournaments and players.
The WTA event in Eastbourne this week features a strong field, including the two finalists of last year's Wimbledon. On Day 1, Shelby Rogers faces Camila Osorio, Jodie Burrage takes on Lauren Davis, Shuai Zhang plays Harriet Dart, and Karolina Pliskova meets Elise Mertens. Pliskova, despite a 4-match losing streak, is expected to win in three sets.
Elina Svitolina won her first WTA title in almost two years and her first since becoming a mother, beating Anna Blinkova 6-2, 6-3 in the final at the Internationaux de Strasbourg. Svitolina, ranked No. 508, is the lowest-ranked woman to win a tour title since an unranked Kim Clijsters at the 2009 US Open. The 28-year-old now heads to Paris to compete in the French Open.
Tennis fans criticized the poorly organized trophy ceremony at the Rome Open, with the crowd booing and the traditional order of the ceremony being wrong. This is the second event in a row where the WTA trophy ceremony has drawn criticism. Fans expressed their disappointment and called the ceremony a "disaster" and "totally disrespectful for both players."