WTA LADIES TENNIS FINALS UPDATE AS RADWANSKA AND PLISKOVA QUALIFY FOR 2016 WTA FINALS SINGAPORE

Written by: Staff on 4th October 2016

WTA LADIES TENNIS FINALS UPDATE AS RADWANSKA AND PLISKOVA QUALIFY FOR 2016 WTA FINALS SINGAPORE

epa05534288 Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic hits a return to Angelique Kerber of Germany during the women's final on the thirteenth day of the US Open Tennis Championships at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York, USA, 10 September 2016. The US Open runs through September 11. EPA/DANIEL MURPHY |

Defending Champion Agnieszka Radwanska and Debutante Karolina Pliskova Qualify for 2016 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global

-Reigning champion Radwanska to make eighth appearance at WTA Finals

-Pliskova is set to make debut appearance at the year-end finale

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) announced today that Agnieszka Radwanska and Karolina Pliskova have qualified for this year’s BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. The year-end event brings together the top 8 singles players and doubles teams to compete for $7 million in prize money. Radwanska and Pliskova join Angelique Kerber, Serena Williams and Simona Halep in the singles field, with three more spots left.

Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in action during a women’s second round match against Ekaterina Makarova of Russia in the China Open tennis tournament at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, China 03 October 2016. EPA/ROLEX DELA PENA

Radwanska has secured her eighth qualification at the WTA Finals in Singapore, where she won the biggest title of her career in 2015 – highlighted by wins over Simona Halep, Garbiñe Muguruza and Petra Kvitova. The 27-year-old previously reached two WTA Finals semifinals in 2012 at Istanbul and in 2014, when they were first held in Singapore.

Pliskova has secured her first-ever qualification at the WTA Finals. The 24-year-old is also in contention to secure a spot in the Singapore doubles field alongside Julia Goerges, currently sitting at the No.8 spot on the Road to Singapore Leaderboard.

“Congratulations to Aga and Karolina on qualifying for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global,” said WTA CEO Steve Simon. “Both have had incredible years, each winning multiple WTA titles – an impressive feat very few players accomplish each year. We are thrilled to see Aga back in Singapore to defend the Billie Jean King Trophy, as well as Karolina, who will compete at her first WTA Finals.”

After clinching the Billie Jean King Trophy in 2015, Radwanska kept the momentum rolling into the 2016 season by winning her 18th career WTA title at the Shenzhen Open – followed by back-to-back semifinals at the Australian Open, Qatar Total Open – Doha and the BNP Paribas Open – Indian Wells. The Pole is one of nine WTA players who hold multiple titles in 2016, clinching her second trophy at the Connecticut Open – New Haven. Radwanska reached two additional semifinals at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix – Stuttgart, Toray Pan Pacific Open – Tokyo and three quarterfinals at the Aegon International Eastbourne, Western & Southern Open – Cincinnati, and the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open.

Pliskova also owns multiple titles in 2016, clinching two trophies at the Aegon Open Nottingham and the Western & Southern Open – Cincinnati. The Czech, who owns the record for most aces in 2016 with 478 (as of October 3, 2016), reached two additional finals this year at the Aegon International Eastbourne and her first Grand Slam final at the US Open, as well as two semifinals at the BNP Paribas Open – Indian Wells and at her home tournament – the J&T Banka Prague Open.

“It’s the goal of everyone to qualify for the WTA Finals, and I’m happy to be returning to defend my title” said Radwanska. “I’ve played at Singapore for a few years now, and qualifying again this year means I’ve had a great season – to be in the Top 8. It won’t be easy to defend my title, but that’s the goal. It will be exciting and a challenge to see different names and faces in this year’s field.”

“I’m very excited that I have qualified for the WTA Finals in Singapore,” said Pliskova. “It’s been an amazing year so far and the best is coming at the WTA Finals. I hope to see many fans in Singapore and that many more follow my matches from around the world. Wish me luck – I am excited to be there for the first time in my life.”

The current Road to Singapore Leaderboard as follows (as of October 3, 2016):

The leaderboard is updated each Monday (every two weeks during Grand Slam events) and can be found at www.wtafinals.com.

Staged at the Singapore Sports Hub from October 23-30, the 2016 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global is an eight-day tennis festival featuring the world’s best players vying for US$7 million in prize money and two of the most prestigious titles in women’s tennis. The Top 8 singles players will compete in a round-robin format with the winner taking home the Billie Jean King Trophy. The Top 8 doubles teams will compete in a knock-out format for the WTA Finals Martina Navratilova Trophy.

The BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global made its record-breaking Asia-Pacific debut in 2014 and has seen continual growth each year. In 2015, more than 130,000 fans representing 51 countries attended the event, and the on-court action was viewed by over 32.5 million households worldwide during the festival of sport and entertainment.

In 2016, an exciting Family Day along with new ticket packages have been introduced to further enhance the fan experience, offering engaging activities both on and off the court. Passes and packages are now available on the WTA Finals website at www.WTAFinals.com. For the latest updates and insights, follow Twitter (@WTAFinalsSG), Facebook (facebook.com/WTAFinalsSG) and Instagram(@WTAFinalsSG).

The WTA is the global leader in women’s professional sport with more than 2,500 players representing 92 nations competing for a record $137 million in prize money. The 2016 WTA competitive season includes 56 events and four Grand Slams in 33 countries. In 2015, The WTA was watched by 395 million fans on television and digital channels around the world. The 2016 WTA competitive season concludes with the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global from October 23-30, 2016 and the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai, China from November 1-6, 2016.

Further information on the WTA can be found at www.wtatennis.com, facebook.com/WTA and twitter.com/WTA.

Topics: Agnieszka Radnwanska, Angelique Kerber, Karolina Pliskova, Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Sports, Tennis News, WTA Finals Singapore

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10sBalls_com says:

October 4, 2016 at 10:33 am

WTA Ladies #Tennis Finals Update As @ARadwanska & @KaPliskova Qualify For 2016 #WTAFinals Singapore… https://t.co/1VvNkUPbZj