Andreeva, Paolini, Rybakina head to Ningbo to battle for last two spots in WTA Finals

Six players have now qualified for this year's WTA Finals—Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek did it over the summer; Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova and Madison Keys did it during Beijing; and Jessica Pegula just punched her ticket to Riyadh in Wuhan.

Just two spots remain, and only three players—Mirra Andreeva, Jasmine Paolini and Elena Rybakina—are still in contention.

Things could heat up in a big way this week as all three of those players are competing at the WTA 500 event in Ningbo, China, with plenty of points up for grabs in the Race to the WTA Finals.

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How have the Race to the WTA Finals standings changed after Wuhan?

The biggest news from Wuhan, other than Pegula qualifying, was that everyone from No. 10 down on the standings is now eliminated from contention. It's now down to No. 7 Andreeva, No. 8 Paolini and No. 9 Rybakina for the last two spots in the eight-player field.

And things have tightened up significantly in that group, after Andreeva lost her opening match in Wuhan, while Paolini and Rybakina reached the semifinals and quarterfinals, respectively. It meant the Italian passed the Kazakh for the No. 8 spot.

What was more than a 500-point difference between No. 7 and No. 8 last week is now less than a 200-point gap going into Ningbo.

RACE TO THE WTA FINALS (after Wuhan, players qualified in bold):

• No. 1: Aryna Sabalenka—10,000 points
• No. 2: Iga Swiatek—8,368 points
• No. 3: Coco Gauff—6,574 points [+1]
• No. 4: Amanda Anisimova—5,907 points [-1]
• No. 5: Jessica Pegula—5,183 points
• No. 6: Madison Keys—4,449 points
• No. 7: Mirra Andreeva—4,319 points
• No. 8: Jasmine Paolini—4,131 points [+1]
• No. 9: Elena Rybakina—3,913 points [-1]

What can happen in Ningbo?

To make a long story short, a lot.

👉 Andreeva has the best shot at qualifying for the WTA Finals this week, and there's one scenario where she wouldn't even need to win a match—if Rybakina loses her opener, Andreeva qualifies no matter what. Andreeva can also qualify by winning the title, regardless of any other results. There are several more scenarios in between where the teenager can qualify.

👉 Paolini can punch her ticket to Riyadh this week, too, if she reaches the semifinals and Rybakina doesn't reach the semifinals, or if she reaches the final (regardless of everyone else's results).

👉 Rybakina can't qualify this week, but it's possible for her to move past Paolini to No. 8, if the 2022 Wimbledon champion wins the WTA 500 title and the Italian loses before the semifinals.

Stay tuned to TENNIS.com for all the latest race updates this week, and stream WTA Ningbo on the Tennis Channel App!