Why Can’t Serena Williams Qualify For WTA Finals 2021?

23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams is currently recovering from a hamstring injury. She injured her leg at the Wimbledon Championships 2021 and is yet to return to the court since then.

Serena Williams is currently the World No.41 player in the world. Interestingly, after the Australian Open 2021, she was inside the top-10 WTA rankings.

It is not possible for Serena Williams to qualify for the WTA Finals 2021

The WTA Finals 2021 will start shortly and this time, the tournament is taking place in Guadalajara, Mexico. As of now, both World No.1 Ashleigh Barty and World No.2 Aryna Sabalenka have already qualified for the event since they earned 6,411 and 4,669 points respectively. However, there is skepticism that whether Barty will play at the tournament this year or not.

Serena Williams is not even in the list of the top-20 WTA players who have earned the most points this year. She is way behind Victoria Azarenka, who has earned 2,165 points this year. Only the top eight players with the most WTA points in the year make their way through to the tournament.

Since she has played just 17 matches in 2021 and has not even earned 2,000 WTA points, the 40-year-old can’t play at the WTA Finals 2021 now. Moreover, she is highly unlikely to play any more matches before the WTA Finals, and thus can’t qualify for the tournament.

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Naomi Osaka might also miss the qualification spot

Naomi Osaka hasn’t played professional tennis since the US Open 2021. She took a break from the sport and hasn’t made a comeback ever since then.

Even though Japanese star won the Australian Open 2021 title, she only has earned only 2,771 points this year- keeping her on the 10th spot. Even if Barty misses the tournament, the World No.10 player will still not be able to qualify for the WTA Finals 2021. Moreover, Elina Svitolina is just 200 points behind her and can move to the 10th spot really soon.

Fans somehow feel that Naomi Osaka won’t return to the court in the remaining part of the season. Will she be able to defend her title at the Australian Open next year?

Also Read: “Her Name is Ellie”: Serena Williams’ Husband Introduces Olympia to Her Sister