Who qualified
The field was complete on 21 October. Rybakina qualified first, on 14 September - the day she became world No. 1. The order and the dates:
| # | Player | Qualified |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elena Rybakina | 14 September |
| 2 | Aryna Sabalenka | 29 September |
| 3 | Mirra Andreeva | 9 October |
| 4 | Linda Nosková | 9 October |
| 5 | Jessica Pegula | 14 October |
| 6 | Coco Gauff | 14 October |
| 7 | Elina Svitolina | 17 October |
| 8 | Karolína Muchová | 21 October |
For the first time in three years Iga Świątek is not in the eight: she is No. 8 in the ranking of 26 October but fell short in the race. Qualifying requires at least eight WTA 1000 or 500 events during the season, and the race counts a player's eighteen best results.
In doubles, Kazakhstan's Anna Danilina qualified with Aleksandra Krunić on 3 September, among the first teams in. The pair later withdrew with an injury.
Groups and schedule
The groups are drawn a day or two before play begins. Until then the only certainty is that the top two in the race go into different groups, so Rybakina and Sabalenka cannot meet before the semifinals.
The shape of the week: six days of round-robin matches, then the semifinals and the final on 15 November. Each day has two sessions, day and evening, with one singles and one doubles match in each.
Format and points
The WTA Finals bring together the eight best players of the season according to the PIF Race to the WTA Finals. They are split into two groups of four. Within each group everyone plays everyone, the top two go through to the semifinals, and then come the semifinals and the final. A doubles event for the eight best teams runs alongside.
Points come with every win: 200 for a group match, 400 for the semifinal and 500 for the final. An unbeaten champion takes the maximum - 1500 points. That is exactly how Rybakina won the title in 2025.
What Rybakina is defending
In Riyadh in 2025 she won all five matches and took the maximum 1,500 points. It is the single biggest block in her ranking, and it drops out in November: keeping it whole means winning the title again.
In the ranking of 26 October she has 9,501 points to Sabalenka's 7,550. The year-end No. 1 is whoever leads the ranking on the final Monday of the season, but Rybakina settled it early: on 29 October in Tokyo, according to the WTA, she secured the 2026 year-end No. 1 ranking. The current race standings are on the WTA site.
Indian Wells instead of Riyadh
The two previous editions were held in Riyadh, but in July 2026 the WTA announced that the Finals would be hosted by Indian Wells in California. Matches will be played at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden - the venue of one of the biggest tournaments of the spring. Rybakina knows those courts well: in March 2026 she played the final there against Aryna Sabalenka and lost only in a deciding-set tie-break. More on that tournament →
Rybakina at the WTA Finals
| Year | Result | How it went |
|---|---|---|
| 2024, Riyadh | Group stage | Lost to Jasmine Paolini and Zheng Qinwen, beat Aryna Sabalenka. |
| 2025, Riyadh | Champion | Group wins over Amanda Anisimova, Iga Świątek and Ekaterina Alexandrova; semifinal against Jessica Pegula; final against Aryna Sabalenka, 6–3, 7–6(0). |
In a single year Rybakina went from a group-stage exit to an unbeaten title. The 2025 win laid the foundation for her rise to the top of the rankings, which she takes over on 14 September 2026.
What is at stake
Rybakina defends 1500 points - the maximum the event offers. Even reaching the final unbeaten in the group earns less, so the only way to keep the full total is to repeat last year: five wins out of five. The Finals close the WTA season, and their outcome will go a long way towards deciding who ends 2026 as world No. 1.
Rybakina still has to confirm her place through the Race standings: the eight qualifiers are settled after the last tournaments of the autumn. Winning the US Open and taking over the world No. 1 ranking in September 2026 made that formality all but certain - on Race points she is one of the clear leaders of the season.
Match times
Indian Wells runs on Pacific Time, UTC-8 in November: Astana is thirteen hours ahead and Moscow eleven. For Kazakhstan this is the least convenient event of the season - the day session starts after midnight and the evening session early the next morning.
| Indian Wells | Astana | London |
|---|---|---|
| 11:00 | 00:00 next day | 19:00 |
| 13:00 | 02:00 next day | 21:00 |
| 19:00 | 08:00 next day | 03:00 next day |
In practice the evening session is the one to watch live from Kazakhstan, in the morning; the day session is better caught on replay. Legal broadcasters are listed on the where to watch page.
In November Indian Wells is on Pacific Standard Time, UTC−8: 13 hours behind Astana and eight behind London. For fans in Kazakhstan it is the least convenient event of the autumn: day matches are played in the middle of the night and evening matches the next morning. Viewers in the UK fare better: day sessions land in the London evening, and only the night matches run into the early hours.
| Indian Wells | Astana | London |
|---|---|---|
| 11:00 | 00:00 next day | 19:00 |
| 13:00 | 02:00 next day | 21:00 |
| 19:00 | 08:00 next day | 03:00 next day |
Where to watch and how not to miss it
Legal broadcasters are listed on the where to watch page. At night it is easiest to miss the start of a match, which makes the calendar subscription especially useful here: the reminder arrives 30 minutes before the first serve.
Do not miss the match
The next match has not been scheduled yet. Subscribe to the calendar and it will appear there as soon as the organisers publish the order of play.
Frequently asked questions
Who qualified for the 2026 WTA Finals?
Eight players: Rybakina, Sabalenka, Andreeva, Nosková, Pegula, Gauff, Svitolina and Muchová. Rybakina qualified first, on 14 September.
How many points is Rybakina defending at the WTA Finals?
1,500 - the maximum for winning the event unbeaten, which is what she did in Riyadh in 2025.
What time are the WTA Finals matches in Astana?
Astana is thirteen hours ahead of Indian Wells: a 7:00 p.m. evening session starts at 8:00 a.m. the next day in Astana.
Where and when are the 2026 WTA Finals?
From 8 to 15 November 2026 at Indian Wells, California, at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
Who is the defending WTA Finals champion?
Elena Rybakina: in Riyadh in 2025 she won all five matches, beating Aryna Sabalenka 6–3, 7–6(0) in the final.
How does the WTA Finals format work?
Eight players are split into two groups of four, and the top two in each group reach the semifinals. The maximum haul is 1500 points.
What time are WTA Finals matches in Astana?
Indian Wells is 13 hours behind Astana: a 7:00 p.m. local match begins at 8:00 a.m. the next day in Astana.