The WTA Finals Draw has been released and it sees the US Open champion Naomi Osaka take on two other Grand Slam winners in her first round.
Osaka will be up against Angelique Kerber and Sloane Stephens along with Kiki Bertens in her opening round matches in what will be her maiden appearance at the WTA Finals.
In the other group, defending champion Caroline Wozniacki will be up against Karolina Pliskova, Petra Kvitova and Elina Svitolina.
Missing from action will be the world number one Simona Halep who suffered a back injury and had to pull out of the Kremlin Cup this week. She reached Singapore early to have a look at whether she was in a position to play in the tournament but later decided against it.
Serena Williams will also be out of action for a second year in running after deciding to end her season early following her US Open final defeat at the hands of Osaka in a controversial final.
Other than Osaka, Kerber and Stephens, Wozniacki and Kvitova have also won Grand Slam titles in the past. In fact Wozniacki comes into the tournament with an excellent 12-month period behind her back that saw her win the WTA Finals before going all the way at the 2018 Australian Open.
Action at the WTA Finals begins on Sunday. Here’s the WTA Finals schedule for 2018. In the first singles match of the day on October 21, Kvitova will take on Svitolina before Wozniacki faces Pliskova.
Osaka will be in action on day two on October 22 when she takes on Stephens while Kerbers will be up against Bertens. The rest of the schedule will be announced later with the final of the competition to be played on October 28.
Buy your WTA Finals tickets here, learn of your options to watch its live streaming and get the top WTA Finals tips and predictions here.
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