Unexpected announcement regarding Elena Rybakina….

Six of the eight spots in the season-ending WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia have been claimed, with four berths secured per Monday’s new tour rankings.

Coco Gauff, Elena Rybakina, Jasmine Paolini and Jessica Pegula all clinched spots in the exclusive and lucrative tournament, the WTA announced, joining world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and world No. 2 Iga Swiatek.

The two remaining spots will go to the seventh-ranked and eighth-ranked players in the tour’s singles race unless Barbora Krejcikova finishes between No. 9 and No. 20—which appears likely. If a Grand Slam singles champion finishes inside the Top 20 but outside the Top 8, that player is given the eighth and final spot in the WTA Finals ahead of the eighth-ranked player.

Krejcikova, the Wimbledon champion, is currently 12th in the singles race, 580 points clear of current No. 21, Madison Keys.

The seventh spot is currently occupied by Zheng Qinwen, runner-up at the Australian Open and, more recently, Wuhan. She leads No. 8 Emma Navarro by 532 points. Navarro, who reached the US Open semifinals, leads No. 9 Danielle Collins by 392 points.

Gauff will compete in her third consecutive WTA Finals. Ranked No. 3, she has won two titles (Auckland, Beijing) and reached six semifinals at other tournaments, notably including the Australian Open, Indian Wells, Rome, Roland Garros and Wuhan. The 2023 US Open champion, she reached a career-high No. 2 in June.

Rybakina, who has not played since withdrawing before her second-round match at the US Open, is 41-9 on the season with three 500-level tournament wins (Brisbane, Abu Dhabi and Stuttgart). She was also a finalist in Doha and Miami.

Paolini played both the Roland Garros and Wimbledon finals in a breakout season that saw her crack the Top 10 for the first time. She will also be playing doubles in Riyadh, alongside Italian compatriot Sara Errani.

Pegula, like Gauff, will be playing the WTA Finals for the third straight year. After a slow and injury-filled start to her season, she won titles in Berlin and Toronto, then reached the finals of Cincinnati and the US Open. Her runner-up in Flushing Meadows marked her first appearance beyond the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament in seven attempts.