In a win-or-go-home situation at Riyadh, Zheng blasted past Jasmine Paolini, 6-1, 6-1, to post her 30th win from 34 matches contested since Wimbledon. The powerful display clinched Zheng second place in the Purple Group behind world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Zheng Qinwen cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Jasmine Paolini to reach the semifinals of the WTA Finals. Zheng needed just over an hour to defeat Paolini in

Aryna Sabalenka can put one hand on the year-end No. 1 ranking trophy if she defeats Jasmine Paolini in the second group match at the 2024 WTA Finals. Elsewhere, Elena Rybakina and Qinwen Zheng will attempt to get their first win on the board.

Last year, Iga Swiatek came to the WTA Finals to win it. Aryna Sabalenka appears to have been inspired by that.

While the final WTA Rankings have begun taking shape, there is still plenty of tennis left to be played. The first match of Wednesday's Group Stage matches at the WTA Finals led off with a highly anticipated meeting between Jasmine Paolini and Qinwen Zheng.

Paolini entered the tournament as the World No. 4 with a record of 37-17 and one singles title. She advanced to the Wimbledon finals this year before losing to Barbora Krejcikova. She has already made history by becoming the fifth Italian woman to win a match at the WTA Finals.

Zheng Qinwen cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Jasmine Paolini to reach the semifinals of the WTA Finals on Wednesday. Zheng needed just over an hour to defeat Paolini in the match that decided the final qualifier from the Purple Group at the season-ending tournament for the top-ranked women's players.