Jasmine Paolini knocked out in semifinals, for WTA Finals all is decided in Tokyo

Jasmine Paolini will have to wait some more to obtain the mathematical certainty of qualification to the WTA Finals: in the semifinals at the “2025 Aux-Ningbo Open,” a WTA 500 tournament with a prize money of $1,064,510, came in fact a defeat.

The 29-year-old from Bagni di Lucca, number 8 in the world ranking and second seed, was chasing the pass for the WTA Finals in Riyadh (in singles, since in doubles she is already qualified together with Sara Errani), but she had to surrender 6-3 6-2, in one hour and 29 minutes of play, to Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina, number 9 in the ranking and third favorite in the draw.

The Kazakh tennis player’s performance was of a high standard, while Paolini probably paid for the fatigue accumulated in the long quarterfinal battle against Belinda Bencic.

In Finals terms, the success keeps Rybakina fully in the running: qualification will be decided next week in Tokyo, where precisely Paolini and Rybakina will be the top two seeds. Absent, however, is Mirra Andreeva, the third pretender for the last two spots available for Riyadh.