Sofia Kenin, Elina Svitolina, Karolina Pliskova and Garbine Muguruza are probably the top favorites in the warm-up event in Abu Dhabi.
The event will start on the 4th of January and it will be the first one to be named as a WTA500. The line-up is quite glorious with the presence of 4 top10 players and the participation of extremely interesting prospects such as Coco Gauff and Amanda Anisimova that are part of the entry list.
Naomi Osaka and Bianca Andreescu
Naomi Osaka will not take part in the event to extend her protracted break from tennis and many got surprised that also Bianca Andreeuscu will not play. The Canadian superstar didn’t play a single tournament for more than 1 year and she has been training for roughly 1 month in Dubai. Therefore, Abu Dhabi would have been perfect for testing her condition.
The Prize Money
In the meantime, the prize money has been announced and this is the breakdown
Winner: $ 68.570
Finalist: $ 50,130
Semis: $ 26, 745
Quarters: $ 12,675
Round 16: $ 6,480
Round 32: $ 4,100
Round 64: 2,500
Qualification
2nd round: $ 1,925
1st round: $ 1,000
Sofia Kenin in 2021
Currently the world no.4 (career-high), Sofia played her last match on the 10th of October 2020 when she capitulated to Iga Swiatek 6-4 6-1 in the final of the French Open (draw).
Elina Svitolina in 2021
Now the world no.5, the Ukrainian played her last match on the 21st of October 2020 when she surrendered to Maria Sakkari 6-3 6-3 in the 2nd round in Ostrava (draw).
Sofia Kenin and Elina Svitolina squared off 5 times. Their head to head is 3-2 for Svitolina. Previously, the last time when they played, Elina Svitolina won 7-5 7-610 in the round robin in Shenzhen (WTA Finals) in November 2019.
You can see them in action in the following highlights.
Karolina Pliskova in 2021
Now ranked no.6, the Czech played her last match on the 22nd of October 2020 when she capitulated to Veronika Kudermetova 4-6 6-4 6-3 in the 2nd round in Ostrava (draw).
Garbine Muguruza in 2021
Ranked no.15, Garbine played her last match on the 3rd of October 2020 when she was defeated by Danielle Collins 7-5 2-6 6-4 in the 3rd round of the French Open (draw).
Karolina Pliskova and Garbine Muguruza played each other 10 times. The head to head is 8-2 for Pliskova. Previously, the last time they squared off, Karolina Pliskova won 6-3 6-1 in the 4th round in Melbourne (Australian Open) in January 2019.
