 Ashleigh Barty finished the year asworld No. 1 for the third time in her career. She won five tournaments during the season, including amajor at theWimbledon Championships. She also won twoWTA 1000 events. | |
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Duration | 6 January – 17 November 2021 |
| Edition | 51st |
| Tournaments | 57 |
| Categories |
|
| Achievements (singles) | |
| Most titles |  Ashleigh Barty (5) |
| Most finals |  Anett Kontaveit (7) |
| Prize money leader | Ashleigh Barty ($3,945,182) |
| Points leader | Ashleigh Barty (6,411) |
| Awards | |
| Player of the year | Ashleigh Barty |
| Doubles team of the year |  Barbora KrejčíkováKateřina Siniaková |
| Most improved player of the year | Barbora Krejčíková |
| Newcomer of the year |  Emma Raducanu |
| Comeback player of the year |  Carla Suárez Navarro |
←2020 2022 → | |
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The2021 WTA Tour was the elite professionaltennis circuit organised by theWomen's Tennis Association (WTA) for the 2021 tennis season. The 2021 WTA Tour calendar comprises theGrand Slam tournaments (supervised by theInternational Tennis Federation (ITF)), theWTA 1000 tournaments, theWTA 500 tournaments, theWTA 250 tournaments, theBillie Jean King Cup (organized by the ITF), and the year-end championships (theWTA Finals and theWTA Elite Trophy). Also included in the 2021 calendar are theSummer Olympic Games, which were rescheduled from 2020.
This is the complete schedule of events on the 2021 calendar.[1]
| Grand Slam tournaments |
| Summer Olympics |
| Year-end championships |
| WTA 1000 (Mandatory)[a] |
| WTA 1000 (non-Mandatory)[a] |
| WTA 500[a] |
| WTA 250[a] |
| Team events |
| Week | Tournament | Champions | Runners-up | Semifinalists | Quarterfinalists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Jan | Abu Dhabi Open Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates WTA 500 Hard – $565,530 – 64S/32Q/28D Singles –Doubles |  Aryna Sabalenka6–2, 6–2 |  Veronika Kudermetova |  Maria Sakkari Marta Kostyuk |  Sofia Kenin Elena RybakinaSara Sorribes TormoElina Svitolina |
 Shuko AoyamaEna Shibahara7–6(7–5), 6–4 | Hayley Carter Luisa Stefani |
| Week | Tournament | Champions | Runners-up | Semifinalists | Quarterfinalists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Nov | Billie Jean King Cup Finals Prague, Czech Republic Hard (i) – 12 teams | RTF 2–0 |  Switzerland | United States Australia | Round robin  Canada France Belgium Belarus Slovakia Spain Czech Republic Germany |
| 8 Nov | WTA Finals Guadalajara, Mexico Year-end championships Hard – $5,000,000 – 8S (RR)/8D (RR) Singles –Doubles | Garbiñe Muguruza 6–3, 7–5 | Anett Kontaveit | Paula BadosaMaria Sakkari | Round robin Barbora KrejčíkováKarolína PlíškováAryna Sabalenka Iga Świątek |
| Barbora KrejčíkováKateřina Siniaková 6–3, 6–4 |  Hsieh Su-weiElise Mertens | ||||
| Linz Open Linz, Austria WTA 250 Hard (i) – $235,238 – 28S/16Q/16D Singles –Doubles | Alison Riske 2–6, 6–2, 7–5 |  Jaqueline Cristian | Danielle CollinsSimona Halep |  Wang XinyuAlison Van UytvanckVeronika Kudermetova Jasmine Paolini | |
| Natela DzalamidzeKamilla Rakhimova 6–4, 6–2 | Wang XinyuZheng Saisai |
The COVID-19 pandemic affected tournaments on both the ATP and WTA tours. The following tournaments were cancelled or postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| Week of | Tournament | Status |
|---|---|---|
| January 4 | Brisbane International Brisbane, Australia WTA 500 Hard | Cancelled[9][10][1] |
| Auckland Open Auckland, New Zealand WTA 250 Hard | ||
| Shenzhen Open Shenzhen, China WTA 250 Hard | ||
| January 11 | Adelaide International Adelaide, Australia WTA 500 Hard | Postponed to 22 February[11] |
| Hobart International Hobart, Australia WTA 250 Hard | Cancelled | |
| January 18 January 25 | Australian Open Melbourne, Australia Grand Slam Hard | Postponed to 8 February |
| February 8 | St. Petersburg Trophy Saint Petersburg, Russia WTA 500 Hard (i) | Postponed to 15 March due to Australian Open reschedule |
| Thailand Open Hua Hin, Thailand WTA 250 Hard | Cancelled | |
| February 15 | Qatar Open Doha, Qatar WTA 500 Hard | Postponed to 1 March due to Australian Open reschedule |
| February 22 | Mexican Open Acapulco, Mexico WTA 250 Hard | Cancelled |
| March 8 March 15 | Indian Wells Open Indian Wells, United States WTA 1000 (Mandatory) Hard | Postponed to 4 October[12] |
| April 12 | Billie Jean King Cup Finals Budapest, Hungary Clay (red) (i) – 12 teams | Postponed to 1 November and moved toPrague, Czech Republic[13][14] |
| Kunming Open Anning, China WTA 250 Clay (red) | Postponed | |
| May 17 | Morocco Open Rabat, Morocco WTA 250 Clay | Cancelled |
| Cologne Open Cologne, Germany WTA 250 Clay (red) | Cancelled | |
| May 24 | French Open Paris, France Grand Slam Clay (red) | Postponed to 31 May |
| June 7 | Rosmalen Grass Court Championships Rosmalen, Netherlands WTA 250 Grass | Cancelled[15] |
| September 13 | Zhengzhou Open Zhengzhou, China WTA 500 Hard | |
| Japan Open Hiroshima, Japan WTA 250 Hard | ||
| September 20 | Pan Pacific Open Tokyo, Japan WTA 500 Hard | |
| Guangzhou Open Guangzhou, China WTA 250 Hard | ||
| Korea Open Seoul, South Korea WTA 250 Hard | Postponed to 20 December asWTA 125 tournament | |
| September 27 | Wuhan Open Wuhan, China WTA 1000 (Non-mandatory) Hard | Cancelled |
| October 4 | China Open Beijing, China WTA 1000 (Mandatory) Hard | |
| October 11 | Hong Kong Open Hong Kong, China WTA 250 Hard | |
| Tianjin Open Tianjin, China WTA 250 Hard | ||
| Linz Open Linz, Austria WTA 250 Hard (i) | Postponed to 8 November | |
| October 18 | Jiangxi Open Nanchang, China WTA 250 Hard | Cancelled |
| November 1 | WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, China Year-end championships Hard | |
| November 8 | WTA Finals Shenzhen, China Year-end championships Hard | Moved toGuadalajara, Mexico[16] |
These tables present the number ofsingles (S),doubles (D), andmixed doubles (X) titles won by each player and each nation during the season, within all the tournament categories of the 2019 WTA Tour: theGrand Slam tournaments, the year-end championships (theWTA Tour Championships and theWTA Elite Trophy), theWTA Premier tournaments (WTA 1000 and WTA 500), and theWTA 250. The players/nations are sorted by:
| Grand Slam tournaments |
| Summer Olympics |
| Year-end championships |
| WTA 1000 (Mandatory) |
| WTA 1000 (Non-mandatory) |
| WTA 500 |
| WTA 250 |
| Total | Nation | Grand Slam | Olympic Games | Year-end | WTA 1000 (M) | WTA 1000 (NM) | WTA 500 | WTA 250 | Total | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | D | X | S | D | X | S | D | S | D | S | D | S | D | S | D | S | D | X | ||
| 17 | United States (USA) | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 9 | 3 | |||||||||||
| 14 | Czech Republic (CZE) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 1 | ||||||
| 11 | Australia (AUS) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 0 | |||||||
| 10 | Russia (RUS) | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 9 | Belgium (BEL) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 7 | Japan (JPN) | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Romania (ROU) | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 6 | Spain (ESP) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 5 | Belarus (BLR) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 4 | China (CHN) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 4 |  Croatia (CRO) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Estonia (EST) | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | Germany (GER) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 4 |  Slovenia (SLO) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 4 | Ukraine (UKR) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 3 | Switzerland (SUI) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | Italy (ITA) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 3 | Canada (CAN) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 |  Chile (CHI) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 3 |  Netherlands (NED) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Great Britain (GBR) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Chinese Taipei (TPE) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Poland (POL) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 |  Latvia (LAT) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 |  India (IND) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 |  Denmark (DEN) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 2 | Kazakhstan (KAZ) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Slovakia (SVK) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 | Brazil (BRA) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  Mexico (MEX) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  Colombia (COL) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  Tunisia (TUN) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 | France (FRA) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  Georgia (GEO) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  Hungary (HUN) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  New Zealand (NZL) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  Norway (NOR) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 |  Serbia (SRB) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||||||||||
The following players won their first main circuit title in singles, doubles, or mixed doubles:
Clara Tauson (18 years, 76 days) –Lyon (draw)Sara Sorribes Tormo (24 years, 156 days) –Guadalajara (draw)Leylah Fernandez (18 years, 196 days) –Monterrey (draw)Camila Osorio (19 years, 110 days) –Bogotá (draw)Veronika Kudermetova (23 years, 352 days) –Charleston 1 (draw)Astra Sharma (25 years, 219 days) –Charleston 2 (draw)Paula Badosa (23 years, 188 days) –Belgrade (draw)Barbora Krejčíková (25 years, 162 days) –Strasbourg (draw)Ons Jabeur (26 years, 296 days) –Birmingham (draw)Liudmila Samsonova (22 years, 221 days) –Berlin (draw)Elena-Gabriela Ruse (23 years, 247 days) –Hamburg (draw)Tamara Zidanšek (23 years, 204 days) –Lausanne (draw)Maryna Zanevska (27 years, 335 days) –Gdynia (draw)Danielle Collins (27 years, 224 days) –Palermo (draw)Emma Raducanu (18 years, 302 days) –US Open (draw)Jasmine Paolini (25 years, 249 days) –Portorož (draw)Ann Li (21 years, 120 days) –Tenerife (draw)Ankita Raina –Melbourne 4 (draw)Kamilla Rakhimova –Melbourne 4 (draw)Caroline Dolehide –Monterrey (draw)Elixane Lechemia –Bogotá (draw)Ingrid Neel –Bogotá (draw)Hailey Baptiste –Charleston 2 (draw)Jennifer Brady –Stuttgart (draw)Marie Bouzková –Birmingham (draw)Jasmine Paolini –Hamburg (draw)Jil Teichmann –Hamburg (draw)Susan Bandecchi –Lausanne (draw)Simona Waltert –Lausanne (draw)Anna Danilina –Gdynia (draw)Erin Routliffe –Palermo (draw)Kimberley Zimmermann –Palermo (draw)Natela Dzalamidze –Cluj-Napoca (draw)Kaja Juvan –Cluj-Napoca (draw)Tereza Mihalíková –Portorož (draw)Andrea Petkovic –Chicago (draw)Ulrikke Eikeri –Tenerife (draw)Irina Bara –Cluj-Napoca 2 (draw)Ekaterine Gorgodze –Cluj-Napoca 2 (draw)The following players defended a main circuit title in singles, doubles, or mixed doubles:
The following players achieved their career high ranking in this season inside top 50 (inbold the players who entered the top 10 for the first time).
Jennifer Brady (reached place No. 13 on February 22)Fiona Ferro (reached place No. 39 on March 8)Veronika Kudermetova (reached place No. 28 on April 26)Karolína Muchová (reached place No. 19 on May 17)Shelby Rogers (reached place No. 40 on July 12)Aryna Sabalenka (reached placeNo. 2 on August 23)Cori Gauff (reached place No. 19 on September 13)Iga Świątek (reached placeNo. 4 on September 27)
Nadia Podoroska (reached place No. 35 on September 27)Sara Sorribes Tormo (reached place No. 34 on October 18)Barbora Krejčíková (reached placeNo. 3 on November 1)Maria Sakkari (reached placeNo. 6 on November 1)Ons Jabeur (reached placeNo. 7 on November 1)Ann Li (reached place No. 47 on November 1)Tereza Martincová (reached place No. 48 on November 1)Marta Kostyuk (reached place No. 50 on November 1)Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (reached place No. 11 on November 8)Elena Rybakina (reached place No. 14 on November 8)Leylah Annie Fernandez (reached place No. 24 on November 8)Liudmila Samsonova (reached place No. 39 on November 8)Viktorija Golubic (reached place No. 43 on November 8)Clara Tauson (reached place No. 44 on November 8)Anett Kontaveit (reached placeNo. 7 on November 15)Paula Badosa (reached placeNo. 8 on November 15)Jessica Pegula (reached place No. 18 on November 15)Emma Raducanu (reached place No. 19 on November 15)Tamara Zidanšek (reached place No. 30 on November 15)Jil Teichmann (reached place No. 37 on November 15)Sofia Kenin (reached place No. 29 on January 25)Aryna Sabalenka (reached placeNo. 1 on February 22)Viktória Kužmová (reached place No. 27 on March 8)Elise Mertens (reached placeNo. 1 on May 10)Nicole Melichar (reached placeNo. 9 on May 17)Desirae Krawczyk (reached place No. 17 on May 17)Hayley Carter (reached place No. 25 on June 14)Caroline Dolehide (reached place No. 25 on August 16)Asia Muhammad (reached place No. 31 on August 23)Laura Siegemund (reached place No. 30 on August 23)Nina Stojanović (reached place No. 40 on September 13)Alexa Guarachi (reached place No. 11 on September 20)Jessica Pegula (reached place No. 46 on October 4)Gabriela Dabrowski (reached placeNo. 5 on October 18)Zhang Shuai (reached placeNo. 8 on October 18)Iga Świątek (reached place No. 41 on October 18)Elena Rybakina (reached place No. 48 on October 18)Bernarda Pera (reached place No. 50 on October 18)Luisa Stefani (reached placeNo. 9 on November 1)Veronika Kudermetova (reached place No. 11 on November 1)Catherine McNally (reached place No. 16 on November 8)Cori Gauff (reached place No. 17 on November 8)Storm Sanders (reached place No. 30 on November 8)Nadiia Kichenok (reached place No. 31 on November 8)Marie Bouzková (reached place No. 34 on November 8)Ena Shibahara (reached placeNo. 5 on November 15)Shuko Aoyama (reached placeNo. 5 on November 15)Darija Jurak (reached placeNo. 9 on November 15)Giuliana Olmos (reached place No. 18 on November 15)Sharon Fichman (reached place No. 22 on November 15)These are theWTA rankings and yearly WTA Race rankings of the top 20 singles and doubles players at the current date of the 2021 season.
| Holder | Date gained | Date forfeited |
|---|---|---|
| Ashleigh Barty (AUS) | Year end 2020 | Year end 2021 |
Competed at the2021 WTA Finals. Team withdrew. |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Holder | Date gained | Date forfeited |
|---|---|---|
| Hsieh Su-wei (TPE) | Year end 2020 | 21 February 2021 |
| Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) | 22 February 2021 | 4 April 2021 |
| Hsieh Su-wei (TPE) | 5 April 2021 | 9 May 2021 |
| Elise Mertens (BEL) | 10 May 2021 | 16 May 2021 |
| Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) | 17 May 2021 | 13 June 2021 |
| Barbora Krejčíková (CZE) | 14 June 2021 | 11 July 2021 |
| Elise Mertens (BEL) | 12 July 2021 | 12 September 2021 |
| Hsieh Su-wei (TPE) | 13 September 2021 | 19 September 2021 |
| Elise Mertens (BEL) | 20 September 2021 | 26 September 2021 |
| Barbora Krejčíková (CZE) | 27 September 2021 | 17 October 2021 |
| Elise Mertens (BEL) | 18 October 2021 | 24 October 2021 |
| Hsieh Su-wei (TPE) | 25 October 2021 | 31 October 2021 |
| Elise Mertens (BEL) | 1 November 2021 | 7 November 2021 |
| Hsieh Su-wei (TPE) | 8 November 2021 | 21 November 2021 |
| Kateřina Siniaková (CZE) | 22 November 2021 | Year end 2021 |
| Category | W | F | SF | QF | R16 | R32 | R64 | R128 | Q | Q3 | Q2 | Q1 |
| Grand Slam (S) | 2000 | 1300 | 780 | 430 | 240 | 130 | 70 | 10 | 40 | 30 | 20 | 2 |
| Grand Slam (D) | 2000 | 1300 | 780 | 430 | 240 | 130 | 10 | – | 40 | – | – | – |
| WTA Finals (S) | 1500* | 1080* | 750* | (+125 per round robin match; +125 per round robin win) | ||||||||
| WTA Finals (D) | 1500 | 1080 | 750 | 375 | – | |||||||
| WTA 1000 (96S) | 1000 | 650 | 390 | 215 | 120 | 65 | 35 | 10 | 30 | – | 20 | 2 |
| WTA 1000 (64/60S) | 1000 | 650 | 390 | 215 | 120 | 65 | 10 | – | 30 | – | 20 | 2 |
| WTA 1000 (28/32D) | 1000 | 650 | 390 | 215 | 120 | 10 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| WTA 1000 (56S, 48Q/32Q) | 900 | 585 | 350 | 190 | 105 | 60 | 1 | – | 30 | – | 20 | 1 |
| WTA 1000 (28D) | 900 | 585 | 350 | 190 | 105 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| WTA 500 (64/56S) | 470 | 305 | 185 | 100 | 55 | 30 | 1 | – | 25 | – | 13 | 1 |
| WTA 500 (32/30/28S) | 470 | 305 | 185 | 100 | 55 | 1 | – | – | 25 | 18 | 13 | 1 |
| WTA 500 (28D) | 470 | 305 | 185 | 100 | 55 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| WTA 500 (16D) | 470 | 305 | 185 | 100 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| WTA Elite Trophy (S) | 700* | 440* | 240* | (+40 per round robin match; +80 per round robin win) | ||||||||
| WTA 250 (32S, 32Q) | 280 | 180 | 110 | 60 | 30 | 1 | – | – | 18 | 14 | 10 | 1 |
| WTA 250 (32S, 24/16Q) | 280 | 180 | 110 | 60 | 30 | 1 | – | – | 18 | – | 12 | 1 |
| WTA 250 (28D) | 280 | 180 | 110 | 60 | 30 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| WTA 250 (16D) | 280 | 180 | 110 | 60 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
S = singles players, D = doubles teams, Q = qualification players.
* Assumes undefeated round robin match record.
| Prize money in US$ as of November 15, 2021[update][20] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Player | Singles | Doubles | Mixed doubles | Year-to-date |
| 1 | Ashleigh Barty (AUS) | $3,914,987 | $30,195 | $0 | $3,945,182 |
| 2 | Barbora Krejčíková (CZE) | $2,969,248 | $616,781 | $60,854 | $3,646,883 |
| 3 | Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) | $2,664,681 | $235,522 | $0 | $2,909,281 |
| 4 | Karolína Plíšková (CZE) | $2,829,000 | $39,865 | $0 | $2,868,865 |
| 5 | Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP) | $2,827,274 | $3,905 | $0 | $2,846,871 |
| 6 | Emma Raducanu (GBR) | $2,807,446 | $0 | $0 | $2,807,446 |
| 7 | Paula Badosa (ESP) | $2,602,330 | $52,132 | $0 | $2,655,962 |
| 8 | Naomi Osaka (JPN) | $2,306,222 | $0 | $0 | $2,306,222 |
| 9 | Elise Mertens (BEL) | $1,162,626 | $933,007 | $0 | $2,098,133 |
| 10 | Maria Sakkari (GRE) | $2,021,970 | $8,020 | $0 | $2,029,990 |
The following is a list of notable players (winners of a main tour title, and/or part of the WTA rankings top 100 in singles, or top 100 in doubles, for at least one week) who returned from retirement or inactivity during the 2021 season:
Carla Suárez Navarro (born 3 September 1988 inLas Palmas de Gran Canaria)[21] In April 2021, Suárez Navarro announced that her Hodgkin's Lymphoma was in complete remission, and that she would commence a farewell tour beginning at Roland-Garros and culminating in a final US Open appearance, where she lost in the first round to Danielle Collins.[22][23]Elena Vesnina (born 1 August 1986 inLviv,Ukraine SSR, Soviet Union, modern dayUkraine) turned professional in 2002 and reached a career high ranking of 13 in singles in 2017 andnumber 1 in doubles in 2018. Vesnina's best result in a Grand Slam came at the2016 Wimbledon championships, where she fell toSerena Williams in the semifinals in straight sets. She also won three WTA singles titles during her career. Her biggest success was in doubles, with 3 Grand Slam women's doubles titles alongsideEkaterina Makarova at the2013 French Open, the2014 US Open and atWimbledon in 2017, as well as the mixed doubles title at the2016 Australian Open alongsideBruno Soares. She also partnered Makarova to gold in the women's doubles at the2016 Olympics, and to the title at theWTA Finals, both in 2016. Vesnina had been absent from the WTA Tour since 2018 following the birth of her daughter.[24][25]Kim Clijsters (born 8 June 1983 inBilzen, Belgium) initially entered the2021 Miami Open, but pulled out, saying she did not feel ready to compete after her surgery and contractingCOVID-19 in January.[26] She played her first tournament of the year at the2021 Chicago Fall Tennis Classic after accepting a wildcard, but lost in the first round toHsieh Su-wei.[27]The following is a list of notable players (winners of a main tour title, and/or part of the WTA rankings top 100 in singles, or top 100 in doubles, for at least one week) who announced their retirement from professional tennis, became inactive (after not playing for more than 52 weeks), or were permanently banned from playing, during the 2021 season:
Gréta Arn(born 13 April 1979 inBudapest, Hungary) joined the professional tour in 1997 and reached a career-high ranking of No. 40 in singles in May 2011 and No. 175 in doubles in December 2000. She won two singles titles in her career.[28]Timea Bacsinszky(born 8 June 1989 inLausanne, Switzerland), has won four WTA singles titles in her 15-year career, where she reached a career high of No.9, and five doubles titles. She reached the semifinals ofFrench Open in singles in 2015 and 2017. She also won a silver medal in doubles withMartina Hingis at2016 Rio Olympics. Bacsinszky announced her retirement on 16 July due to constant injuries.[29]Kiki Bertens(born 10 December 1991 inWateringen, Netherlands) turned professional in 2009, and reached a career high ranking of No. 4 in singles on 13 May 2019, becoming the highest ranking female Dutch player in WTA history; she had a career high doubles ranking of No. 16 in the world, achieved on 16 April 2018. She won 10 WTA singles titles, including two WTA 1000 titles at the2018 Western & Southern Open and the2019 Mutua Madrid Open, and also won 10 WTA doubles titles. Furthermore, she reached the quarterfinals of the2017 Wimbledon Championships, and the semifinals on the2016 French Open. She announced on 16 June 2021 that 2021 will be her final season due to ongoing injuries, and that her final event would be the2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.[30] Bertens officially retired from the sport after opening round defeats in both singles and doubles at the Olympics, ranked No. 24 in singles and No. 112 in doubles.Nicole Gibbs(born 3 March 1993 inCincinnati, United States) joined the professional tour in 2013 and reached a career-high ranking of No. 68 in singles in July 2016 and No. 107 in doubles in September 2016. She announced her retirement in February 2021 after battling with oral cancer in 2019 and plans to attend law school.[31]Anna-Lena GrönefeldBojana Jovanovski PetrovićVania King (born 3 February 1989 inMonterey Park, California, United States) turned professional in 2006 and reached a career high ranking of 50 in singles and 3 in doubles. King reached three WTA singles finals during her career, winning one of them at theBangkok Open in 2006. She was most known as a doubles specialist, winning fifteen titles in her career, with her biggest achievements coming in winning the women's doubles events at bothWimbledon and theUS Open in 2010, alongsideYaroslava Shvedova. King was hampered by an ankle injury throughout the final years of her career, and despite undergoing surgery in 2017, King decided to retire in February 2020[32] however due to the impacts from theCOVID-19 pandemic, she officially retired in April 2021 following a farewell tour.[33]Johanna Konta (born 17 May 1991 inSydney, Australia) turned professional in 2008, initially representing Australia, before switching allegiance to Great Britain in 2012. She reached a career high singles ranking of No. 4 in the world on 17 July 2017, becoming the first British woman sinceJo Durie to be ranked inside the top ten; she had a career high doubles ranking of No. 88 in the world, achieved on 1 August 2016. Konta won four WTA singles titles, including a Premier Mandatory title at the2017 Miami Open, and became the first British woman to win a singles title on home soil sinceSue Barker did so in 1981, doing so at the2021 Nottingham Open. She reached the quarterfinals or better at all four Grand Slams, including reaching the semifinals at the2016 Australian Open,2017 Wimbledon Championships, and the2019 French Open. Konta announced her retirement on 1 December 2021, after suffering from a long-term knee injury, and a rankings slide to No. 113 in the world.[34][35]Alla Kudryavtseva (born 3 November 1987 in Moscow, Russia) turned professional in 2005 and reached a career high ranking of No. 56 in singles and No. 15 in doubles. Kudryavtseva reached two WTA singles finals during her career, winning one of them at the2010 Tashkent Open. She was better known for her doubles prowess, winning nine doubles titles throughout her career, and reached the quarterfinals in women's doubles events at theAustralian Open,Wimbledon Championships, and theUS Open. She announced that she had retired from the sport onInstagram, on 2 November 2021.[36]Yaroslava Shvedova (born 12 September 1987 in Moscow, Russia), turned professional in September 2005, representing Russia; Shvedova switched representation to Kazakhstan in 2008. She reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 25 in the world on 29 October 2012; she attained a career-high doubles ranking of No. 3 in the world on 22 February 2016. She reached two WTA singles finals, winning her only title at the2007 Bangalore Open; she also reached the quarterfinals of three Grand Slam events in singles, at the2010 and2012 French Opens, and the2016 Wimbledon Championships. Known for her doubles prowess, Shvedova won 13 WTA doubles titles, including two Grand Slam titles at the2010 Wimbledon Championships and2010 US Open, partneringVania King; she also reached four further Grand Slam doubles finals, and reached the final of the2010 French Open in mixed doubles partneringJulian Knowle. Shvedova holds the distinction of being the only player in tennis history to score agolden set in a Grand Slam main match; she achieved this feat in her third round match against then-world No. 10Sara Errani at the2012 Wimbledon Championships. Shvedova retired on 2 October 2021, after a commemorative ceremony held at the2021 Astana Open, inNur-Sultan.Abigail SpearsBarbora Strýcová(born 28 March 1986 inPlzeň,Czech Republic), the No. 2 player in doubles as of 5 April 2021 and former No. 1 player (from July 2019), announced her retirement on 4 May 2021.[37] Strýcová joined the professional tour in 2002 and reached a career-high ranking of No. 16 in singles in January 2017. She has won 31 doubles titles and 2 singles titles (Québec 2011,Linz 2017), as well as the bronze medal in women's doubles at the2016 Olympics. She reached the singles semifinals and won the women's doubles title at the2019 Wimbledon Championships and was also a member of the winningCzech Fed Cup team in2011,2012,2014,2015,2016, and2018.Carla Suárez Navarro (born 3 September 1988 inLas Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain) turned professional in 2003. Suárez Navarro reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 6 in the world on 29 February 2016; her career-high doubles ranking was No. 11, achieved on 27 April 2015. Suárez Navarro won two WTA singles titles, including a WTA 1000 title at the2016 Qatar Open, and won three WTA doubles titles. She also reached the quarterfinals in singles on multiple occasions at theAustralian Open,French Open, and theUS Open. In doubles, she reached the semifinals of the2014 French Open, and the final of the2015 WTA Finals, both withGarbiñe Muguruza. Suárez Navarro previously announced her retirement in 2020; in September 2020, she was diagnosed withHodgkin lymphoma. In April 2021, She announced that her cancer was in complete remission, and that she would commence a farewell tour beginning at Roland-Garros. She retired from the sport after her participation at the2020–21 Billie Jean King Cup Finals, in November 2021.[22]
