The number 3 seed Marta Kostyuk ended her participation in the WTA 500 tournament in the Chinese city of Ningbo. The Ukrainian decided to withdraw from her second-round match against Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova immediately after the end of the first set, which she had lost 4:6.
With this withdrawal, Kostyuk officially lost her last theoretical chances of qualifying for the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Finals, which will be held next month in Indian Wells. To displace Czech Karolina Muchova from the last eighth place, the Ukrainian had to reach the final in Ningbo and then win the title in Tokyo next week.
With Kostyuk's elimination, Karolina Muchova grabs the last quota for the competition of the eight best tennis players of the season. She joins the already qualified:
Elena Rybakina
Arina Sabalenka
Mira Andreeva
Coco Goff
Jessica Pegula
Elena Svitolina
Linda Noskova
Kostiuk's withdrawal sends Ekaterina Alexandrova straight to the quarterfinals. There, she will face Canadian Leila Fernandez, who defeated Belarus' Alyaksandr Sasnovich 7-5, 6-7(3), 6-3 in another hard-fought match.
A Czech quarterfinal is shaping up in the bottom half of the draw, with Sara Beilek and Marie Bouzkova set to face each other.