Tennis Anyone? Ladies, Welcome To Riyadh!

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Sometime in April, Riyadh was selected as the host of Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Finals from 2024-2026. The 2024 season-ending Finals took place in Riyadh between November 2-9 and featured the Top 8 singles players and doubles teams.

The Women’s Tennis Association apparently selected Riyadh following a comprehensive evaluation process over several months. The agreement between the WTA and the Saudi Tennis Federation offered a record prize money of $15.25 million at the WTA Finals in 2024 with further increases in 2025 and 2026. The partnership will also support broader investment in the future development and growth of women’s tennis, including the WTA’s plans to grow the global fanbase for women’s tennis through increased investment in marketing, digital and fan engagement.

The decision to award the WTA Finals to Saudi Arabia, has sparked a significant debate in the tennis world, especially among female tennis players. Players, former legends, and human rights organizations have all weighed into this debate. Former Grand Slam champions Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova said the WTA Finals moving to Saudi Arabia is a "step backward" for women's tennis. Critics of Saudi Arabia have accused the oil-rich kingdom of using its wealth to invest in sports in a bid to improve its image - known as 'sportswashing'.

WTA chief executive Portia Archer said the organisation is "comfortable" in its decision to host the event in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia is still quite backward when it comes to women’srights. Things are changing though, especially after Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) took over. More and more Saudi women are driving, entering the work force and moving out on their own in record numbers. But they still need the permission of a male guardian to marry. MBS himself is a mixed bag and it is difficult to forget what his agents did to Jamal Khashoggi. Israa al-Ghomgham is still languishing in jail.

In my opinion, it is better to hold events like international tennis tournaments in Saudi Arabia rather than wait for the country to change and catch up with the western world. Saudi Arabia is not the only country in the world with a poor human rights record, but is one of the few countries in the world run by a person who has the desire to bring about rapid change and the resources to carry out his plans. I hope MBS succeeds in this regard.

On a slightly different note, I rooted for Coco Gauff as she showed supreme determination to come back from a set and a break down against Zheng Qinwen to win the WTA Finals.








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