Tennis

Raquel-Abigail seal last WTA Finals spot for women’s doubles

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) announced today that doubles partners Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears have qualified for this year’s BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. They are the final team of eight to qualify for the year-end event set to be staged at the Singapore Sports Hub October 23 through November 1.

Kops-Jones and Spears will make their second consecutive appearance at the WTA Finals in Singapore. Last year, the Americans fell in the first round to eventual champions Cara Black and Sania Mirza in a decisive super tiebreak set.

The American duo began their partnership in late 2007 at ITF Circuit tournaments and clinched four titles in 2008. They won their first WTA title in 2009 at Estoril and since then have won an additional 11 WTA doubles titles.

Spears stated, “We are beyond happy to have made the WTA Finals in Singapore for the second year in a row and can’t wait to take to the court at the Singapore Sports Hub.” Kops-Jones added, “There is no greater finish to the season than having qualified and we’re delighted to be playing in front of the amazing fans in Singapore once again.”

The American duo’s season is highlighted by two WTA doubles titles – Qatar Total Open – Doha and the AEGON Open Nottingham. They also reached the final at the Apia International Sydney, semifinals at Wimbledon and quarterfinals at the Australian Open.

The 2015 WTA Finals features the top 8 doubles teams competing for the WTA Finals Martina Navratilova Trophy, while the top 8 singles players compete for one of the most prestigious trophies in women’s tennis, the Billie Jean King Trophy. With a record $7 million in prize money on the line, the round-robin singles and doubles competitions will be the highlight of the 10-day tennis festival that will also include the WTA Legends Classic, WTA Rising Star Invitational and a fan festival.

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