Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek are among a group of top players who have been penalised for failing to play the required number of mandatory tournaments this season. Players on the WTA Tour must compete in at least six WTA 500s in a single year, and neither woman met the threshold in 2025.

Coco Gauff, Amanda Ansimova, and Australian Open champion Madison Keys are also among those who had points stripped from their ranking this week. Players who skip mandatory events have their ranking ‘zeroed out’ – essentially meaning ranking points from other tournaments they have entered this year are removed as punishment.

When the weekly rankings updated on Monday, October 20, Sabalenka, Gauff and Anisimova all had 10 points removed, while Swiatek was docked 65, and Keys lost 54 points.

The zero-point rule caused chaos last year when Swiatek lost her world No. 1 position because she had ranking points removed for playing just two eligible WTA 500 events.

The Pole was docked 20 from her last 16 exit in Miami while Sabalenka only lost 10 points from her opening-round defeat in Dubai, meaning Sabalenka became the world No. 1. She’s held that position ever since.

This time around, the penalties did not affect the rankings. But players are expected to be hit with another zero-pointer next week. Sabalenka, Swiatek, Gauff and Anisimova have only played in three WTA 500 events this year, while Keys has contested four.

Last week’s Ningbo Open, which none of them player entered, was the penultimate WTA 500 of the season and one of their last chances to fulfil the requirements. Because they didn’t play, they were docked ranking points to “apply” the zeroes for the missed WTA 500s.

Players have been outspoken about the demanding tennis calendar and the number of mandatory events. Swiatek recently admitted that she had to prioritise her health and fitnes over meeting the requirements, even if it meant she was docked ranking points.

During the recent China Open in Beijing, the six-time Major winner said: “I don’t think any top player will actually be able to achieve this, for example, playing the six 500 tournaments. It’s just impossible to squeeze it in the schedule.

“But yeah, I think we have to be smart about it, not really unfortunately care about the rules and just think what’s healthy for us. Yeah, it’s tough.

“The only thing I can do now, when I decided I’m going to play all these mandatory tournaments, is to just take care of my body, take care of the recovery. I have a good team around me also that is helping me with that. I’m experienced enough to know kind of what to do. So physically I am good.”



By Yasmin Syed

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