Naomi Osaka, Madison Keys, Qinwen Zheng all withdraw from 2025 Billie Jean King Cup Finals
NewsWednesday, 10 September 2025 at 12:25
The line-up for the 2025 Billie Jean King Cup Finals was weakened by multiple withdrawals shortly ahead of the event.
The 2025 Billie Jean King Cup Finals will be played from September 16th to 21st in Shenzhen, China, and while the eight countries that will compete are known for quite some time, there are still some question marks surrounding the line-ups of those countries.
Italy will take on China, Spain will play against Ukraine, Kazakhstan will meet the USA, and Japan will clash with Great Britain. Those are all the quarter-final ties that will be played between September 16th and 18th in Shenzhen.
Great Britain's squad was weakened after Emma Raducanu withdrew from the tournament. She was replaced by Francesca Jones, who joined Katie Boulter, Sonay Kartal, and Jodie Burrage.
Another player who withdrew from the event is Naomi Osaka. She proudly represents her country, but after playing the final at the Canadian Open and the semi-finals at the US Open, the Japanese player might have been too tired to fly to China and prepare for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
Osaka's withdrawal significantly impacts her country's chances. She was replaced by Nao Hibino, who will represent Japan alongside Moyuka Uchijima, Ena Shibahara, Eri Hozumi, and Shuko Aoyama.
Another country impacted by a withdrawal of its top player was the host country, China. Qinwen Zheng had to undergo surgery earlier this year, and she wasn't able to recover in time for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
The hosts still have a relatively strong line-up of players capable of causing upsets. Wang Xiyu replaced Zheng. The other four players in Liu Feng's team are Wang Xinyu, Yuan Yue, Zhang Shuai, and Jiang Xinyu.
The latest known withdrawal is that of Madison Keys. Unlike Japan and China, the United States won't suffer too much because of Keys' withdrawal. That isn't because she wouldn't be a good player, quite the opposite, but because the country possesses incredible depth on the WTA Tour.
The three highest-ranked Americans on the WTA Tour, Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova, and Keys, will all miss this year's Billie Jean King Cup Finals, but the USA will still be the top favorites to win the event. Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro, McCartney Kessler, Hailey Baptiste, and Taylor Townsend will represent the United States.
Other Billie Jean King Cup teams remain unimpacted
For now, there haven't been any other withdrawals. That means the rest of the teams will be able to rely on their best line-ups. Italy will be represented by Jasmine Paolini, Lucia Bronzetti, Elisabetta Cocciaretto, and Sara Errani.
Elena Rybakina is by far the best tennis player in her country's history, and she will attempt to lead Kazakhstan to a great result in China. She will be joined by Yulia Putintseva, Zarina Diyas, Anna Danilina, and Zhibek Kulambayeva.
Ukraine will also come with a strong team. Elina Svitolina and Marta Kostyuk will lead the country in their singles efforts, and twins Lyudmyla and Nadiia Kichenok will headline Ukraine's doubles efforts. Yuliia Starodubtseva is the fifth player in the line-up.
Spain will hope to avoid a similar experience to that of Japan and China. Paula Badosa is the country's best player, but she has struggled with injuries in recent months. For now, she still appears on the entry list. The other four Spanish players are Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, Cristina Bucsa, Aliona Bolsova, and Leyre Romero.
Billie Jean King Cup Tournament Director is happy about this year's squads
Conchita Martinez, who also works as Mirra Andreeva's coach, is the Billie Jean King Cup Tournament Director. After announcing the latest changes in line-ups, she spoke about the teams announced. Martinez is pleased with the strength of the teams representing their countries in Shenzhen.
"This is an incredible line-up of players and we are so excited to see them giving everything for their countries in Shenzhen. This is a truly unique competition and the strength of the team nominations proves how much the players value the chance to try and help their nations become World Champions."
"Fans watching in the stadium and around the world are going to be treated to a very special week of team tennis in September and we can’t wait for it to start."
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