The 2024 Guangzhou Open will run from October 21 to 27, and the entry list has been unveiled.
First played in 2004, the event has had WTA 250 status since its inception. This year's iteration will mark 20 years since it became a tournament on the WTA calendar during the Asian swing.
The Guangzhou Open was canceled from 2020 until 2022 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It returned last year. The home favorite, Xiyu Wang, defeated the 2023 Australian Open semifinalist Magda Linette to secure the title.
Li Na, the two-time Grand Slam champion, won the her maiden WTA singles title at the first iteration of the event 20 years ago. She overcame Martina Sucha in straight sets before going on to achieve even greater feats during her career.
Sofia Kenin, Jelena Jankovic, and Vera Zvonareva are other players who have claimed the title in Southern China. The 2024 Guangzhou Open entry list includes more exciting and watchable players.
Emma Raducanu is the most notable name on the 2024 Guangzhou Open entry list. The 2021 US Open champion, who had stated her desire to play many tournaments during the Asian swing, withdrew from the ongoing China Open in Beijing with an injury.
Raducanu explained in an update that she sprained some ligaments in her foot during her Korea Open quarterfinal against Daria Kasatkina, which forced her to retire after 31 minutes of that contest.
It is unclear when the Briton will be fit to play again. She has over three weeks to be ready for the 2024 Guangzhou Open, but she undoubtedly hopes to be fit before then for the Wuhan Open, which follows the China Open.
Sloane Stephens is another former US Open champion on the entry list. The 2017 winner at Flushing Meadows has been going through a challenging period, having only managed two victories since the start of May.
That included a brutal loss at this year's US Open from 6-0, 3-0 up against Clara Burel. Stephens is still incredibly talented and has an opportunity to change her fortunes before the end of the year in Guangzhou.
Yulia Putintseva is the No. 1 seed on the Guangzhou Open entry list. She has enjoyed a terrific season, most notably overcoming Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon after an outstanding performance.
However, the Kazakhstani also caused controversy with her behavior at the US Open towards a ball kid when she ignored several balls the girl tried to give her, allowing them to go past her without any reaction.
Putintseva publicly apologized to the ball girl for her actions, but she also hit out at what she felt was an excessive reaction to the incident in a subsequent social media post. Hopefully, the 29-year-old avoids any controversy in Guangzhou.
The Australian Open semifinalist Dayana Yastremska is the No. 2 seed. She has struggled for form since that run in Melbourne at the start of the year, with her aggressive style of play leaking many unforced errors.
Katerina Siniakova, the nine-time Grand Slam doubles champion, is also on the entry list for the 2024 Guangzhou Open. The Czech is also a solid singles player, demonstrated by her being the No. 3 seed at the event.
| Seed | Player | Entry Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yulia Putintseva | 32 |
| 2 | Dayana Yastremska | 35 |
| 3 | Katerina Siniakova | 37 |
| 4 | Anastasia Potapova | 38 |
| 5 | Yue Yuan | 41 |
| 6 | Marie Bouzkova | 42 |
| 7 | Magda Linette | 45 |
| 8 | Elina Avanesyan | 47 |
| Anhelina Kalinina | 48 | |
| Diane Parry | 53 | |
| Emma Raducanu | 54 | |
| Jessica Bouzas Maneiro | 57 | |
| Yafan Wang | 58 | |
| Katie Volynets | 60 | |
| Rebecca Sramkova | 61 | |
| Erika Andreeva | 67 | |
| Kamilla Rakhimova | 71 | |
| Sloane Stephens | 75 | |
| Harriet Dart | 76 | |
| Lucia Bronzetti | 77 | |
| Jaqueline Cristian | 80 |