The AUX Ningbo Open represents the premier WTA event during the week of October 13-19, featuring both exceptional field strength and crucial implications for the WTA Finals race. The WTA 500 tournament arrives at a pivotal moment as the top three seeds battle for precious points that will determine the final two unassigned qualifying spots for the year-end championships in Riyadh. Mirra Andreeva leads as top seed while sitting seventh in the WTA Race, just ahead of Jasmine Paolini who currently occupies the last qualifying position and Elena Rybakina Elena Rybakina who chases Paolini (218 points behind) and Andreeva (407 points behind). Beyond the Riyadh contenders, the field boasts remarkable depth with all eight seeds ranked inside the world's top 20. Let's dive deep into preview of the upcoming week in Ningbo with the main draw analysis.
Andreeva seeks bounce-back amid qualification pressure
Mirra Andreeva leads the Ningbo field as top seed, but the 18-year-old Russian arrives in the midst of a troubling form slump during the Asian hard court swing. The world number five has suffered consecutive early upsets to Sonay Kartal in Beijing and Laura Siegemund in Wuhan, the latter representing Andreeva's opening match of that tournament. She has won just four of eight matches since reaching the Wimbledon quarterfinals, entering as a strong pre-match favorite in all her defeats including early exits at the US Open and Montreal. The poor run has unexpectedly drawn Andreeva into the final stretch of the race for the top eight spots, a precarious position for a player who appeared comfortably qualified just months ago.
The mental toll became particularly evident during her Wuhan loss to Siegemund, when Andreeva was seen crying and displaying visible frustration on court. While players like Jessica Pegula and Amanda Anisimova secured WTA Finals qualification and subsequently withdrew from Ningbo to rest, Andreeva cannot afford such luxury despite clearly needing a break at this juncture of the season. The pressure intensifies knowing that poor results in Ningbo could jeopardize her year-end championship spot.
Andreeva receives a first-round bye as one of the top four seeds, but her kick-off match can be a tricky one. She will met either Emma Raducanu or Lin Zhu. Raducanu raised up in the rankings this year to the areas of top 30, however her recent performance was marked with painful losses against Barbora Krejcikova and Jessica Pegula, when the Brit gave away the victories despite having matchpoints in both cases. Raducanu was also a victim of difficult weather conditions in Wuhan, struggling physically in first match against Ann Li, withdrawing in second set. Lin Zhu was a finalist in Ningbo two years ago and a performed a run into round of 16 of WTA 1000 in Montreal. The Chinese is currently 230th in the rankings and received wild card to main draw.
Top half of a draw
Beyond Andreeva's quarter, the top half delivers compelling matchups throughout. The most intriguing first-round encounter pits two Czech quarterfinalists from the US Open against each other. Marketa Vondrousova returns to competition after sustaining an injury during her Flushing Meadows run to face compatriot Karolina Muchova. The latter failed to defend her Beijing semifinal points from last year, sliding to 22nd in the rankings. Muchova also battled the challenging Wuhan conditions, retiring against Magdalena Frech while trailing in the second set. Seventh seed Diana Shnaider completes the opening quarter, with the WTA 500 Monterrey champion attempting to recover from three consecutive defeats during the Asian hard court swing.
The second quarter features Ekaterina Alexandrova making her debut as a top-10 player after reaching a career-high 10th in the rankings. The Russian remains mathematically alive in the WTA Finals race but trails the eighth qualifying spot by approximately 1,000 points, making her chances remote. Eighth seed Liudmila Samsonova also resides in this section after dismissing her coaching team following disappointing Asian swing results. An intriguing all-American first-round clash between Sofia Kenin and Mccartney Kessler adds spice to the quarter, while Chinese players Xinyu Wang, Yue Yuan, and Hanyu Guo carry home crowd hopes through this section of the draw.
High stakes await in loaded bottom half
The bottom half looks even more stacked, especially knowing the stake between players highlighting this section. Second seed Elena Rybakina and 3rd seed Jasmine Paolini can meet up in potential semifinal which can have a significant implications for the WTA Finals race. However, the road to this point is not a cakewalk for both. Paolini will start from the tricky match against Veronika Kudermetova - semifinalist of WTA 1000 in Cincinnati, or Shuai Zhang. The Chinese veteran was one of sensations from Wuhan Open, making into round of 16. Apart from a challenging start, Belinda Bencic is another seed in Paolini's quarter, promising an exciting quarterfinal clash.
Victoria Mboko has yet to demonstrate consistency following her sensational Canadian Open victory. The 19-year-old has lost all three matches since that breakthrough triumph, although she faced challenging opponents including Barbora Krejcikova at the US Open, Anastasia Potapova in Beijing, and Ekaterina Alexandrova in Wuhan. If Rybakina navigates her opening test, a quarterfinal against fifth seed Clara Tauson awaits as the likely scenario.
Tauson is enjoying the best season of her career, reaching world number 12 with an impressive 36-21 WTA Tour record in 2025. The Dane reached the Dubai WTA 1000 final and Canadian Open semifinals, establishing herself as a legitimate threat at the highest levels. However, the 22-year-old appears to be running out of steam in recent weeks, winning just four of her last 10 matches. Disappointing early exits in the US Open first round to Alexandra Eala and a Beijing upset to Zeynep Sonmez have raised questions about her current form. Sonmez could potentially face Tauson again in the Ningbo second round, offering the Dane a chance for immediate revenge or risking further damage to her confidence.
Full WTA 500 AUX Ningbo Open draw
