Serena Williams begins her quest for a fifth WTA Finals championship against Ana Ivanovic from Singapore on Monday
The Oct. 20 Red Group confrontation -- a rematch of Ivanovic's upset over the World No. 1 at the Australian Open -- is the opening singles match in the round-robin stage. Romania's Simona Halep and comely Canadian Eugenie Bouchard round out the Red Group.
On the opposite side of the draw, French Open champion Maria tops the White Group, which also includes Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, Agnieszka Radwanska and the resurgent Caroline Wozniacki.
Whether you prefer red or white, Tennis Channel will supply 35 hours of coverage from the women's season-ending event, showcasing the top eight singles players and the same number of doubles duos. The network will deliver 25 live and first-run hours, and close to 35 overall from the Oct. 20-26 event, showcasing the top eight singles players and doubles teams competing in the round-robin and then single-elimination format.
During the six-day event, Tennis Channel will air all singles round-robin and semifinals matches live, with same-day encore singles championship coverage on Oct. 26. Additionally, the network has live coverage of the doubles quarterfinals, semifinals and finals, which air on Oct. 25. Telecasts will run throughout the day most days of the week. Tennis Channel analysts Mary Carillo and Hall of Famer Tracy Austin (@thetracyaustin), the 1980 WTA finals singles champion, will call the matches during the tournament. Joining them will be Rennae Stubbs (@rennaestubbs), who won the 2001 doubles title, and Hall of Famer Lindsay Davenport (@LDavenport76), who won three consecutive year-end doubles crowns from 1996-1998 and the singles title in 1999.
