Iga Swiatek will play WTA tournament for the first time in her entire career next month

Iga Swiatek is already looking ahead to next month after confirming her participation at the Ningbo Open.

>Part of the Asian Swing, the WTA 500 tournament will run from October 19-25 in China. It is an event that Swiatek has never played in her career, thus the Pole is set to make her debut this time next month.

>The full entry list for the Ningbo Open has been confirmed, with six-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek joined by several other high-profile players. The tournament arrives in the schedule immediately after back-to-back WTA 1000 events in Beijing and Wuhan, and before the Japan Open in Osaka.

ResultYearTournamentSurfaceOpponentScoreWin2020French OpenClaySofia Kenin6–4, 6–1Win2022French OpenClayCoco Gauff6–1, 6–3Win2022US OpenHardOns Jabeur6–2, 7–6(7–5)Win2023French OpenClayKarolina Muchova6–2, 5–7, 6–4Win2024French OpenClayJasmine Paolini6–2, 6–1Win2025WimbledonGrassAmanda Anisimova6–0, 6–0Iga Swiatek’s Grand Slam finalsIga Swiatek to play Ningbo Open for the first timeWorld number nine Swiatek has shared her delight at featuring at the upcoming Ningbo Open, which earned the WTA 500 Progress Award of the Year in 2025. But success won’t come easy given the strong entry list, which includes defending champion Elena Rybakina.

>Rybakina clinched her 10th career title at the tournament in 2025, coming from behind to beat Ekaterina Alexandrova 3-6, 6-0, 6-2 in just under two hours. She has since gone on to win the Australian Open and the US Open.

>Also committed to the tournament are WTA stars Jessica Pegula, Elina Svitolina and Marta Kostyuk, who are all top 10 players. And they will be joined by Iva Jovic, Belinda Bencic, Diana Shnaider, Sorana Cirstea, Jasmine Paolini and 2025 runner-up Alexandrova. Also featuring in the star-studded event are Barbora Krejcikova, Leylah Fernandez and Jelena Ostapenko.

>And in fantastic news for fans of Alexandra Eala, the Filipina superstar is also included in the Ningbo Open entry list. Eala is currently playing at the Singapore Open before taking on the Asian Games, with Ningbo now added to her busy schedule.

How has Iga Swiatek performed in the 2026 season?It has been an interesting season for Swiatek to say the least. For the first time since the 2021 season, she failed to win a Grand Slam title, with her quarterfinal finish at the Australian Open representing her best run. Swiatek lost to Qinwen Zheng in the fourth round of the US Open in her most recent match, capping off a disappointing major season.

>The Pole did, however, secure success in Toronto, while Swiatek still wants to reach the WTA Finals. She currently occupies 10th place in the standings, with the top eight players set to feature at Indian Wells in November. New world number one and Ningbo defending champion Rybakina has already qualified.

>Swiatek has played exactly 50 matches at this stage of her season, from which she has claimed 36 wins and suffered 14 defeats. She is, of course, a far cry from her career-high ranking of world number one. But it is perhaps a mere blip in the otherwise phenomenal career of the 25-year-old, who boasts 26 WTA titles.