Emma Raducanu one of the chosen few as WTA tournament places dry up

F ew events signify the refreshing early days of a new clay season in tennis quite like the Porsche Grand Prix in Stuttgart. Over the years this has become one of the most beloved tournaments on the Tour among players and spectators, its popularity reflected in an entry list tightly packed with quality every year.

This year, it is practically the Tour’s own battle royal. Nine of the top 10 players have descended upon the WTA 500 event this week (Tour events are divided into 1000, 500 and 250 categories in order of prestige and prize money) and the lowest-ranked player able to gain direct entry into the small 28-player main draw is ranked 24th. No match is easy. The wildcard Emma Raducanu, for example, will start on Tuesday against fellow grand‑slam champion Jelena Ostapenko, who at No 22 is actually one of the more favourable draws. The No 3 seed Ons Jabeur awaits the winner.

The best players in the world grouped so tightly together is the ideal spectacle, but underneath the surface it also quietly demonstrates one of the most significant issues in tennis.

One of the basic functions of the Women’s Tennis Association as a governing body is to ensure that professional players have sufficient playing opportunities each week in order to earn money and attempt to progress in their careers.

Multiple tournaments should be held on weeks without a grand slam or 1000 tournament, yet Stuttgart is the only WTA event on the calendar this week. By comparison, men’s ATP events are currently being held in Barcelona, Munich and Banja Luka. There is an alarming dearth of opportunities for female players to compete at the top level each week.

For the rest of the top 100, the only options were to hope that enough players withdrew in order