Ningbo 2024: Dates, draws, prize money and everything you need to know

The Asian swing continues next week with the penultimate WTA 500 event on the 2024 Hologic WTA Tour calendar, the Ningbo Open in Ningbo, China.

It is yet another loaded entry list in China this year. Thirteen of the Top 20 players in the PIF WTA Singles Rankings are scheduled to compete for the outdoor hard-court title in Ningbo.

Ningbo: Scores | Order of Play | Draws

World No.3 Jessica Pegula is currently leading the Ningbo field, in one of the last opportunities this year to pick up precious ranking points and make a final charge towards the season-ending WTA Finals Riyadh.

The Ningbo Open made its Hologic WTA Tour calendar debut last year as a WTA 250 event. In its second edition, Ningbo comes back as a WTA 500, offering 500 ranking points and $142,000 to this year's singles champion.

Here are the key facts surrounding the 2024 Ningbo Open:

When does the tournament start?

Main-draw action in Ningbo begins on Monday, Oct. 14. The week-long event wraps up on Sunday, Oct. 20.

Singles qualifying takes place the weekend before, on Saturday, Oct. 12 and Sunday, Oct. 13.

The Wilson US Open Regular Duty ball will be used at the event.

Ningbo is on China Standard Time (GMT +8, Eastern Time +12).

How big are the fields?

The tournament has a 28-player singles main draw, with the top four seeds receiving first-round byes. There will be six qualifiers and four wild cards in the main draw.

The doubles draw has 16 teams, two of which will be wild-card pairings.

When are the finals?

The singles and doubles finals will take place on Sunday, Oct. 20. Currently, the doubles final is scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m., with the singles final to follow, not before 5 p.m.

When are the draws?

The singles main draw is scheduled to be made on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. The doubles draw will also be revealed on the same day.

Who are the defending champions?

Ons Jabeur won the inaugural Ningbo Open last year, defeating Diana Shnaider 6-2, 6-1 in the final. Former World No.2 Jabeur will not be back to defend her title, as the Tunisian ended her season early due to a continuing shoulder injury.

Laura Siegemund and Vera Zvonareva won last year's Ningbo Open doubles title, squeaking past Guo Hanyu and Jiang Xinyu in the final, 4-6, 6-3, [10-5]. Siegemund and Zvonareva would go on to finish the 2023 season by winning the WTA Finals doubles title.

What are the ranking points and prize money on offer in the singles main draw?

First round: 1 point | $9,820
Round of 16: 60 points | $13,590
Quarterfinals: 108 points | $24,910
Semifinals: 195 points | $51,205
Finalist: 325 points | $87,655
Champion: 500 points | $142,000

Who is playing?

Here are stats for the projected seeds:

1. Jessica Pegula 
Ranking: No.3 (career-high No.3)
Career singles titles: 6 (2 this year)
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 37-14

2. Jasmine Paolini
Ranking: No.6 (career-high No.5)
Career singles titles: 2 (1 this year)
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 38-17 (through Wuhan Round of 16)

3. Zheng Qinwen
Ranking: No.7 (career-high No.7)
Career singles titles: 4 (2 this year)
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 40-15 (through Wuhan Round of 16)

4. Emma Navarro
Ranking: No.8 (career-high No.8)
Career singles titles: 1 (1 this year)
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 45-22

5. Barbora Krejcikova
Ranking: No.10 (career-high No.2)
Career singles titles: 8 (1 this year)
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 18-13

6. Daria Kasatkina
Ranking: No.11 (career-high No.8)
Career singles titles: 7 (1 this year)
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 35-21

7. Beatriz Haddad Maia
Ranking: No.12 (career-high No.10)
Career singles titles: 4 (1 this year)
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 34-23 (through Wuhan Round of 16)

8. Anna Kalinskaya
Ranking: No.13 (career-high No.13)
Career singles titles: 0
2024 tour-level win-loss record: 31-17

Along with the eight seeded players, the other Top 20 players currently entered in the main draw are Paula Badosa, Diana Shnaider, Marta Kostyuk, Donna Vekic and Mirra Andreeva.

Liudmila Samsonova, Yulia Putintseva, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Karolina Muchova complete the current main-draw entries. Muchova is entered via her protected ranking of No.9.

The PIF WTA Singles Rankings dated Sept. 16 determined the main-draw entry list. The first alternate is currently Katie Boulter, who was ranked World No.36 on that date.

Maria Sakkari, Danielle Collins and Jelena Ostapenko have withdrawn from the main-draw entry list.

How has the Asian swing gone so far this year?

Here's a look at 2024's champions and finalists from this portion of the season in Asia:

Seoul (WTA 500): Beatriz Haddad Maia def. Daria Kasatkina
Hua Hin #2 (WTA 250): Rebecca Sramkova def. Laura Siegemund

Beijing (WTA 1000): Coco Gauff def. Karolina Muchova

Wuhan (WTA 1000): In progress