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Coco Gauff marked her return to the big time. Displaying the same appetite to fight that led her to a maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open last year, Gauff overturned a 3-5 third-set deficit to defeat Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2) to lift the WTA Finals trophy in Riyadh.

The failure to repeat the highs of 2023 this year had heightened the scrutiny around the 20-year-old American’s game blighted by fundamental struggles on forehand and serve.

But battling so bravely to win the prestigious title at the end of a week in which she defeated two of the world’s best players, Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek, painted a picture of resurgence for a talented young player who belongs in the world’s elite.

In the background of Gauff’s remarkable and significant triumph, however, was the shifting balance of power in tennis.

While the American’s victory was laudable, headlines are likely to be grabbed by the eyewatering sums she earned.

Gauff took home $4.805 million in prize money this week, the biggest in women’s sports history, and the highest total ever earned in competition by a tennis player, man or woman, at a professional event.

The largesse was owed to the event’s hosts, Saudi Arabia, who have left a lasting imprint on the sport within months.

Last month, World No.1 Jannik Sinner took home the tallest prize money sum in tennis history, $6 million, after winning the Six Kings exhibition tournament in Riyadh that was graced by some of the biggest names in the sport and may have been the final singles event of Rafael Nadal’s career no mystery as to what the motivation may have been to refuse to finish his career at his spiritual home on the clay of Roland Garros.

Throughout this year, Saudi Arabia has stormed into tennis at breakneck speed. Nadal has been signed up as the ambassador of the Saudi Tennis Federation.

The ATP and WTA have signed strategic partnerships with the Public Investment Fund, the country’s sovereign wealth fund, which include sponsorship of both professional rankings allowing PIF logos to be present at all major tennis events.

Riyadh already plays host to the ‘NextGen’ ATP Finals.

$2 billion offer
In May, reports did the rounds of a potential $2 billion injection courtesy of Saudi, that would merge the men’s and women’s tours to sell media rights and sponsorships, include more tournaments with both men and women with equal prize money, and hold a big tournament in the country itself.

Rumours of this tournament being a combined Masters 1000 event in January before the Australian Open led to Tennis Australia writing to the ATP that such an event would be a “breach of contract.” Such pushback has been limited at best though.