Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.

Almost all of the women players want to charge hard and have a fine fall, but a number of them are wilting.  A slew of the top competitors are hurt, with No. 1 Serena Williams pulling out for the rest of the year because her body was in pain. No. 3 Maria Sharapova has played one match since Wimbledon due to a series of injuries.

Two of the major Czechs are hurting. No. 4 Petra Kvitova still has mono and hasn’t played well since the clay court season. No. 6 Lucie Safarova hasn’t played since the US Open because she was forced to go to the hospital due to a bacteria infection.

Except for Serena Williams, Sharapova,  Kvitova and Safarova all want to play the WTA Finals at Singapore in two weeks. But at this juncture, they are unsure.

So is No. 2 Simona Halep, who retired in her first match in Beijing with an ankle injury. She was in pain last week in Wuhan and she isn’t sure whether she can recover before the end of the year.

Now, she won’t commit to Singapore.

“I didn’t think it would become like this. I just don’t feel well with my tendon right now. Of course, every tournament is important. But the most important thing is to be OK, to feel no pain, and then I will see. (It) was my goal for this year. I will see. I need treatment and I need a break, for sure.”

However, the 35-year-old Venus Williams is hoping to make the WTA Final, even though she is sore after winning Wuhan.  Only eight players can get into Singapore. Venus Williams is playing Beijing.

The former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki also wants to make it in, but she has said that her legs are always hurting.

There are some of the top 10 players who are reasonably healthy to get in, such as No. 5 Garbine Muguruza, No. 7 Flavia Pennetta, No. 8 Aga Radwanska, No. 9 Karolina Pliskova and No. 10 Angie Kerber, among others.

Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.