The WTA Tour were forced to scramble to find a new venue for its prestigious WTA Finals after Saudi Arabia pulled out of hosting the 2026 event, but the solution to their problem has raised some glaring realities.

The WTA’s move to switch the event to the Indian Wells Tennis Garden appeared to be shrewd, as they were taking the tournament to a venue that has an audience that are familiar with supporting the game.

For many years, the Indian Wells Open has been one of the marquee tournaments in tennis, with bumper crowds in attendance for an event that is now played over an extended two-week format in March.

So it would not have been unreasonable to expect the tennis-loving fans of Indian Wells to come and support the best female players in the world for one of the biggest events of the season.

The sun has been shining and conditions have been favourable, but the attendance on the opening days of the WTA Finals has been alarmingly low.

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Even though tickets are priced as low as $85, thousands of empty seats have been in evidence for an event that is providing a stage for the best players in the women’s game.

A look ahead to the next few days confirms there are still thousands of seats unsold and that is a poor reflection of the interest in an event that does not appear to have the same appeal as the joint men’s and women’s event that takes place every year in March.

Why are the stands for the joint men’s and women’s event packed, while this elite level women’s tournament is so sparsely attended?

It is a question that may have an uncomfortable answer for WTA Tour chiefs who are fighting to confirm their players are as big a draw as the star names in the men’s game.

Crowd attendance was a major talking point when the WTA Finals were staged in Saudi Arabia over the last couple of years, with sparse crowds in the stands for much of the event.

But organisers must be disappointed by the lack of fans attending the WTA Finals in Indian Wells, with the quality on the court doing little to lift the mood around the event.

Sky Sports commentator Jonathan Overend admitted the quality of tennis in the group stage match between Jessica Pegula and Marta Kostyuk was less than impressive and it can only be hoped that the event catches fire when it reaches the semi-final and final on Sunday.