Mauresmo on verge of exit

Hingis' 6-4 3-6 6-3 victory over Nadia Petrova on Wednesday night not only kept the "Swiss Miss" in the running for a semi-final spot it also meant Mauresmo will not be able to finish the year as world number one.

The race for the number one spot had been a three way battle between Mauresmo, Justine Henin-Hardenne and Maria Sharapova but as Henin-Hardenne is now guaranteed not to finish bottom in the yellow group, the 27-year-old Frenchwoman as dropped out of the running.

Mauresmo does still have a chance to defend the title she won 12 months ago in Los Angeles but she will need to win both of her remaining matches - against Hingis on Thursday and Henin-Hardenne on Friday - to stand any chance of qualifying.

With Sharapova having essentially wrapped up her qualification spot from the red group, the final place comes down to a straight fight between Kim Clijsters and Svetlana Kuznetsova. Although Kuznetsova holds the edge going into their clash on Thursday having already won one match - Clijsters lost to Sharapova in her opening match - the Belgian has won five of their six career meetings.