Posted by Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday November 12, 2024
A fantastic WTA season came to a close over the weekend, and the end of the new year was crowned. Aryna Sabalenka sits atop the WTA rankings for the first time, and the year-end top 5 has a few familiar faces and a few surprises.
Here are some notable names and milestones as we take a final look at the WTA rankings.
In Aryna
It was a triumphant year for Aryna Sabalenka, who added two major titles to her haul, and surpassed Iga Swiatek to end the season as the year-end No.1 for the first time. Can he rule the table in 2025?
Queenwen Career-High and Top-5 Debut
There's no doubt about it: China has another megastar. And her name is Quenwen. Zheng Qinwen made history at the Olympics this year, winning gold, but he also reached the grand final at the Australian Open, played the final match at the WTA Finals, and his strong performance after Wimbledon brought him to the final of the year indoors. Top-5.
Boomshki. Zheng is the first Chinese player to hold the top five since Li Na.
Power of Paolini
The biggest story of 2024 came from Italy, where Jasmine Paolini, who had a 4-16 record in majors before 2024, went 18-4 in majors and reached the finals of Roland-Garros and Wimbledon. She finishes the season at number 4, tied for the highest ranking among Italian women with the great Francesca Schiavone.
Barbora Enters the Conversation
He won Wimbledon. That's saying it all, but Barbora Krejcikova, now a two-time major champion (and a certain Hall of Famer), rebounded in 2024 with a strong run at the WTA Finals. He finishes the season at number 10.
Emma! (no it's not)
There were three players who made their Top-10 debut in 2024. You've heard of Zheng and Paolini already, but don't forget American Emma Navarro, who won 45 matches and also played in Grand Slams, reaching the stage. a quarterfinal at Wimbledon and a semis at the US Open. He climbed from 38 this time last year to a year-end ranking of eight – impressive feats from a 23-year-old.
Top-20 Success
Besides Zheng, Paolini and Navarro, there were three other players who broke the Top-20 for the first time in 2024: Diana Shnaider, Anna Kalinskaya and Mirra Andreeva. Shnaider finished No.12, Kalinskaya No.14 and Andreeva No.16. Maybe they will enter the Top-10 in 2025!
Young at Heart
Gauff (20) is the youngest player in the Top 10 (which is not true, she is still 20!), and Andreeva (17) is the youngest player in the Top 20. Andreeva and Linda Noskova (19 , ranked No. 26) are the only juniors to finish the season inside the WTA Top 100.
Rising Stars
The biggest surges within the Top 100 came from a few familiar names.
Naomi Osaka ends the year at number 59. She is ranked 831 at the Australian Open. Surprisingly, the best match he played in 2024 was actually a loss to Iga Swiatek at Roland-Garros. She was amazing in that competition – Naomi of old – until she gave it up. Look for Osaka to continue his steady climb next season. The lineage of that champion has just been buried.
Emma Raducanu jumped 227 places from 285 this time last year to No.58, while Amanda Anisimova rose from 359 to No.36. Ajla Tomljanovic moved up from 464 to No.85, while Caroline Wozniacki jumped from 236 to No.72.
