According to Conchita Martinez, Aryna Sabalenka deserves the year-end world No. 1 ranking. However, the Spaniard also acknowledged that Iga Swiatek not playing for a couple of months proved crucial.
Sabalenka and Swiatek had another exciting battle for the year-end No. 1 ranking in 2024. The Pole trailed her rival before the 2023 WTA Finals but won the season-ending tournament to overtake Sabalenka.
Swiatek's position at the top looked secure a few months ago. Sabalenka began the North American hardcourt season at No. 3 in the rankings, with Coco Gauff at No. 2.
Sabalenka's decision to skip the Olympics and begin the North American hardcourt season early was wise. After winning the Cincinnati Open, the Belarusian won her maiden US Open title, beating Jessica Pegula in the final.
Those successes reduced the gap to Swiatek, but Sabalenka still had a significant points gap to close. However, Swiatek then did not play any tournaments during the Asian swing after splitting with coach Tomasz Wiktorowski.
That gave Sabalenka an ideal chance to take advantage, and she did not blow that opportunity. The 26-year-old moved even closer to Swiatek in the rankings by winning the Wuhan Open for the third time.
Swiatek's absence for two months until the WTA Finals meant Sabalenka would have moved ahead of her when the four-time French Open champion dropped the points she earned from winning last year's iteration of the tournament.
But a controversial rule led to Sabalenka overtaking Swiatek earlier than that. Both women were penalized for not playing in six mandatory WTA 500 tournaments and had the points from their lowest-earning tournament in 2024 removed on two occasions.
That rule hurt Swiatek more than Sabalenka, and the three-time Grand Slam champion became the new No. 1. The Pole dropping her points from last year's WTA Finals afterward meant she trailed Sabalenka by over 1,000 points before the WTA Finals.
Swiatek's defeat to the eventual champion Coco Gauff confirmed Sabalenka as the year-end No. 1. She was recognized for that achievement at the WTA Finals before the tournament ended.
Speaking ahead of the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Malaga, Martinez described Swiatek and Sabalenka as the two dominant players in the women's game but believes the Belarusian deserves to be No. 1.
"Right now, it’s clear that they are the dominant players. Iga was very dominant by a lot of points for a while, even though Aryna was very close. There are a lot of great players out there that can do very well. It depends on so many things but Iga was dominating, and I really liked her consistency."
"I really like how Aryna has gotten so much better in many aspects of her game, fixing her serve, also her forehand is very powerful.She’s been playing finals, winning tournaments, so she probably deserves to be there, because Iga didn’t play for a couple of months."
Although Sabalenka and Swiatek are currently the top women's players, Martinez also has high hopes for the WTA Finals champion Gauff and believes she can do very well.
"They [Sabalenka and Swiatek] are the players to watch, but there are other players like Coco who is playing amazing tennis at the moment. She’s playing so great, so I think she can also do very well."