Aryna Sabalenka has taken control of the WTA Race after successfully defending her Australian Open title last Saturday.
The Belarusian star received the full 2,000 points on offer to add to her 325 points for her runner-up finish at the Brisbane International in the first week of the season. Sabalenka defeated China's Qinwen Zheng in the final and completed a perfect fortnight without dropping a set.
Sabalenka is now in the ascendancy. Last year, she led World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in 43 of the 44 weeks on the women's calendar, but remarkably, she finished in second place behind the Pole. The 25-year-old will hope that scenario won't materialize this time.
Thanks to the new WTA rules on qualification criteria for the WTA Finals, Sabalenka is all but certain to play the season finale, with reports suggesting it will be held in Saudi Arabia for the first time ever.
Zheng, who came up short in her first Grand Slam final, is in second place in the early race, having tallied 1,375 points. She ranks ahead of Coco Gauff, who won a title in Auckland at the start of 2024 and was a semifinalist at the Australian Open.
Dayana Yastremska's magical run in Melbourne has earned her a spot in the top four of the race. The Ukrainian became the first qualifier to reach the Australian Open semifinal since 1978 and was within a pair of wins from emulating Emma Raducanu's incredible streak at the 2021 US Open.
Elena Rybakina and Jelena Ostapenko were tied in the top spot before the Australian Open, but both have fallen down the pecking order after disappointing campaigns in Melbourne. Rybakina was knocked out in the second round by Anna Blinkova, while Ostapenko only made it to the third round.
Iga Swiatek, who topped last year's race, is down in seventh spot ahead of her Australian Open conqueror Linda Noskova. The WTA Race is starting to have its original shape, and many changes will be expected in the coming weeks as frantic February hoves into view.
2024 WTA Race as of January 29th, 2024:
| Rank | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aryna Sabalenka | 2325 |
| 2 | Qinwen Zheng | 1375 |
| 3 | Coco Gauff | 1030 |
| 4 | Dayana Yastremska | 845 |
| 5 | Jelena Ostapenko | 738 |
| 6 | Elena Rybakina | 678 |
| 7 | Iga Swiatek | 630 |
| 8 | Linda Noskova | 625 |
| 9 | Marta Kostyuk | 570 |
| 10 | Anna Kalinskaya | 547 |
| 11 | Daria Kasatkina | 503 |
| 12 | Emma Navarro | 478 |
| 13 | Victoria Azarenka | 435 |
| 14 | Barbora Krejcikova | 431 |
| 15 | Elina Svitolina | 403 |
| 16 | Mirra Andreeva | 348 |
| 17 | Jessica Pegula | 300 |
| 18 | Elise Mertens | 293 |
| 19 | Magdalena Frech | 289 |
| 20 | Maria Timofeeva | 286 |
| 21 | Jasmine Paolini | 276 |
| 22 | Amanda Anisimova | 270 |
| 23 | Oceane Dodin | 267 |
| 24 | Caroline Garcia | 225 |
| 25 | Ekaterina Alexandrova | 206 |
| 26 | Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova | 204 |
| 27 | Clara Burel | 191 |
| 28 | Katie Boulter | 185 |
| 29 | Diane Parry | 184 |
| 30 | Laura Siegemund | 178 |
| 31 | Anastasia Zakharova | 174 |
| 32 | Storm Hunter | 170 |
| 33 | Beatriz Haddad Maia | 166 |
| 34 | Sloane Stephens | 163 |
| 35 | Elina Avanesyan | 161 |
| 36 | Lesia Tsurenko | 160 |
| 37 | Maria Sakkari | 160 |
| 38 | Brenda Fruhvirtova | 158 |
| 39 | Katerina Siniakova | 156 |
| 40 | Yue Yuan | 156 |
| 41 | Varvara Gracheva | 154 |
| 42 | Moyuka Uchijima | 151 |
| 43 | Viktorija Golubic | 149 |
| 44 | Yafan Wang | 146 |
| 45 | Daria Saville | 140 |
| 46 | Arantxa Rus | 139 |
| 47 | Viktoriya Tomova | 137 |
| 48 | Nuria Parrizas Diaz | 136 |
| 49 | Anna Blinkova | 132 |
| 50 | Paula Badosa | 131 |
| 50 | Alycia Parks | 131 |
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