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After dealing with regular setbacks and losses in the season, Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka has reclaimed her World No. 1 position in WTA ranking replacing Iga Swiatek. The upcoming WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia that will be held in the month of November will decide who will top the number one spot by the year's end. In addition to winning in Cincinnati and Wuhan, Belarusian tennis sensation Sabalenka won the Australian Open this year and the US Open, the season's final Grand Slam.
With the WTA Finals quickly approaching, the race for the top slot will be more intense. However, Aryna's strong season has maintained her position. After skipping the six WTA 500 events that the WTA required, Swiatek accumulated penalty points. However, due to exhaustion, she missed the Asian tour and only participated in two events. Due to penalty points, Swiatek fell below Sabalenka in the rankings for the first time this year. Since the Belarusian has only participated in four WTA events this year, she will also earn penalty points. But with two Grand Slam victories and fewer penalty points, Sabalenka overtook Swiatek to take the lead.
Aryna and Iga to battle for world no 1 title in WTA Finals
The WTA Finals 2024 which is set in Riyadh next month will see Aryna and Iga battling to regain the World's No. 1 spot in the WTA Ranking. Sabalenka will be the top seed with 9,016 points and Swiatek will hold second position with 7,970 points. Swiatek was successful in winning five titles (Qatar Open, Indian Wells Open, Madrid Open, Italian Open, and Roland Garros), but didn't play tennis post quarterfinal exit at the US Open in September. She even withdrew from China Open 2024 due to personal reason.
This is the second time Sabalenka reached the No.1 spot. The last time she reached this spot lasted for 8 weeks before Iga Swiatek took over again.
