A look at Aryna Sabalenka's journey to reach year-end WTA No. 1 for first time

Sabalenka caps an exceptional season as she celebrates as the year-end No. 1 for the first time.

Aryna Sabalenka effectively negotiated the 2024 season to emerge as the 16th year-end No. 1 in the WTA Rankings. The Belarusian won two Grand Slam titles in a single season for the first time. She defended her 2023 Australian Open title before adding the US Open trophy to her collection in September. 

Aryna Sabalenka became the World No. 1 in September 2023, taking over from Iga Swiatek the coveted top spot in the WTA. However, the Pole recovered what she lost in the final week of the season at the WTA Finals. The year Sabalenka held on to her lead during the WTA Finals in Riyadh, ensuring a year-end swap with Swiatek for the No. 1 and No. 2 positions. 

Also Read: Full list of events in WTA calendar 2025

The reversal is the third time the year-end No.1 and No.2 ranking has changed hands. The earliest instance was Stefanie Graf and Monica Seles (1990-91) followed by Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis (1998-99). 

Titles Won

There were many positives for the Belarusian Tigress. Sabalenka reached the title round at seven tournaments, claiming the win in four of them. The titles came at the Australian Open, Cincinnati, US Open and Wuhan. Sabalenka was a finalist at Brisbane and Madrid. The two-time Australian champion finished the year with a 56-14 win-loss record, second only to Iga Swiatek (61-9), who leads the tour.

Since August this season, Sabalenka reached four finals at Cincinnati, New York and Wuhan, winning all three. In Cincinnati and New York, she took on Jessica Pegula and defeated Chinese player Qinwen Zheng in Wuhan in a rematch of their Australian Final.  

Sabalenka came close to victory at Flushing Meadows in 2023 before she blew a one-set lead against Coco Gauff in the final. The Minsk native lived dangerously in the semis and was on the verge of making a semi-final exit in New York for the third consecutive time. Sabalenka clawed back to win for a three-set win after letting go of the opening set against Madison Keys, 0-6, 7-6(1), 7-6(5). The reward was her first attempt at the title against Gauff.

Also Read: Brisbane International 2025: How much did Aryna Sabalenka and Polina Kudermetova earn in prize money?

Setbacks

Following her Australian Open title defence, Sabalenka turned in a lacklustre performance in three of the WTA 1000 events that followed. The 26-year-old made the second round in Dubai, the fourth round in Indian Wells, and the third round in Miami.

At the Madrid and Rome WTA 1000 events, Sabalenka missed two more chances to add to her trophy cabinet. She made back-to-back finals, losing both to Iga Swiatek. The defeat in Madrid came from a position of strength. Sabalenka let Swiatek off the hook despite being a point away from the title. It took a closely fought final set tiebreaker to decide the three-hour match, which the Pole wrapped up in three sets.  

The final in Rome between Swiatek and Sabalenka was a clinical display by the Pole as she won in straight sets before capturing the Roland Garros for a third consecutive time.

Milestones

Aryna Sabalenka capped off a dominant year on the WTA Tour when she sealed her spot as the best women’s tennis player in the world and the 16th year-ending World No. 1 on the WTA Tour. 

Sabalenka’s perfect year included two Grand Slams in the same season and two WTA 1000 titles, along with a semi-final run at the WTA Finals. The Belarusian won her opening two matches in the group stage, confirming her status as the new year-end No. 1 following Iga Swiatek’s loss to Coco Gauff in the round-robin stage of the tournament. 

Sabalenka also emulated Coco Gauff’s achievement from last season. The American won the US Open and the Cincinnati WTA 1000 in 2023, while Sabalenka achieved the milestone this season. 

The 26-year-old from Minsk tailed Swiatek all season, closed the gap with the Pole during the Asian swing, and finally took over as the new No. 1 in late October.  

Sabalenka notched up two more personal records this season. She became the first to win a hattrick of titles at Wuhan and the first since compatriot Victoria Azarenka (2012, 2013) to win the Australian Open title twice in a row. Sabalenka won in Melbourne in January without dropping a set.

The hard court double was complete when she took her maiden US Open title. The last woman to complete the Australian Open – US Open double the same year was Martina Hingis in 1997.

Looking forward to the 2025 season, history beckons Aryna Sabalenka in the form of a third straight Australian Open title. If she does indeed pull it off, she will emulate Martina Hingis who was the last to complete the three-win streak in Melbourne between 1997 and 1999.

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