With the Mutua Madrid Open, the fifth WTA 1000 event of the year, now concluded, the Hologic WTA Tour`s clay court season is fully underway. The most recent update to the PIF WTA Rankings incorporates results from Madrid along with two WTA 125 tournaments held in Saint-Malo, France, and Vic, Spain.
Aryna Sabalenka claimed her third Madrid title, matching Petra Kvitova`s record, following her previous wins in 2021 and 2023. The World No. 1 has now reached the final in six of eight tournaments played this season and has widened the points gap between herself and World No. 2 Iga Swiatek to 4,345.
Runner-up Coco Gauff decisively defeated Swiatek 6-1, 6-1, marking her third consecutive victory against the World No. 2 and reaching her first final since the 2024 WTA Finals. The 20-year-old American has climbed back to No. 3, reclaiming her position as the top-ranked player from the USA, ahead of Jessica Pegula.
Japanese Players Achieve Significant Milestones
Several Japanese players have enjoyed successful periods recently. Moyuka Uchijima was a standout performer in Madrid, securing her first three career wins against Top 25 opponents, including a notable upset over Pegula in the third round, to reach her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal. This time last year, Uchijima entered the Top 100 following a 19-match winning streak that included the Madrid ITF W100 title. She has now broken into the Top 50 for the first time, moving up nine spots from No. 56 to No. 47.
After an initial loss in Madrid to Lucia Bronzetti, former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka decided to play at the WTA 125 event in Saint-Malo, her first appearance at this level in a decade. This proved beneficial. Osaka, who recovered from a 4-1 deficit in the third set against Diane Parry in the second round, won her first trophy since the 2021 Australian Open and her first clay court title at any level. She returns to the Top 50 with a seven-place jump to No. 48.
Aoi Ito, known for her unique game style, chose to compete in Japan. The 20-year-old reached the semifinals at the 2024 Osaka tournament on her WTA debut and won the Canberra WTA 125 title in January. Her recent semifinal run at the Tokyo ITF W100 event helped her break into the Top 100 for the first time, inching up one spot to No. 100.
Australian Open junior champion Wakana Sonobe made an impact on her WTA debut in February by qualifying for and reaching the second round in Abu Dhabi. The powerful 17-year-old recently secured her first professional title at the Tokyo ITF W100, making a significant leap of 161 places from No. 448 to a new career-best ranking of No. 287.
Ukrainian Players Shine in Madrid
Three Ukrainian players delivered their best career results in Madrid. Elina Svitolina, who had won only three matches across nine previous appearances at the tournament, none consecutively, reached the semifinals this year. This impressive run extended her winning streak to 11 matches, following her title win in Rouen and Billie Jean King Cup ties. The 30-year-old is up three spots to No. 14, her highest ranking since October 2021.
Marta Kostyuk advanced to her second WTA 1000 quarterfinal of 2024 in Madrid, with victories over Emma Raducanu and Veronika Kudermetova. After briefly dropping outside the Top 30 for the first time since March 2024 two weeks ago, Kostyuk`s strong performance resulted in an immediate rebound, climbing nine spots to No. 27.
Last October, Yuliia Starodubtseva entered the Top 100 after qualifying for and reaching the quarterfinals in Beijing. However, she then faced a difficult period, losing 16 of her subsequent 19 matches, including all six at the tour level. The 25-year-old impressively ended this slump by qualifying again at a WTA 1000 event in Madrid and reaching the Round of 16. There, she secured her second career Top 20 win against Liudmila Samsonova. Her ranking improves by 19 positions to No. 80.
Success for Hungarian Players on Clay
Dalma Galfi, formerly ranked No. 79, has quietly built strong momentum on the WTA 125 circuit. The 26-year-old, a former junior world No. 1, was a finalist in La Bisbal d`Empordà and subsequently won her first two WTA 125 titles in Antalya and Vic. Her recent 14-1 record over the past month has propelled her 26 places up the rankings to No. 95 this week, marking her return to the Top 100 since June 2023.
Another Hungarian player, Anna Bondar, a former World No. 50, also claimed a title last week, winning the Wiesbaden ITF W100 event for the second time. The 27-year-old has risen 13 positions to No. 89.
Other Notable Ranking Changes
Jasmine Paolini, +1 to No. 5: The Italian reached the third round in Madrid and returns to the Top 5 for the first time since February.
Diana Shnaider, +2 to No. 11: Playing her second event with former World No. 1 Dinara Safina as her coach, Shnaider won consecutive matches for the first time since January to reach the Madrid fourth round, achieving a new career high at 20 years old.
Anna Blinkova, +9 to No. 67: Blinkova successfully qualified and reached the second round of Madrid, where she put in a strong performance against eventual champion Sabalenka.
Yuan Yue, +10 to No. 93: After losing 10 of her first 13 matches this year and falling out of the Top 100 in March, former No. 36 Yuan ended her difficult spell by winning the Oeiras ITF W100 title two weeks ago – her first career trophy on clay at any level.
Mananchaya Sawangkaew, +8 to No. 105: The 22-year-old Thai player has reached a new career high following her run to the Gifu ITF W100 final last week.
Rebeka Masarova, +41 to No. 112: Former No. 62 Masarova had a tough start to 2024 but has shown resurgence over the past two months with a 16-5 record since March. In the last fortnight, the 25-year-old Swiss reached the Madrid third round as a qualifier, then followed up with a run to the final at the Vic WTA 125.
Iva Jovic, +21 to No. 120: The 17-year-old American secured her first ITF W100 title in Charlottesville two weeks ago, propelling her to a new career high.
Zhang Shuai, +28 to No. 136: Former World No. 22 Zhang won the Gifu ITF W100 last week, marking the 35-year-old`s first singles title at any level since Lyon in 2022.
Astra Sharma, +47 to No. 154: Sharma, the 2021 Charleston 250 champion, found success on green clay again recently. The 29-year-old Australian reached the Charlottesville ITF W100 semifinals, then won the Bonita Springs ITF W100 title without dropping a set.
Whitney Osuigwe, +21 to No. 158: Osuigwe`s recent strong form continued with a run to the Bonita Springs ITF W100 final last week. The 22-year-old American has compiled an impressive 32-10 record in 2024 so far.
Julia Grabher, +76 to No. 162: Grabher`s return from wrist surgery has gained significant momentum over the past month, including a 21-match winning streak (excluding Billie Jean King Cup). The Austrian, formerly ranked No. 54, won her third consecutive ITF trophy two weeks ago before her streak was ended by Bondar in the Wiesbaden W100 final.
Emerson Jones, +38 to No. 236: Junior World No. 1 Jones reached the Gifu ITF W100 semifinals last week, achieving a new career high for the 16-year-old Australian.
Harmony Tan, +39 to No. 244: Former No. 90 Tan secured her first title in over a year at the Yecla ITF W50 last week.
Kaja Juvan, +159 to No. 356: After a 12-month break in 2023, former No. 58 Juvan returned unranked in January. Last week, the Slovenian defeated Katie Volynets and Viktorija Golubic to reach the Saint-Malo WTA 125 final, her first at any level since Strasbourg in 2022.
Alisa Oktiabreva, +124 to No. 447: Oktiabreva, 16, won her second ITF W35 title of the year in Leme, Brazil, three weeks ago, breaking into the Top 500 for the first time.
Teodora Kostovic, +101 to No. 524: Former junior No. 5 Kostovic reached the final qualifying round at both Abu Dhabi and Miami this year as a wild card. In Madrid, the 17-year-old Serb went one step further, defeating Elena-Gabriela Ruse and Lucrezia Stefanini to make her first WTA main draw appearance.
Katarina Jokic, +513 to No. 595: University of Georgia alumna Jokic was sidelined for six months in 2023. Last week, she defeated Jovic and Laura Pigossi en route to the Bonita Springs ITF W100 semifinals.
