What is Aryna Sabalenka’s position in the WTA ranking after winning the 2024 Australian Open?

Aryna Sabalenka proved too strong for Zheng Qinwen in Saturday’s 2024 Australian Open final, overpowering her Chinese opponent 6-3, 6-2 on Rod Laver court to clinch the title for the second consecutive year.

It’s been a productive start to the New Year for Sabalenka, who not only gained ground on world No.1 Iga Swiatek in the WTA ranking as she progressed through the tournament in Melbourne, but knocked the Pole off top spot. Her mission was made much easier after Swiatek bowed out after suffering a Third Round defeat to Czech Republic’s Linda Noskova, ranked 50th. But all the Belarusian needed to do was to make it as far as the final (and an additional 1300 points to her ranking score) which she accomplished in style.

14 sets played... and won

Sabalenka cruised through each stage without losing a single set, seeing off Ella Seidel (0-6, 1-6), Brenda Fruhvirtova (3-6, 2-6), Lesia Tsurenko (0-6, 0-6), Amanda Anisimova (3-6, 2-6), Barbora Krejcikova (2-6, 3-6) and Coco Gauff (6-7, 4-6) on her way to the final.

Second Grand Slam

Sabalenka, who started 2023 in fifth position on the board, became the 29th world No.1 in September despite losing the US Open final to Coco Gauff. Swiatek, who had previously held top spot uninterrupted for 75 weeks, returned to the summit in November after beating Jessica Pegula to win the WTA Finals in Mexico.

Heading into the 2024 Australian Open, Swiatek topped the leaderboard on 9880 points ahead of Sabalenka in second on 8905 points with Elena Rybakina third on 6811 points and Coco Gauff slipping down to fourth on 6680.

After the WTA figures were revised on Sunday night, Swiatek remains in pole position on 9779 points and Sabalenka unchanged in second on 8905 points. Coco Gauff moves back into third on 7200 but the biggest movement was by Qinwen Zheng who climbs eight places to seventh on 3950 points and sets a new personal career high (her previous best was 13th).

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings employ a cumulative system that takes into account a player’s performance over a rolling 52-week period. The ranking of a tennis player is determined based on their results in up to 16 singles tournaments and 11 doubles tournaments. Points are allocated according to the player’s progress in each tournament, with more points being awarded for advancing further. This methodology ensures that the rankings accurately reflect a player’s overall performance over time, providing a reliable measure of their skills and abilities in the sport.