In a year marked by fierce competition and dramatic showdowns, Aryna Sabalenka has solidified her reign atop women’s tennis, achieving a rare milestone that places her in the company of legend Serena Williams. The Belarusian powerhouse, currently the world No. 1, has surpassed 12,000 points in the WTA rankings, a feat not accomplished since Williams in 2015. With a commanding 12,420 points, Sabalenka holds a staggering 4,751-point lead over world No. 2 Coco Gauff, marking the largest gap between the top two players in over two years. Her relentless consistency, highlighted by a semi-final run at Wimbledon 2025, underscores a dominance that has reshaped the WTA landscape and set the stage for a thrilling hardcourt season.
Sabalenka’s ascent to this historic mark has been a masterclass in resilience and power. The 27-year-old began 2025 with a bang, capturing the Brisbane International title against Polina Kudermetova, rallying from a set down to claim her 18th career singles crown. “It feels incredible, but the job is not done yet,” Sabalenka said after her French Open final loss to Gauff, a sentiment that reflects her unyielding drive. Despite falling short in the first three Grand Slams of 2025—losing to Madison Keys at the Australian Open, Gauff at Roland Garros, and Amanda Anisimova at Wimbledon—she reached the finals in Melbourne and Paris, and the semi-finals at SW19, amassing 40 main-draw wins, the most on tour. Her third Madrid Open title, where she defeated Gauff in straight sets, pushed her past the 11,000-point mark, and her Wimbledon performance cemented her place among the elite. “I’m just trying to keep pushing, keep improving,” she noted, emphasizing her focus on growth despite setbacks.
The gap between Sabalenka and Gauff, who sits at 7,669 points, is the widest since Iga Swiatek’s 4,800-point lead over Sabalenka in February 2023. Gauff, the 2025 French Open champion, has had a stellar year herself, with a 31-10 record and a second Grand Slam title. However, her first-round Wimbledon exit to Dayana Yastremska cost her 240 points from her 2024 quarter-final run, stalling her pursuit of the top spot. “I got the most important one, so I guess that’s all that matters,” Gauff said after her Roland Garros triumph, where she outlasted Sabalenka 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-4 in a 2-hour, 38-minute epic. Despite their 6-5 head-to-head edge favoring Gauff, Sabalenka’s consistency across surfaces—evidenced by titles in Brisbane, Madrid, and Miami—has kept her comfortably ahead.
Swiatek, the newly crowned Wimbledon champion, holds the No. 3 spot with 6,813 points, 305 points shy of the 12,000-point milestone. Her 6-0, 6-0 rout of Anisimova at Wimbledon marked her sixth Grand Slam, but a semi-final loss to Sabalenka at Roland Garros highlighted the Belarusian’s edge in their 8-5 rivalry. “A lot has been made about my slump, but I still picked up points,” Swiatek said, referencing her five semi-final appearances in 2025. The top five is rounded out by Jessica Pegula (6,423 points) and Mirra Andreeva (5,163 points), with Andreeva’s back-to-back WTA 1000 titles in Dubai and Indian Wells making her a rising threat.
Sabalenka’s 12,420 points reflect her grueling 92 hours and 24 minutes on court, the most in women’s singles at the WTA level in 2025. Her powerful serve, often exceeding 124 mph, and aggressive baseline game have produced 401 aces, ranking her third among all players in 2023. Yet, her journey hasn’t been without challenges—her serve remains inconsistent, with 166 double faults in 2020, and she battled the yips in 2021-22. “I hope all my shots can be strong, but my serve, I feel is the best,” Sabalenka said, acknowledging her weapon’s double-edged nature. Her semi-final loss to Anisimova at Wimbledon, where she struggled with 70 unforced errors, drew criticism for post-match comments perceived as dismissive of Gauff’s French Open win. “I think she won the match not because she played incredible, just because I made all of those mistakes,” Sabalenka remarked, later clarifying her intent was to focus on her own errors.
As the tour shifts to the hardcourt swing, Sabalenka’s decision to skip the Canadian Open due to fatigue—“the best thing for my body right now is to take a break,” she said—opens opportunities for Gauff and Swiatek to close the gap. With 5,025 points to defend, including her 2024 US Open title, Sabalenka remains the favorite to finish as year-end No. 1, a title she clinched in 2024 after reaching the WTA Finals semi-finals. Gauff, with 3,060 points to defend, and Swiatek, with a favorable calendar, will chase her at the Cincinnati Open and US Open, where 2,000 points await the champion. Sabalenka’s historic 12,000-point milestone, echoing Williams’ legacy, signals a reign that’s far from over, setting the stage for a blockbuster end to 2025.
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