Sabalenka will be new world No 1 as Swiatek loses in US Open fourth round
The Belarusian will become the 29th woman to become world No 1 since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975
Aryna Sabalenka at Wimbledon in 2023 (Action Plus/Panoramic)
Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka will become the 29th woman to become world No 1 since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975 after Iga Swiatek went down in the fourth round of the US Open on Sunday evening.
Swiatek, who has held the No 1 ranking since April 4, 2022, was knocked out of the year’s final Grand Slam by Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko 3-6, 6-3, 6-1.
With Sabalenka also through to the fourth round (she takes on Daria Kasatkina on Monday), the Belarusian has earned enough points to surpass Swiatek no matter what happens in New York from now on.
Sabalenka has won 47 matches on tour in 2023 – her most successful season so far. The 25-year-old won her first Grand Slam at the Australian Open in January and also won titles in Adelaide and Madrid, and reached the finals in Indian Wells and Stuttgart.
Swiatek, on the other hand, won in Roland-Garros, Doha, Stuttgart and Warsaw and finished runner-up in Dubai and Madrid.
People in this post
More tennis news
November 9, 1993: The day the great Bjorn Borg played his last-ever professional match
Taylor Fritz returns to ATP top 10 after Paris quarter-final run
Gauff survives missed match point to edge Pegula at WTA Finals
Noskova converts all four break points to beat Kostyuk in WTA Finals opener
Alcaraz on course for an indoor hat-trick: “Probably the best I’ve played since my comeback”
