The 2024 tennis season in the women’s belonged to two greats of the game – Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka.
Swiatek for becoming the uncontested world #1 for a record number of days, and Aryna Sabalenka for winning two Grand Slams in a single year, the Australian Open and the US Open.
Swiatek’s golden moment arrived at Roland Garros 2024, where she claimed her fourth title in Paris. Fans who had Roland Garros tickets would fondly remember the epic final between Swiatek and Jasmine Paolini.
While Paolini was the underdog story in France, Swiatek showed who was superior, winning the final 6-2, 6-1.
But, If you look at the year, this truly belonged to Sabalenka.
Sabalenka on the Rise
But as Sabalenka now shapes her journey to become the world’s #1, she will hope for an even more successful 2025, hoping to win the all-important Wimbledon and the Roland Garros.
Ahead of the start of the WTA Finals, Aryna Sabalenka was very clear on her goals: besides wanting to win the tournament for the first time, she was determined to finish the year as the world’s number one player.
Last season, Sabalenka spent eight weeks at the rankings summit but was dethroned by Iga Swiatek. Swiatek won the WTA Finals to reclaim the top spot and end 2023 as the world No.1.
This year, heading into the season-ending championships in Riyadh, Sabalenka leapfrogged Swiatek after the Pole dropped more points than her due to penalties related to missing mandatory tournaments.
Sabalenka had no idea she would return to the top of the rankings in that manner and said she preferred to earn her No.1 position more convincingly.
“As I always say, I want to finish the year as world No.1, then I’ll be okay, I’ll be more confident in saying I’m world No.1, not because someone lost 100 points and that’s how I became world No.1,” Sabalenka told reporters in Riyadh last Friday.
“I know throughout the year I was pushing, winning a lot. It’s not like I didn’t do anything. I was quite good, quite decent this year. But still, for my crazy mind, it would be better to finish the year as world No.1.”
The 26-year-old got her wish as she officially secured the year-end No.1 ranking after Swiatek lost to Coco Gauff during the group stage at the WTA Finals this week.
Journey So Far
She successfully defended her Australian Open crown at the start of 2024 and closed the Grand Slam season by clinching the US Open title.
She also won trophies at the WTA 1000 events in Cincinnati and Wuhan and led the tour with 40 hard-court match wins this campaign.
Sabalenka is back at the summit despite missing Wimbledon this year with a shoulder injury, and she feels much better prepared for her reign this time around.
Fans with Roland Garros tickets were the only fans who could not see Sabalenka’s true potential. Adamant to make an exceptional performance after winning the Australian Open two times in a row, Sabalenka failed in the quarterfinal.
She lost out to Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinal, marking her exit from the tournament.
Only later did fans with Roland Garros tickets understand that she was nursing a mild injury that prevented her entire form, movement, and natural game.
But, Sabalenka, now a US Open winner, is confident to come after two important titles – the Roland Garros and the Wimbledon.
“I think I have a better understanding of my game, of my weapons, and how to manage my emotions,” said Sabalenka in Saudi Arabia.
“If I compare myself to like, two years back, or like five years ago, it’s completely two different players. And I would say that I wasn’t ready. I wasn’t ready for that sort of pressure, for those expectations and all that stuff.
“And now, given I went through a lot, I think mentally, which is the most important part, is I’m more than ready.”
A More Complete Player
Sabalenka’s technical and mental improvements this season have not gone unnoticed by her peers.
Jessica Pegula, who fell to Sabalenka in the Cincinnati and US Open finals this summer, believes the world No.1 has set a new standard for the rest of the players to strive for.
“I’ve been so impressed by Aryna this year,” said the American world No.6.
“Obviously, Iga has pushed us to be better. Now she’s kind of stepped it up and showing, ‘Hey, now I’m pushing everybody else to be better’. And I just feel like she’s gotten a lot better.
“She’s become such a more complete player. It seems like, mentally, she’s just dialed in and has figured it out. Her serve, which used to be her biggest liability at times, is now her best weapon on the court.
“So I think it’s motivating, and it’s inspiring, in a way, to see how much better she’s gotten. I really have a lot of respect for the year that she’s had.”
Chinese Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen has lost to Sabalenka four times this season, including two finals at the Australian Open and Wuhan. She also fell to Sabalenka in the US Open quarter-finals in September.
Those defeats have fuelled the 22-year-old’s desire to return the favor one day.
“She won two Slams this year; this is a really big achievement for her. I believe so,” said Zheng of Sabalenka.
“I remember last year, she won her first Grand Slam in the Australian Open. And then she kept going, kept working. But you know, both Slams that she won this year, I lost against her on the way. This means that if I want to win one, I have to be able to beat her. And I’m quite excited for that day.”
After missing Wimbledon and the Olympics during the summer, Sabalenka went on a 15-match winning streak from Cincinnati onward. She enters Friday’s semi-finals in Riyadh having won 22 of her last 24 matches.
With this composure, there is already hype aligning for the 2025 season as the fans are looking for options
An Unbelievable Fighter
World No.4 Jasmine Paolini, who lost a close match to Sabalenka this week during the group stage at the WTA Finals, has been impressed by her opponent’s consistency.
“She didn’t play Wimbledon, no? So it’s impressive; at the end of the season, she played amazing. She won so many matches. She’s an unbelievable fighter, so she deserves it, for sure, so I wish good luck to her,” said the Italian, who was a finalist at Roland-Garros and Wimbledon this year.
WTA Finals tournament director and former world No.1 Garbine Muguruza described Sabalenka as “a hell of a player, great personality. She’s so natural, and she shows you her emotions.”
Early options for Roland Garros tickets are now available to purchase.