Elena Rybakina lost to Elise Mertens in the third round of Wimbledon.
In doing so, she surrendered the opportunity to take the world number one ranking from Aryna Sabalenka.
Give us your one crazy prediction for the second week of Wimbledon!
The Belarusian will keep hold of the top spot for at least two more weeks, as she closes in on a major career milestone.
Aryna Sabalenka edges closer to 100 weeks spent as world number one
Sabalenka is guaranteed to be the world number one when the next set of rankings are released.
Live WTA Rankings
| Rank | Name | Country | Points | Max points after Wimbledon |
| 1 | Aryna Sabalenka | Belarus | 8,550 | 10,310 |
| 2 | Elena Rybakina | Kazakhstan | 8,143 | 8,143 |
| 3 | Jessica Pegula | USA | 6,111 | 7,871 |
| 4 | Mirra Andreeva | Russia | 5,293 | 5,293 |
| 5 | Coco Gauff | USA | 5,109 | 6,869 |
| 6 | Iga Swiatek | Poland | 4,539 | 4,539 |
| 7 | Amanda Anisimova | USA | 4,353 | 4,353 |
| 8 | Elina Svitolina | Ukraine | 4,351 | 4,351 |
| 9 | Karolina Muchova | Czechia | 4,108 | 5,868 |
| 10 | Victoria Mboko | Canada | 3,580 | 3,580 |
Even if she loses her fourth-round match against Naomi Osaka, Sabalenka will still lead Rybakina, her closest rival, by over 400 points.
Sabalenka has spent 97 weeks at number one and is now assured of a 98th and 99th week at the top of women’s tennis.
WTA weeks at number one (singles)
- 1. Steffi Graf – 377 weeks
- 2. Martina Navratilova – 332 weeks
- 3. Serena Williams – 319 weeks
- 4. Chris Evert – 260 weeks
- 5. Martina Hingis – 209 weeks
- 6. Monica Seles – 178 weeks
- 7. Iga Swiatek – 125 weeks
- 8. Ashleigh Barty – 121 weeks
- 9. Justine Henin – 117 weeks
- 10. Lindsay Davenport – 98 weeks
- 11. Aryna Sabalenka – 97 weeks*
- 12. Caroline Wozniacki – 71 weeks
- 13. Simona Halep – 64 weeks
- 14. Victoria Azarenka – 51 weeks
- 15. Amelie Mauresmo – 39 weeks
That will move her ahead of American tennis icon, Lindsay Davenport, into 10th position in the all-time list.
And just one more week will see Sabalenka reach 100 weeks at world number one, an incredible achievement.
Sabalenka will then set her sights on the likes of Justine Henin, Ashleigh Barty, and the world number three, Iga Swiatek.
Swiatek has spent the most weeks at number one of all active WTA players (except for Serena Williams), but looks unlikely to add to her tally anytime soon.
A few more months as world number one, and you can start to build an argument for Sabalenka being the greatest player of her generation.
But if she is to deserve that title, she could, ironically, do with a few more Grand Slam titles…
Why Aryna Sabalenka needs to win Wimbledon this year
Sabalenka has been the dominant force in women’s tennis for some time now, having held the number one ranking since October, 2024.
However, while she has been remarkably consistent since then, she hasn’t won nearly as many Grand Slams as she would have liked.
Sabalenka has only won one of the six major tournaments she’s played since becoming world number one.
Aryna Sabalenka’s Grand Slam results since becoming world number one
- 2025 Australian Open – Lost in F to Madison Keys
- 2025 French Open – Lost in F to Coco Gauff
- 2025 Wimbledon – Lost in SF to Amanda Anisimova
- 2025 US Open – Champion
- 2026 Australian Open – Lost in F to Elena Rybakina
- 2026 French Open – Lost in QF to Diana Shnaider
She’s come close on several occasions, losing three finals, but remains a four-time Grand Slam champion.
If she does plan on retiring as the greatest player of her generation, she will likely need at least three more major wins, to surpass Swiatek.
Sabalenka certainly has a great opportunity to win her first Wimbledon title this year, after some of her closest rivals failed to reach the fourth round.
Last year’s champion, Swiatek, and last year’s runner-up, Amanda Anisimova, both lost, and the 2022 champion and world number two, Rybakina, suffered the same fate.
Those results leave Czechia’s Linda Noskova as the top seed in the bottom half of the draw, which could prove to be great news for Sabalenka if she reaches the final.
To reach the final, she will need to get past Osaka in the fourth round, Karolina Muchova or Barbora Krejcikova in the quarter-finals, and Jessica Pegula, Iva Jovic, Belinda Bencic, or Coco Gauff in the semi-finals.
It won’t be easy, but if Sabalenka wants to be remembered as one of the greats, this is exactly the type of tournament she should be winning.
