The latest news on Świątek. Aryna Sabalenka is chasing Iga.
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=""]Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka, who has held the world rankings since October 21, 2024, began her 66th career week at the top of the rankings on Monday. She ranks 12th among the longest-running players.
Iga Świątek has reached 125 weeks as number one on the WTA list and is in seventh place in the all-time rankings.
The 24-year-old from Raszyn – the first Polish woman in history – debuted as the ranking's leader on April 4, 2022, replacing Australian Ashleigh Barty, who announced her retirement from the sport a few weeks earlier. She held the lead for 75 weeks, losing it to Sabalenka on September 11, 2023. After eight weeks, she returned to the top and held the lead for 50 consecutive weeks.
The WTA ranking has been prepared since November 3, 1975 by the Women's Tennis Association, the organization that runs professional women's competitions.
The tennis player who has been at the top the longest – for 377 weeks – remains the German Steffi Graf.
Classification of WTA Tour ranking leaders by length of lead:
(in order: name and surname, number of weeks at number one, date of first day at the top)
1. Steffi Graf (Germany) 377 August 17, 1987
2. Martina Navratilova (USA) 332 July 10, 1978
3. Serena Williams (USA) 319 July 8, 2002
4. Chris Evert (USA) 260 November 3, 1975
5. Martina Hingis (Switzerland) 209 March 31, 1997
6. Monica Seles (USA) 178 March 11, 1991
7. Iga Świątek (Poland) 125 April 4, 2022
8. Ashleigh Barty (Australia) 121 June 24, 2019
9. Justine Henin (Belgium) 117 October 20, 2003
10. Lindsay Davenport (USA) 98 October 12, 1998
11. Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) 71 October 11, 2010
12. Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) 66 September 11, 2023
13. Simona Halep (Romania) 64 October 9, 2017
14. Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) 51 January 30, 2012
15. Amelie Mauresmo (France) 39 September 13, 2004
16. Angelique Kerber (Germany) 34 September 12, 2016
17. Dinara Safina (Russia) 26 April 20, 2009
18. Naomi Osaka (Japan) 25 January 28, 2019
19. Tracy Austin (USA) 21 April 7, 1980
. Maria Sharapova (Russia) 21 August 22, 2005
21. Kim Clijsters (Belgium) 20 August 11, 2003
22. Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) 18 August 11, 2008
23. Jennifer Capriati (USA) 17 October 15, 2001
24. Ana Ivanovic (Serbia) 12 June 9, 2008
. Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (Spain) 12 February 6, 1995
26. Venus Williams (USA) 11 February 25, 2002
27. Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic) 8 July 17, 2017
28. Garbine Muguruza (Spain) 4 September 11, 2017
29. Evonne Goolagong Cawley (Australia) 2 April 26, 1976