The world of women’s tennis has arguably never been more exciting and hotly contested than it is today. The level of play, skill and tenacity that players display regularly at championships and matches is truly unrivalled and exciting for the sport.
The excitement and high level of play in women’s tennis right now is especially notable as it comes on the back of an enforced hiatus due to the global Covid-19 pandemic. Amateur and professional sports leagues around the world were forced to pause or cancel major championship games and tournaments as a result. On top of that, training was also put on ice for thousands of athletes globally when isolation mandates were introduced.
Only in the last year or so have professional sports leagues started up again, and many athletes are now able to kickstart their training after a long, enforced hiatus. When all of these factors are taken into consideration, it is even more impressive to witness such a high level of athletic ability on tennis courts around the world.
Ashleigh Barty
Ashleigh Barty is of course the number 1 ranked player in the world for women’s singles by the Women’s Tennis Association, or WTA. Formerly a cricket player, the Australian has also previously ranked as one of the world’s top 10 players in doubles, where she reached the career-high of number 5 in the world.
Barty has had successes at the international level since she was just 16 years old. Now 25, her career has continued to progress from height to height. Most recently, Barty led Australia to a runner-up finish for the 2019 Fed Cup, and she also took home a bronze medal in mixed doubles at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Bianca Andreescu
There are a number of extremely high-ranking Canadian tennis players, and Bianca Andreescu is certainly one of them. She has a career-high ranking of number 4 in the world, making her the highest-ranked Canadian in the entire history of the WTA. Andreescu is only 21 years old, so you can be sure that you will be seeing her name again and again in the years to come.
Canadian sports enthusiasts are now able to join their favourite athletes in the action, as just a few months ago, Canada legalised single-game sports betting. This means that once the legislation is fully passed and companies are operable, Canadians will be able to join sports betting platforms and place bets on individual players, teams and specific games.
The Canadian market has just recently opened up to this new industry, and there are currently dozens of different online sports betting platforms and emerging digital casinos for players to choose from. While the announcement is still new and lawmakers in each province are in the process of tailoring legislation to fit their province’s specific needs, it looks like the industry will continue to grow and reach more and more Canadians in the near future.
Aryna Sabalenka
Aryna Sabalenka heralds from Belarus and has risen to the career-high ranking of number 2 by the WTA. This is especially impressive because Sabalenka was relatively unknown until 2017, when she was around 19. This is of course rare in the world of tennis, where stars typically begin to shine when they reach about 14 to 16 years old.
Sabalenka rose to prominence by leading the Belarus Fed Cup team to a runner-up finish in 2017, and she followed up that success with additional wins on the WTA 2018 tour. She then won three titles in the 2019 Wuhan Open and ended the year with the WTA Elite Trophy.
Her playing style has been described as particularly aggressive, which results in a high number of winners and unforced errors. Sabalenka is also particularly tall at six feet, which helps her to create a dominating serve.
Elina Svitolina
Heralding from Ukraine, Elina Svitolina has reached the career-high ranking of number 3 in the world as per the WTA. Over her career, she has won 16 different WTA singles titles, and she has also finished as a runner-up on three different occasions.
Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka has dominated the international world of tennis for years, and she continues to move from strength to strength as a professional tennis player. She has been ranked number 1 by the WTA and is the first-ever Asian player to hold the ranking. Osaka began playing tennis when she was three years old, and she rose to international prominence by age 16.
Osaka is a four-time champion of Grand Slam singles, and she remains the reigning champion at the Australian Open. Osaka’s characteristic style is very aggressive, and she has an incredibly powerful serve that can reach speeds of up to 125 miles per hour. At just 24 years of age, we are sure to see Osaka on the court for many more years to come.
Eugenie Bouchard
Eugenie Bouchard is another Canadian who has risen through the ranks of international tennis stardom and made a name for herself. In 2014 at the Wimbledon Championships, Bounchard became the first-ever Canadian-born player to reach the final level of a Grand Slam tournament in the singles category. She also reached the semi-finals in the 2014 Australian Open and the French Open. Capping off that year, she also took home the WTA Most Improved Player award.
More recently, Bouchard has placed at the Istanbul Cup as well as at the 2020 French Open and the Abierto Zapopan Open. Interestingly, Bouchard and all of her siblings are named after current members of the English and Hanoverian royal families.
These are just a few of the many amazing female tennis players currently dominating the Opens around the world. You can be sure that no matter what the future brings, we will all continue to witness exceptional international talent in both women’s singles and women’s doubles in the WTA.
