January 31, (THEWILL) – After winning the Australian Open for the first time on Saturday, Ashleigh Barty retained her global number one ranking in the women’s game.
Her win over American co-finalist Danielle Collins in straight sets, saw Barty increase her lead over world number two Aryna Sabalenka in the latest rankings released.
Barbora Krejcikova, the French Open singles winner, moved up to third place after reaching the quarterfinals at Melbourne. Also, Iga Swiatek rose from ninth to fourth place as she reached her first semi-final outside of a clay court.
Collins jumped 20 places from 30th to 10th place, an earned elevation for impressing all the way to the final before losing to the world number one on Saturday. Garbine Muguruza, the former world number one, slid four places to seventh after being eliminated in the second round.
Meanwhile, even with his notable no-show in Melbourne, Novak Djokovic retained his world number spot in the men’s rankings. And, despite winning his 21st Grand Slam title, Rafael Nadal is still ranked fifth.
Matteo Berrettini is the lone played to climb into the top ten, leapfrogging Andrey Rublev into sixth place after the Italian reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open for the first time in his career. Roberto Autista Agut knocked Taylor Fritz out in the Round of 16, but the American has risen from No. 22 to No. 20 to break into the top 20 for the first time.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
