Alex Corretja had said just that Elena Rybakina could be World No. 1 of the WTA ahead of Aryna Sabalenka, but Mats Wilander dismissed it entirely.
It was the turbulent end of 2024 for Rybakina. She started the season beautifully, winning three WTA 500 titles and being the runner-up at the Qatar Open to Iga Swiatek and then at the Miami Open to Danielle Collins.
Sabalenka’s absence from this year’s Wimbledon Championships made Rybakina the favorite to win a second title at SW19. She reached the semifinal but had a shock loss against the eventual champion Barbora Krejcikova.
After this loss, Rybakina’s season went down to a difficult path. She could not attend the Olympics due to an illness, so she had to apologize to the country’s fans who were ready to come out in large numbers for her.
Rybakina was to face yet another mega shock a few days before the commencement of the US Open. Out of the blue, she terminated a professional relationship of over five years with long-time coach Stefano Vukov, though the grounds for her decision were not forthcoming.
Rybakina enjoyed a successful partnership with Vukov on the court, but the Croatian coach often had his share of the bad press for what some perceived to be aggressive, abusive, and bullying behaviour towards her during matches.
Rybakina withdrew before the second round of the US Open and did not return to the WTA Tour for more than two months, making a comeback at the WTA Finals. A well-known journalist claimed she had psychological problems during that time.
The 2022 Wimbledon champion is preparing for the 2025 season with new coach Goran Ivanisevic. However, many of her fans were enraged to see Vukov in the stands for a match containing one of Rybakina’s teammates at the recent World Tennis League.
Sabalenka enjoyed the best season of her career in 2024. She secured the Australian Open and US Open titles and finished as the year-end world No. 1 for the first time, overtaking Iga Swiatek in the season’s closing months.
The Belarusian’s epic rivalry with Swiatek, which included the Pole winning one of the greatest WTA matches ever in this year’s Madrid Open final, meant many were interested when Sabalenka broke her silence about Swiatek’s one-month doping suspension.
Wilander, Alex Corretja, Tim Henman, and Laura Robson predicted who would win the women’s singles at the Australian Open and finish 2025 as world No. 1 on Eurosport. Corretja answered both questions before being asked about the world No. 1 and made an interesting comment.
Wilander: “Aryna Sabalenka will win yet another Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. That makes it three in a row.”
Robson: “I’m going Sabalenka.”
Henman: “The AO on the women’s side is going to be won by Zheng (Qinwen).”
Corretja: “I’m going to go for Rybakina. I’m actually thinking she might as No. 1 this year.”
The other three former players then predicted who would finish No. 1, and Wilander made it clear that he disagreed with Corretja about Rybakina.
Wilander: “Aryna Sabalenka is a lot better than Elena Rybakina, Alex.”
Robson: “I think Sabalenka again.”
Henman: “(Iga) Swiatek is going to finish No. 1.”
