October 30, 2024

Open Court

MORE TENNIS THAN YOU'LL EVER NEED

WTA Rankings Report – As of Aug. 15, 2022

(Photo: Tennis Canada)

The women’s WTA 1000 tournament in Toronto was full of surprises, not the least of which was the run to the final by rising Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia.

It’s been a long road back for her after serving a doping suspension a few years ago. And now she’s in the top 15.

And Simona Halep is back in the top 10, where she belongs.

For the complete WTA Tour rankings picture, click here.

ON THE UPSWING

Maria Sakkari (GRE): No. 4 =========> No. 3 (Not sure what it says about the WTA Tour that Maria Sakkari, who is having a bear of a year, is up to No. 3 in the rankings. But it is what it is. She’s 12-11 since making the Indian Wells final).

Simona Halep (ROU): No. 15 =========> No. 6 (Back where she belongs, among the far less consistent performers in the WTA Top 10. Halep’s title in Toronto was her third in Canada).

(Photo: Tennis Canada)

Beatriz Haddad Maia (BRA): No. 24 =========> No. 16 (The 26-year-old defeated Leylah Fernandez, Iga Swiatek, Belinda Bencic and Karolina Pliskova before falling to Halep in a three-set final. Needless to say, it’s a career high. She gets No. 16 seed Jelena Ostapenko in the first round of Cincinnati, which she is playing for the first time since 2017 and for only the second time overall).

Alison Riske (USA): No. 35 =========> No. 29 (Riske is back in the top 30 with a third-round effort in Toronto).

(Photo: Tennis Canada)

Yulia Putintseva (KAZ): No. 46 =========> No. 38 (Putintseva took advantage of a retirement from Paula Badosa in the second round in Toronto to make a run to the quarterfinals and get back into the top 40).

Read us

Zheng Qinwen (CHN): No. 51 =========> No. 41 (A new career high for the 19-year-old who defeated, among others, Bianca Andreescu in Toronto. She began the year ranked No. 126).

(Photo: Tennis Canada)

Bianca Andreescu (CAN): No. 53 =========> No. 51 (The Canadian made a small jump in the rankings, but can’t build on it as she withdrew late from Cincinnati).

Zhu Lin (CHN): No. 93 =========> No. 73 (At 28, Zhu is no kid. But she’s close to her career high of No. 69 with a nice jump from winning the $100,000 ITF in Landisville, PA last week).

Coco Vandeweghe (USA): No. 192 =========> No. 125 (Finally, after being on the comeback trail for quite awhile, the 30-year-old American makes a big dent in the rankings with a win at the WTA 125 in Concord, Mass. She’s in Vancouver this week).

Elisabeth Mandlik (USA): No. 182 =========> No. 143 (On the heels of an impressive effort in San Jose, the 21-year-old reaches the Landisville final and leaps up to another career best.

(Photo: Tennis Canada)

Asia Muhammad (USA): No. 187 =========> No. 147 (Muhammad, at 31, is finally making moves in singles again after being a highly-rated junior with an all-court game at a young age. She’s done well in doubles and, at No. 34, is close to a career high. She has seven WTA titles there. But in singles, she’s getting closer to a career best No. 124 reached back in 2017 after qualifying and beating Madison Keys in the first round in Toronto).

Peng Shuai (CHN): No. 397 =========> No. 392 (Yes, she’s still in the rankings despite having announced her retirement. Never forget).

ON THE DOWNSWING

Paula Badosa (ESP): No. 3 =========> No. 4 (Badosa retired in distress in her opening match in Toronto against Yulia Putintseva. She’s defending quarterfinal points in Cincinnati, after she retired in that match against Karolina Pliskova, at almost the same score as the one in Montreal).

Karolina Pliskova (CZE): No. 14 =========> No. 17 (Pliskova was a worthy semifinalist in Toronto this year, but she made the final a year ago in Montreal and so drops points. She’s defending a semifinal in Cincinnati this week as well, and meets Venus Williams in the first round).

(Photo: Tennis Canada)

Petra Kvitova (CZE): No. 23 =========> No. 28 (Kvitova was out in the first round in Toronto this year to Alison Riske; she made the third round a year ago and the quarters in Cincinnati, where she faces fellow lefty Jil Teichmann in her opener).

Sara Sorribes Tormo (ESP): No. 41 =========> No. 48

Camila Giorgi (ITA): No. 29 =========> No. 65 (Giorgi’s Montreal title gave her boost in the rankings for a year. But that’s off now and she will be unseeded in New York. She might have caught a break in Cincinnati, where she was scheduled to face Andreescu in the first round before the Canadian withdrew).

Read us

Katerina Siniakova (CZE): No. 66 =========> No. 77 (The Czech was defending third-round points from Montreal last year. But she opted to stay in Europe and play a $100 in Poland the week after the WTA Tour event there. She won it. But it didn’t make up for the points. Still, a title is a title).

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova: No. 95 =========> No. 107 (Pavlyuchenkova has been out with a knee injury for quite awhile, and has already announced she has ended her season to finally get her knee right).

Rebecca Marino (CAN): No. 96 =========> No. 113 (After dipping her toes into the top 100, briefly, Marino drops down again after her points from a third-round effort in Montreal last year drop off. She got a tough first round in Toronto against Zheng Qinwen – and pushed her to the limit, if that’s any consolation. Marino is the No. 6 seed at the WTA 125 event this week in her hometown of Vancouver).

DOUBLES MOVES

(Photo: Tennis Canada)

Coco Gauff (USA): No. 6 =========> No. 1 (With the title in Toronto alongside Jessica Pegula, Gauff leaps to the No. 1 spot in the doubles rankings, at age 18).

Jessica Pegula (USA): No. 12 =========> No. 8 (No. 8 in singles, No. 8 in doubles. Pegula is living the life).

Nicole Melichar Martinez (USA): No. 33 =========> No. 26 (A finalist in Toronto with Ellen Perez).

Ellen Perez (AUS): No. 45 =========> No. 36

Madison Keys (USA): No. 93 =========> No. 68 (A nice run in doubles with Sania Mirza in Toronto might not have softened the single blow. But it can’t hurt).

THE CANADIANS

THE ROAD TO … (SINGLES)

Haddad Maia has moved up to No. 11 in the race.

THE ROAD TO … (DOUBLES)

Read us

About Post Author