2016 BSA's: Rankings Round-Up
Rankings, rankings, rise and fall.
In 2016, a German remarkably rose above them ALL.
Wish they may, wish they might
all have the ranking they desire tonight.
Well, except for poor Schmiedy
...who must have unwittingly opened
a Pandora's box of bad karma
late last year.
Yes, it's time for Backspin's annual whole-lotta-love (and numbers) year-end rankings rundown. Of course, I can't promise all these words and numbers will be as exhilarating as Monica Puig's run to Olympic Gold or as fear-inspiring as a Kasatkina lurking around the corner. But, hey, what can you do, right?
First up, the second edition of a (fairly new) "Rankings Round-Up" addition -- the Backspin "All-Rankings Team."
Congratulations to the players who pulled off some of the most significant rankings accomplishments during the 2016 season!
Dominika Cibulkova, SVK: two seasons after playing in the Australian Open final, and a season after Achilles' tendon surgery, Cibulkova won more titles (4) than any player on tour, ending her season with a WTA Finals championship that gave her a #5 ranking (up from #38 last year) and her first Top 10 season.
Vania King, USA: after a year of "recovery" in 2015, King returned to action this season and went about re-climbing the rankings ladder in both singles and doubles. She went from #466 to #79 in singles, and #23 from #275 in doubles (both rankings are her best since '12).
Johanna Konta, GBR: a two-time All-Rankings 1st Team honoree, Konta followed up a '15 season in which she climbed from #150 to #47 by making the even-more-difficult leap from #47 to #10 this season, allowing the AO semifinalist to become the first Brit to have a Top 10 season in thirty-three years.
Naomi Osaka, JPN: the only player to climb into the Top 50 from outside the Top 200 (#203 in '15), Osaka branded herself this season as one of the most exciting and interesting players (both on and off court) on tour, even with her career ceiling not yet appearing to be anywhere close to the head of the 19-year old.
Kiki Bertens, NED: a year ago, the Dutch Fed Cup star found herself with her nose pressed up against the Top 100 glass, finishing at #101 after three straight Top 100 finishes. Her response was to win her first tour singles title in four years, lead the Netherlands' FC team to the final four, and reach her first career slam semifinal at Roland Garros. Oh, and climb to a career-best #21, finishing '16 at #22.
Viktorija Golubic, SUI: the 24-year old Swiss "came out of nowhere" to propel her nation to the Fed Cup semis, and backed that up with regular tour success, winning her maiden title in Gstaad and rising from #178 to #57 in the season-ending rankings.
Daria Kasatkina, RUS: a 1st Team honoree a season ago, Kasatkina's progress in '16 was just as impressive, as she rose from #72 to #27 over the course of the past year. The only thing that kept her from a repeat 1st Team selection was her inability to win a maiden tour singles title, or reach her first final.
Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS: beginning a resurgent period late in 2015, the thirtysomething Hordette continued her roll into this season. The result: after four straight seasons outside the Top 20, and five of six with a season-ending rank of #19 or lower, #9 Kuznetsova had her first Top 10 year since 2009.
Anasatasija Sevastova, LAT: the Latvian came out of retirement to find immediate success on the ITF circuit in 2015. In 2016, she moved up a level. She reached two tour singles finals and the U.S. Open quarters, going from #110 at the end of last season to a best-ever finish of #35 in 2016, six years after her only previous Top 50 (#45) year in 2010.
And, of course, heartfelt apologies to the likes of Caroline Garcia (career-highs in singles and doubles, and a RG doubles crown), Karolina Pliskova (20 doubles rankings points from being the only Top 10 player in both disciplines), Elena Vesnina (rebounding from a bad year to jump 95 spots and into the Top 20 thanks to a Wimbledon SF, while also maintaining her longtime doubles prowess), Timea Babos (85 to #26), Zhang Shuai (returning to the Top 30 after contemplating retirement in January) and, of course, Angelique Kerber (who unexpectedly rose from #10 to #1 in the world), all of whom could very well have ended up on this list.
As it is, they essentially make up the unofficial "3rd Team."
[2015]
Timea Bacsinszky, SUI (1st team)
Dasha Gavrilova, RUS/AUS (1st team)
Daria Kasatkina, RUS (1st team)
Johanna Konta, GBR (1st team)
Garbine Muguruza, ESP (1st team)
Madison Brengle, USA
Margarita Gasparyan, RUS
Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
Jelena Ostapenko, LAT
Teliana Pereira, BRA
Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK
[2016]
Cagla Buyukakcay, TUR (1st team)
Dominika Cibulkova, SVK (1st team)
Vania King, USA (1st team)
Johanna Konta, GBR (1st team)
Naomi Osaka, JPN (1st team)
CiCi Bellis, USA
Kiki Bertens, NED
Viktorija Golubic, SUI
Daria Kasatkina, RUS
Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS
Anastasija Sevastova, LAT
**RANKINGS NOTES OF NOTE**
[as of end-of-season ranks on November 7, 2016]
After a period of years in which Top 10 stability was common on the WTA, all that has changed the last two seasons as the rolling, multi-generational tide on tour has fully taken hold. Twenty different women moved in and out of the Top 10 over the course of 2016's official 44-week schedule, one more than the number from a year ago, which itself had been the most in any season in over a decade.
Your 2016 Top 10 WTA Year-End Rankings! ?? ?? pic.twitter.com/2HhcB1Iaru
— WTA (@WTA) November 9, 2016
Just half of the last year's Top 10 maintained their rankings for yet another campaign, the fewest since 2011 (4), as the number of consistent performers was cut for a third straight season.
2011: 4
2012: 7
2013: 9
2014: 7
2015: 6
2016: 5
Three of the defending Top 5 (Serena Williams, Aga Radwanska and Simona Halep) return with the same top-tier designation, even as former #1 Williams was the only of the trio to win or reach a slam final in 2016. Still, Serena failed to secure what would have been a record-tying third straight wire-to-wire season as the #1-ranked player in the world. Steffi Graf (1988-90) continues to hold the all-time mark, thanks to the rise of countrywoman Angelique Kerber, who won two slams and became the twenty-second woman (and first German in nineteen years) to sit atop the WTA singles rankings.
Various reasons prevented Top 10 repeats for four woman, as retirement (Flavia Pennetta), suspension (Maria Sharapova) and recovery from illness (Lucie Safarova) sent three tumbling down (or out of) the rankings, while Venus Williams slipped to #17 despite posting her best slam result (Wimbledon SF) in six years. Meanwhile, a player seemingly scheduled to climb INTO the Top 10 in '16 -- Belinda Benic -- never did. The teen Swiss star ended '15 at #14, and got off to a quick start in '16, but wrist and back injuries led to a fall to #43 at the close of the season.
Up-and-coming Slovak Anna Karolina Schmiedlova suffered the biggest ranking drop of any (non-suspended, nor retired) player in last year's Top 50 (and the second worst of last season's Top 100). After being a shining light on the 2015 All-Rankings Second Team after climbing forty-seven spots to #26, AKS fell 201 over the course of the just-concluded season, ending up at #227 when all was said and done after a relatively healthy (physically, at least) campaign. Last year's #45, Brazilian Teliana Pereira, followed up an unusually good '15 season for a South American player (two titles, with the Rio Olympics on the horizon) by slipping to #204. She's no longer even the highest-ranked player in her nation. After four straight Top 20 seasons, Italy's Sara Errani won career title #9, but nearly fell out of the Top 50. She fell thirty places from her season-ending position of #20 in 2015; while injuries, inconsistency and (possibly) distraction (on newlywed AnaIvo's part) saw both Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic tumble to #65 and #55, respectively, leaving the Top 50 without the presence of either for the first time since 2003.
Victoria Azarenka's quest to return to prominence after an injury-marred '14, which included a few Top 20 weeks and #22 finish in 2015, produced another interesting season for the Belarusian. She briefly returned to the Top 5 after becoming the third woman to pull off the "Sunshine Double" with back-to-back titles in Indian Wells and Miami, but never played another match after Roland Garros, ending her season by announcing her pregnancy. Still, she ended up at #13 (w/ just twelve tournament results), her best finish since her third consecutive Top 3 finish in 2013.
Of the five woman who climbed into the season-ending Top 10 in 2016, only one (Svetlana Kuznetsova, five times between 2004-09) has ever previously finished a year there. While Dominika Cibulkova and Karolina Pliskova had spent time in the Top 10 before '16, neither Madison Keys nor Johanna Konta had ever been ranked so high before pulling off the accomplishment this season. Keys was the first U.S. woman not named Williams to debut in the Top 10 since Chanda Rubin in 1996, while Konta was the first Brit to do so since Jo Durie in 1983, and just the fourth since the initial WTA computer rankings forty-one years ago. Konta had the biggest jump of any Top 10er over the past twelve months, improving her ranking by thirty-seven spots, four better than Cibulkova (33). World #1 Kerber rose from #10 a year ago, completing her fifth straight Top 10 season, matching the current streak of Serena Williams (who has nine Top 10 years in the last ten), one behind Aga Radwanska's six in a row. Petra Kvitova (#11) saw her string of five straight Top 10 years end, as did Sharapova (who had ten in twelve seasons), who fell completely out of the rankings and will rely on tournament wild cards when she returns from suspension next spring in order to begin the process of rebuilding her ranking. Halep has put together three straight Top 10 years, while Roland Garros winner Garbine Muguruza now has done so in back-to-back years for the first time in her career.
===============================================
The United States once again produced the most Top 100 players this season, bumping up its tour-leading total of thirteen a year ago to sixteen in 2016, including both the oldest (Venus, 36) and youngest (CiCi Bellis, 17) players in the Top 100, as well as the Top 200 (#195 Kayla Day, 17). Thirty-three nations combine to compose the season-ending Top 100 (the same as '15), while fourteen ( after twelve last year) make up the Top 20, with the Czech Republic and the U.S. both represented by a tour-best three members.
The number of nations with players in the Top 100 seems to have found its limit. After a three season-ending ranking run that saw players from thirty-seven (2011) and then thirty-six (2012 and '13) different nations finish in the Top 100, the number dropped to thirty-four in 2014, and now thirty-three the last two seasons.
After back-to-back years in which twenty-three countries were included in the Top 50, the number dropped to twenty in 2015. But it jumped to twenty-five represented nations in 2016.
===============================================
While new names were busy making moves in 2016, older ones didn't go away. In fact, one even returned from an extended absence.
The second-oldest player in the Top 100 (by one day, behind Venus), Francesca Schiavone returned to the fold at #91, one year after a #121 finish. It's the Italian's sixteenth career Top 100 season. A season after returning from a 2011 retirement and finishing at #740, 37-year old Patty Schnyder won a $10K challenger and played in her first tour-level main draw match (in Gstaad) in five years, lifting her season-ending ranking to #304. Meanwhile, Russian Elena Bovina, 33, played five fall challenger events, competing in her first pro singles matches since 2012, and earned a season-ending ranking of #999, her first in four years. 35-year old Alexandra Stevenson (36 in December), a Wimbledon semifinalist seventeen years ago, played seven events and finished at #656, giving her a ranking for nineteen consecutive seasons.
Meanwhile, 46-year old Kimiko Date (now minus the "Krumm" after the announcement of her divorce from German race car driver Michael) didn't play a match after losing in Australian Open qualifying, and had knee surgery later in the year. Still, she stands at #802 in the 2016 rankings, her ninth season of her SECOND career, which began in 2008 after a twelve-year retirement. Date first earned a season-ending ranking TWENTY-EIGHT years ago, finishing at #322 in 1988 at age 18.
Date intends to stage another "comeback" -- in her twenty-ninth season -- in 2017. The Japanese woman wouldn't be the oldest player to fairly recently appear on tour, though. Remember, Martina Navratilova claimed a mixed doubles slam title a the U.S. Open in 2006, one month short of celebrating her 50th birthday.
While players such as Elena Vesnina, Kiki Bertens, Zhang Shuai and Jana Cepelova have all returned to the year-end Top 100 (in all, twelve former Top 100ers returned in '16 after missing out last year), the proverbial worm turned the other way for many other "name" players, including no-longer-Top-100ers Zarina Diyas, Aleksandra Krunic (sigh, poor Bracelet), Magdalena Rybarikova, Lucie Hradecka, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Daniela Hantuchova, Alexandra Dulgheru, and Bojana Jovanovski.
===============================================
It's been an annual ritual to bemoan the state of South American women's tennis in this spot each and every year.
Finally, in 2015, there was some good news in the form of Brazil's Teliana Pereira. From 2009-14, only twice did a player from South America finish in the WTA's singles Top 50, and in both instances that player was the now retired Gisela Dulko (in 2009-10). But last year Pereira became the most successful female player from the Land of Bueno (as in Hall of Famer Maria) in some thirty years, winning a pair of singles titles and finishing at #45 less than a year before the Summer Olympics were set to take place in Rio. Pereira had finished in the Top 100 in 2013, but slipped outside to #106 in '14.
But a poor campaign in 2016 resulted in Pereira's worst season since 2011, as she fell all the way down to #204, slipping to second-best in Brazil and seventh-best on the South American continent.
It wasn't all bad new for the area of world that has produced many ATP stars, as well as Bueno and the likes of Gabriela Sabatini on the women's side. Colombia's Mariana Duque, 27, has been in or on the cusp of the Top 100 in three of the past four seasons. After finishing 2015 at #75, she slipped to #106 in '16, just a bit ahead of Paraguay's Veronica Cepede Royg (#116), who put up her best season yet at age 24.
There's even room for some cautious optimism beyond the very best players in South America, as younger players such as Paraguayan Montserrat Gonzalez (#169), Argentina's Catalina Pella (#173) and Nadia Podoroska (#191), as well as Brazilian Beatriz Haddad (#211) are currently rising through the ranks and showing the ability to quite possibly give the continent its most Top 100 players in a tennis generation within the next season or two.
===============================================
Six teenagers rank in the Top 100, up from five in each of the last two seasons, with seven more ranked between #101-200 (with Jana Fett, who turned 20 just five days before the end of the season, just missing out on adding another to that list).
While CiCi Bellis' late rise prevented Ana Konjuh from being the youngest player ranked in the Top 100 for a THIRD straight season, the 18-year old Croat is still the youngest player in the Top 50, having moved up to #48 from #80 a year ago. Konjuh, along with Bencic, is a two-time junior slam winner (2013) who has made significant strides on the WTA tour before her twentieth birthday, reaching her first career slam QF at this year's U.S. Open. Other past girls junior slam champs who rose to new career season-ending ranking highs this year include #6 Karolina Pliskova (a 2010 winner), #14 Elina Svitolina (2010), #25 Dasha Gavrilova (2010), #27 Daria Kasatkina (2014), #44 Jelena Ostapenko (2014), and #105 Samantha Crawford (2012).
2015 Wimbledon junior champ Sofya Zhuk -- born December 1, 1999 -- is the youngest player in the Top 300 at #297. Zhuk didn't have a tour computer ranking at the close of 2015, but nearly all of this year's girls slam winners (and finalists) do:
#195 Kayla Day, USA (US champ)
#225 Viktoria Kuzmova, SVK (US finalist)
#320 Vera Lapko, BLR (AO champ)
#322 Rebeka Masarova, SUI (RG champ)
#342 Dayana Yastremska, UKR (WI finalist)
#438 Tereza Mihalikova, SVK (AO finalist)
#764 Amanda Anisimova, USA (RG finalist)
Only Zhuk's fellow Hordette, Wimbledon girls winner Anastasia Potapova, doesn't currently have an official ranking. The 16-year old is the #1-ranked junior.
A season ago, there were five players born after January 1, 2000 ranked in the Top 1000 on the WTA computer. At the close of the 2016 season, that number has grown to a whopping twenty-one. The highest ranked player born after January 1, 2001 was at #1173 in 2015, while this year there are four ranked in the Top 1000, with #764 Amanda Anisimova (USA) the highest ranked. The youngest ranked player in the Top 1000 is Poland's Maja Chwalinska. Born on October 11, 2001, the 15-year old is ranked #900. Chwanlinska recent joined with Iga Swiatek (also born in 2001, and ranked just three spots lower) to lead Poland to the Junior Fed Cup 16s world title.
*PLAYERS BORN IN 2000 RANKED IN TOP 1000*
#306 - Bianca Andreescu, CAN (June 16, 2000)
#342 - Dayana Yastremska, UKR (May 15, 2000)
#384 - Destanee Aiava, AUS (May 10, 2000)
#399 - Olesya Pervushina, RUS (April 29, 2000)
#583 - Katarina Zavatska, UKR (May 5, 2000)
#629 - Zhao Xiaoxi, CHN (December 27, 2000)
#670 - Claire Liu, USA (May 25, 2000)
#682 - Anhzelika Amiraghyan, RUS (November 20, 2000)
#717 - Kaja Juvan, SLO (November 25, 2000)
#811 - Margarita Skryabina, RUS (January 13, 2000)
#825 - Isabelle Boulais, CAN (April 12, 2000)
#826 - Emiliana Arango, COL (November 28, 2000)
#830 - Sofya Golubovskaya, RUS (May 11, 2000)
#878 - Leonie Kung, SUI (October 21, 2000)
#905 - Draginja Vukovic, SRB (April 27, 2000)
#907 - Kaitlin Staines, AUS (January 11, 2000)
#974 - Tang Qianhui, CHN (September 10, 2000)
[born in 2001]
#764 - Amanda Anisimova, USA (August 31, 2001)
#900 - Maja Chwalinksa, POL (October 11, 2001)
#903 - Iga Swiatek, POL (May 31, 2001)
#909 - Abigail Desiatnikov, USA (January 22, 2001)
No players born in 2002 had yet to earn a tour ranking, but the first is likely to come at some point during the 2017 season.
As for the youngest players a little higher up in the rankings...
*YOUNGEST PLAYER - end of '16 season*
[Top 100]
17...CiCi Bellis, USA (born April 8, 1999)
18...Ana Konjuh, CRO (born December 27, 1997)
18...Naomi Osaka, JPN (born October 16, 1997)
19...Jelena Ostapenko, LAT (born June 8, 1997)
19...Daria Kasatkina, RUS (born May 7, 1997)
19...Belinda Bencic, SUI (born March 10, 1997)
20...Oceane Dodin, FRA (born October 24, 1996)
20...Louisa Chirico, USA (born May 16, 1996)
20...Katterina Siniakova, CZE (born May 10, 1996)
21...Maria Sakkari, GRE (born July 25, 1995)
21...Irina Khromacheva, RUS (born May 12, 1995)
21...Madison Keys, USA (born February 17, 1995)
21...Carina Witthoeft, GER (born February 16, 1995)
21...Yulia Putintseva, KAZ (born January 7, 1995)
21...Nao Hibino, JPN (born November 28, 1994)
21...Danka Kovinic, MNE (born November 18, 1994)
[#101-200]
17...Kayla Day, USA (born September 28, 1999)
17...Anna Kalinskaya, RUS (born December 2, 1998)
19...Aryna Sabalenka, BLR (born May 5, 1998)
19...Ivana Jorovic, SRB (born May 3, 1997)
19...Natalia Vikhlyantseva, RUS (born February 16, 1997)
19...Nadia Podoroska, ARG (born February 10, 1997)
19...Francoise Abanda, CAN (born February 5, 1997)
20...Jana Fett, CRO (born November 2, 1996)
20...Rebecca Sramkova, SVK (born October 19, 1996)
20...Sara Torribes Tormo, ESP (born October 8, 1996)
20...Antonia Lottner, GER (born August 13, 1996)
20...Nina Stojanovic, SRB (born July 30, 1996)
20...Donna Vekic, CRO (born June 28, 1996
20...Taylor Townsend, USA (born April 16, 1996)
20...Ipek Soylu, TUR (born April 15, 1996)
20...Elizaveta Kulichkova, RUS (born April 12, 1996)
20...Barbara Haas, AUS (born March 19, 1996)
20...Anett Kontaveit, EST (born December 24, 1995
20...Liu Fangzhou, CHN (born December 12, 1995)
20...Elise Mertens, BEL (born November 17, 1995)
With Francesca Schiavone's return to the Top 100, that makes fifteen women there aged thirty or over, one fewer than 2015 (thanks to the retirement of Schiavone's countrywoman, Flavia Pennetta).
*OLDEST PLAYER - end of '16 season*
[Top 100]
36...Venus Williams, USA (born June 17, 1980)
36...Francesca Schiavone, ITA (born June 18, 1980)
35...Serena Williams, USA (born September 8, 1981)
34...Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, CRO (born March 9, 1982)
33...Roberta Vinci, ITA (born February 18, 1983)
32...Samantha Stosur, AUS (born March 30, 1984)
31...Jelena Jankovic, SRB (born February 28, 1985)
31...Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS (born June 27, 1985)
30...Kirsten Flipkens, BEL (born January 1, 1986)
30...Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE (borN January 4, 1986)
30...Pauline Parmentier, FRA (born January 31, 1986)
30...Barbora Strycova, CZE (born March 28, 1986)
30...Varvara Lepchenko, USA (born April 21, 1986)
30...Elena Vesnina, RUS (born August 1, 1986)
30...Kateryna Bondarenko, UKR (born August 8, 1986)
[#101-200]
33...Virginie Razzano, FRA (born May 12, 1983)
32...Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA (born March 23, 1985)
32...Lucie Hradecka, CZE (born May 21, 1985)
31...Mandy Minella, LUX (born November 22, 1985)
30...Peng Shuai, CHN (born January 8, 1986)
29...Karin Knapp, ITA (born June 28, 1987)
29...Tatjana Maria, GER (born August 8, 1987)
29...Alla Kudryavtseva, RUS (born November 3, 1987)
===============================================
Sometimes the Tennis Gods like to mess with people...
Garbine Muguruza: the Spaniard was a maiden slam winner at Roland Garros, but still saw her season-ending ranking fall from #3 to #7. No wonder she called 2016 a "difficult year" despite it also including the great moment of her career thus far. Maybe she found some answers during her offseason holiday in Egypt.
Mientras en Egipto.. When in Egypt.. #AdventureSpirit ???????? ?? pic.twitter.com/EaF2CHf7eb
— Garbiñe Muguruza (@GarbiMuguruza) November 7, 2016
Sloane Stephens: Stephens entered the season with just one singles title in her career. She won three in 2016, and was tied for the tour lead this season until Dominika Cibulkova won the WTA Finals. Still, Sloane saw her season ranking fall from #30 to #36.
Irina Falconi: the Bannerette finally won her first career tour singles title at age 26, but it didn't prevent her ranking from falling from #73 to #99 over the course of the past year.
Heather Watson: just like in 2015, the Brit won one singles title. But her ranking fell from #54 to #77.
And sometimes players like to mess with the Tennis Gods...
Timea Bacsinszky: In the 2015, the Swiss reached four finals, winning two. In 2016, she played for and won only a single final in Rabat. Last year, she reached the Roland Garros SF and Wimbledon QF. Her QF in Paris was her only result better than the 3rd Round in any slam this year. With that, one would have expected for Bacsinszky to have to brace for a significant drop in the rankings. Instead, she barely slipped at all, almost imperceptibly "sliding" from #12 to #15. Go figure.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova: the Russian won in Linz and reached two additional finals a season ago. In 2016, she failed to reach a single semifinal, going 0-7 in QF (though one was at Wimbledon, her best slam result since 2011). Still, her ranking remained rock steady, as she's been ranked #28 in back-to-back seasons (and was #26 and #25 in 2013-14, respectively, as well).
Genie Bouchard: 2016 consisted of a series of two-steps-forward, one-step-back (or sometimes vice versa) stretches for Bouchard, and her season-ending ranking reflected the push/pull nature of her campaign. A year after finishing at #48, her ranking improved this season, but only enough to lift her to #47.
===============================================
At the close of the 2016 season, no player had a longer streak of weeks in the Top 10 than Serena Williams. Her run stood at 239 weeks after Week 44, and will bump up to 246 by the end the seven-week break before the start of the 2017 season. The only other player with a streak in the triple-digits is Simona Halep, with 145 (152). Earlier in the season, Maria Sharapova saw her 259-week streak end due to her suspension, while Petra Kvitova's ended at 137.
*CONSECUTIVE WEEKS IN TOP 10 - active
[time extended to December 26, 2016 ranking week]
246...Serena Williams, USA
152...Simona Halep, ROU
77...Garbine Muguruza, ESP
66...Aga Radwanska, POL
55...Angelique Kerber, GER
Meanwhile, Aga Radwanska's Top 20 week run will celebrate its ninth anniversary early in the 2017 season, as the Pole first appeared in the Top 20 in February of 2008, and has yet to vacate the premises. Her 455-week streak (extended to 462 on December 26) is nearly three years longer than the second-best active run on tour, Kvitova's 301 (308) weeks. It won't be until nearly six months into the '17 season that another player (S.Williams) will push her own streak over 300 weeks. Sharapova's 291-week run ended earlier this year, as did Caroline Wozniacki's streak of 290 weeks, though the Dane did climb back into Top 20 (#19) by season's end after falling as low as #74 before this year's U.S. Open.
*CONSECUTIVE WEEKS IN TOP 20 - active
[time extended to December 26, 2016 ranking week]
462...Aga Radwanska, POL
308...Petra Kvitova, CZE
275...Serena Williams, USA
253...Angelique Kerber, GER
199...Carla Suarez-Navarro, ESP
153...Simona Halep, ROU
98...Karolina Pliskova, CZE
===============================================
With Kristyna Pliskova's climb into the Top 100, and Ula Radwanska's fall, there are still two full sets of sisters in the 2016 Top 100. In all, ten players with tennis playing siblings are present. The Sisters Top 10:
#2 Serena Williams, USA
#3 Aga Radwanska, POL
#6 Karolina Pliskova, CZE
#17 Venus Williams, USA
#40 Naomi Osaka, JPN
#61 Kristyna Pliskova, CZE
#72 Katernya Bondarenko, UKR
#80 Kristina Kucova, SVK
#88 Naomi Broady, GBR
#97 Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE
Three more tennis siblings rank between #101-200. The next 10:
#164 Francoise Abanda, CAN
#173 Catalina Pella, ARG
#181 Julia Glushko, ISR
#184 Arina Rodionova, AUS
#227 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK
#247 Varatchaya Wongteanchai, THA
#264 Ula Radwanska, POL
#268 Lu Jia-jing, CHN
#271 Peangtarn Plipuech, THA
#275 Michaella Krajicek, NED
===============================================
The top three ranked Romanians -- Simona Halep, Irina-Camelia Begu, and Monica Niculescu -- remain the same, with remarkably little individual change. Halep went from #2 in '15 to #4 in '16, while Begu (#31/#29) and Niculescu (#39 both seasons) matched her nearly identical final standing in back-to-back years. But, have no fear, Sorana Cirstea, more than made up the difference. The FOURTH-highest ranked Swarmette, Cirstea improved her standing by 163 spots, rising from #244 to #81.
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Wither Italian women's tennis?
The remaining days of the famed quartet of Italian greats seem to get fewer and fewer with every passing moment. In 2015, Flavia Pennetta retired. This year, Robera Vinci maintained a Top 20 ranking a year after reaching the U.S. Open final, slipping only from #15 to #18, but has yet to commit to continuing to play into 2017.
"If it's yes, then yes. If it's no, then no." ~@roberta_vinci on whether she'll play in 2017.
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) November 3, 2016
MORE --> https://t.co/xZHFddc29z pic.twitter.com/jDa4JRApJX
Meanwhile, Sara Errani fell from #20 to #50 in 2016, while Francesca Schiavone, even while climbing back into the Top 100, still managed to get back to only #91, her third straight season outside the Top 80 after having season-ending rankings in the Top 42 every year from 2000-13. Meanwhile, the youngest of the nation's top players, Camila Giorgi, slipped from #34 to #83 this season, with the only other Italians in the Top 250 being #144 Karin Knapp, #236 Martina Trevisan and #245 Jasmine Paolini.
When Vinci, Errani and Schiavone all managed to score tour-level singles titles over a two-week stretch in February of this season there was a feeling that it may represent the last great series of moments in Italian tennis for quite some time. Nothing has happened since then to change the unfortunate possibility of that reality.
===============================================
Of course, there's always SOMEONE with her nose pressed up against the Top 100 glass, finishing #101. In 2016, it's Donna Vekic, the 20-year old Croat who used two late-season appearances in $100K challenger finals (going 1-1) to boost her season-ending standing. Vekic strung together back-to-back Top 100 seasons in 2013 and '14, rising as high as #62, but has hovered just outside "the magic number" in her other seasons as a regular player on the WTA tour. She was #118 as a 16-year old in 2012, and finished #105 in 2015. This year, she finished just four ranking points behind #100 Jana Cepelova.
Last year's #101, Kiki Bertens, nearly finished in the Top 20 (#22) this year after reaching her first slam singles semifinal at Wimbledon.
2011: Stephanie Foretz-Gacon, FRA
2012: Stephanie Foretz-Gacon, FRA
2013: Mariana Duque, COL
2014: Aleksandra Krunic, SRB
2015: Kiki Bertens, NED
2016: Donna Vekic, CRO
[based on November 7 end-of-season WTA rankings]
*TOP 20 BY AGE*
36...Venus Williams
35...Serena Williams
33...Roberta Vinci
31...Svetlana Kuznetsova
30...Barbora Strycova
30...Elena Vesnina
28...Angelique Kerber
28...Carla Suarez-Navarro
27...Aga Radwanska
27...Dominika Cibulkova
27...Timea Bacsinszky
27...Victoria Azarenka
26...Caroline Wozniacki
26...Petra Kvitova
25...Johanna Konta
25...Simona Halep
24...Karolina Pliskova
23...Garbine Muguruza
22...Elina Svitolina
21...Madison Keys
*TOP 20 BY NATION*
3...CZE (Kvitova, Ka.Pliskova, Strycova)
3...USA (Keys, S.Williams, V.Williams)
2...ESP (Muguruza, Suarez-Navarro)
2...RUS (Kuznetova, Vesnina)
1...BLR (Azarenka)
1...DEN (Wozniacki)
1...GBR (Konta)
1...GER (Kerber)
1...ITA (Vinci)
1...POL (A.Radwanska)
1...ROU (Halep)
1...SUI (Bacsinszky)
1...SVK (Cibulkova)
1...UKR (Svitolina)
*TOP 20 BY CAREER TITLES*
71...Serena Williams
49...Venus Williams
25...Caroline Wozniacki
20...Victoria Azarenka
20...Aga Radwanska
19...Petra Kvitova
17...Svetlana Kuznetsova
14...Simona Halep
10...Angelique Kerber
10...Roberta Vinci
8...Dominika Cibulkova
6...Karolina Pliskova
4...Timea Bacsinszky
4...Elina Svitolina
3...Garbine Muguruza
2...Madison Keys
2...Carla Suarez-Navarro
2...Elena Vesnina
1...Johanna Konta
1...Barbora Strycova
*TOP 100 FACTS*
=HIGHEST-RANKED PLAYER WITHOUT A CAREER WTA SINGLES TITLE=
2007 Victoria Azarenka, BLR - won first title in 2009
2008 Victoria Azarenka, BLR - 2009
2009 Alla Kudryavtseva, RUS - 2010
2010 Dominika Cibulkova, SVK - 2011
2011 Peng Shuai, CHN - 2016
2012 Varvara Lepchenko, USA
2013 Sloane Stephens, USA - 2015
2014 Peng Shuai, CHN - 2016
2015 Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
2016 Dasha Gavrilova, AUS
-----------------------------
*TOP 50 PLAYERS WITHOUT WTA SINGLES TITLES*
#25 Dasha Gavrilova, AUS
#27 Daria Kasatkina, RUS
#34 Yulia Putintseva, KAZ
#40 Naomi Osaka, JPN
#42 Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
#44 Jelena Ostapenko, LAT
#49 Katerina Siniakova, CZE
-----------------------------
*TOP 50 PLAYERS WITHOUT TOUR SINGLES FINALS*
#27 Daria Kasatkina, RUS
#34 Yulia Putintseva, KAZ
-----------------------------
*PLAYERS RISING INTO THE TOP 100*
2016 newbies: 27 (since end of '15 season - Nov. 9, 2015)
2015 newbies: 29
2014 newbies: 24
2013 newbies: 27
2012 newbies: 29
2011 newbies: 31
2010 newbies: 23
2009 newbies: 28
2008 newbies: 34
2007 newbies: 33
-----------------------------
TOP 100 NEWBIES ('15 rank):
(* - first career Top 100 season)
#16 Elena Vesnina, RUS (#111)
#22 Kiki Bertens, NED (#101)
#24 Zhang Shuai, CHN (#186)
#35 Anastasija Sevastova, LAT (#110)
#40 Naomi Osaka, JPN (#203) *
#49 Katerina Siniakova, CZE (#108) *
#57 Viktorija Golubic, SUI (#178) *
#59 Louisa Chirico, USA (#120) *
#60 Shelby Rogers, USA (#146) *
#61 Kristyna Pliskova, CZE (#113) *
#67 Cagla Buyukakcay, TUR (#158) *
#70 Wang Qiang, CHN (#114)
#71 Oceane Dodin, FRA (#150) *
#73 Pauline Parmentier, FRA (#116)
#76 Nicole Gibbs, USA (#119)
#79 Vania King, USA (#466)
#80 Kristina Kucova, SVK (#147) *
#81 Sorana Cirstea, ROU (#244)
#88 Naomi Broady, GBR (#118) *
#89 Maria Sakkari, GRE (#188) *
#90 CiCi Bellis, USA (#248) *
#91 Francesca Schiavone, ITA (#121)
#93 Irina Khromacheva, RUS (#240) *
#94 Risa Ozaki, JPN (#145) *
#97 Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE (#107)
#98 Kateryna Kozlova, UKR (#165) *
#100 Jana Cepelova, SVK (#143)
-----------------------------
*SMALLEST 2015-to-2016 RANKING CHANGES IN TOP 100*
0...Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (#28 to #28)
0...CoCo Vandeweghe (#37 to #37)
0...Monica Niculescu (#39 to #39)
+1...Carla Suarez-Navarro (#13 to #12)
+1...Genie Bouchard (#48 to #47)
-1...Serena Williams (#1 to #2)
+2...Aga Radwanska (#5 to #3)
+2...Irina-Camelia Begu (#31 to #29)
-2...Simona Halep (#2 to #4)
-2...Caroline Wozniacki (#17 to #19)
-----------------------------
*TOP 100 BY NATION*
(w/ # in 2015)
16...United States (13)
8...Germany (10)
7...Czech Republic (6)
6...Russia (8)
5...France (3)
5...Japan (3)
4...Italy (5)
4...Romania (5)
4...Ukraine (3)
3...China (1)
3...Great Britain (2)
3...Slovakia (4)
3...Spain (4)
3...Switzerland (2)
2...Australia (1)
2...Belgium (3)
2...Croatia (3)
2...Kazakhstan (3)
2...Latvia (1)
2...Poland (3)
2...Serbia (4)
1...Belarus (2)
1...Bulgaria (1)
1...Canada (1)
1...Denmark (1)
1...Greece (0)
1...Hungary (1)
1...Montenegro (1)
1...Netherlands (0)
1...Puerto Rico (1)
1...Sweden (1)
1...Taiwan (0)
1...Turkey (0)
--
2015 TOP 100, NONE in 2016: Brazil(1), Colombia(1), Estonia(1), Slovenia(1)
--
2015 RUS total includes Gavrilova (now AUS)
===============================================
*RANKINGS OF 2016 ITF SINGLES TITLE LEADERS*
(by titles as of November 7, 2016)
7 titles - #136 Isabella Shinikova, BUL
6 titles - #392 Ayla Aksu, TUR
5 titles - #328 Kamila Kerimbayeva, KAZ
5 titles - #363 Jaqueline Adina Cristian, ROU
5 titles - #382 Katharina Hobgarski, GER
4 titles - #93 Irina Khromacheva, RUS
4 titles - #152 Viktoriya Tomova, BUL
4 titles - #163 Tamara Korpatsch, GER
4 titles - #177 Susanne Celik, SWE
4 titles - #199 Anna Kalinskaya, RUS
4 titles - #225 Viktoria Kuzmova, SVK
4 titles - #260 Marie Bouzkova, CZE
4 titles - #276 Gabriela Pantuckova, CZE
4 titles - #285 Kathinka von Deichmann, LIE
4 titles - #388 Chiara Scholl, USA
4 titles - #390 Chantal Skamlova, SVK
4 titles - #411 Angelica Moratelli, ITA
4 titles - #421 Lenka Jurikova, SVK
4 titles - #438 Tereza Mihalikova, SVK
===============================================
*SISTERS*
#2 Serena Williams & #17 Venus Williams (USA)
#3 Aga Radwanska & #264 Ula Radwanska (POL)
#6 Karolina Pliskova & #61 Kristyna Pliskova (CZE)
#9 (Jr.) Usue Arconada & (Jr.Boy) Jordi Arconada (USA/ARG)
#12 (d) Chan Hao-Ching & #12 (d) Chan Yung-Jan (TPE)
#34 (Jr.) Caty McNally & (Jr.Boy) John McNally (USA)
#40 Naomi Osaka & #747 Mari Osaka (JPN)
#40 (d) Anastasia Rodionova & #184 Arina Rodionova (AUS)
#60 (Jr.) Violet Apisah & #447 Patricia Apisah (PNG)
#67 (d) Nadiia Kichenok & #68 (d) Lyudmyla Kichenok (UKR)
#72 Kateryna Bondarenko & (NR) Alona Bondarenko (UKR)
#80 Kristina Kucova & (ret.) Zuzana Kucova (SVK)
#88 Naomi Broady & (ATP) Liam Broady (GBR)
#92 (d) Michaella Krajicek & (ex-ATP) Richard Krajicek (NED)
#94 (Jr.) Hurricane Tyra Black & (DNP) Tornado Alicia Black (USA)
#97 Hsieh Su-Wei & #876 (d) Shu-Ying (TPE)
#164 Francoise Abanda & (ex-Barry University) Elisabeth Abanda (CAN)
#173 Catalina Pella & (ATP) Guido Pella (ARG)
#181 Julia Glushko & #304 (Jr.) Lina Glushko (ISR)
#227 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova & #455 Kristina Schmiedlova (SVK)
#247 Varatchaya Wongteanchi & #496 (d) Varunya Wongteanchi (THA)
#268 Lu Jia-Jing & (DNP) Lu Jia-Xiang (CHN)
#271 Peangtarn Plipuech & #736 Plobrung Plipuech (THA)
#276 Gabriela Pantuckova & #464 Magdalena Pantuckova (CZE)
#278 (Jr.) Abi Altick & (Vanderbilt) Frances Altick (USA)
#282 Jessica Pieri & #878 Tatiana Pieri (ITA)
#319 Olga Ianchuk & #324 Elizaveta Ianchuk (UKR)
#338 (d) Sandra Klemenschits (ret.) & (WTA, deceased) Daniela Klemenschits (AUT)
#343 (d) Anna Klasen & (NR) Charlotte Klasen (GER)
#347 Caroline Dolehide & (ex-UCLA, Univ. of Texas assn't) Courtney Dolehide (USA)
#351 Erika Sema & (DNP) Yurika Sema (JPN)
#388 Chiara Scholl & (Duke Univ.) Chalena Scholl (USA)
#478 Sara Tomic & (ATP) Bernard Tomic (AUS)
#495 Prerna Bhambri & (ATP) Yuki Bhambri (IND)
#560 Bianca Turati & #885 Anna Turati (ITA)
#573 (d) Sally Peers & (ATP) John Peers (AUS)
#612 (d) Maryna Kolb & #1054 (d) Nadiya Kolb (UKR)
#644 Beatrice Gumulya & (ret.) Sandy Gumulya (INA)
#647 Yana Morderger & Tayisiya Morderger (GER)
#881 (d) Paula Andrea Perez Garcia & #881 (d) Maria Paulina Perez Garcia (COL)
#930 Ajla Tomljanovic & (ex-Univ.of Virginia) Hana Tomljanovic (CRO)
#1076 Flavia Guimaraes Bueno & #1184 Marcela Guimaraes Bueno (BRA)
#1091 (Jr.) Malika Auger-Aliassime & (Jr.Boy) Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN)
#1109 (d) Lutfiye Esen & #1109 Hulya Esen (TUR)
#1146 Laura Gulbe (Pepperdine Univ.) & (ATP) Ernests Gulbis (LAT)
(Fresno State Univ.) Mayar Sherif Ahmed & (Fresno State Univ.) Rana Sherif Ahmed (EGY)
*REGIONAL RANKINGS*
==EASTERN EUROPE & RUSSIA==
#4 Simona Halep, ROU
#9 Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS
#13 Victoria Azarenka, BLR
#14 Elina Svitolina, UKR
#16 Elena Vesnina, RUS
#27 Daria Kasatkina, RUS
#28 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS
#29 Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU
#30 Ekaterina Makarova, RUS
#35 Anastasija Sevastova, LAT
#39 Monica Niculescu, ROU
#44 Jelena Ostapenko, LAT
#58 Lesia Tsurenko, UKR
==WESTERN EUROPE==
#1 Angelique Kerber, GER
#3 Aga Radwanska, POL
#5 Dominika Cibulkova, SVK
#6 Karolina Pliskova, CZE
#7 Garbine Muguruza, ESP
#10 Johanna Konta, GBR
#11 Petra Kvitova, CZE
#12 Carla Suarez-Navarro, ESP
#15 Timea Bacsinszky, SUI
#18 Roberta Vinci, ITA
#19 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
#20 Barbora Strycova, CZE
#22 Kiki Bertens, NED
#23 Caroline Garcia, FRA
==SCANDINAVIA==
#19 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
#51 Johanna Larsson, SWE
#137 Rebecca Peterson, SWE
#177 Susanne Celik, SWE
#357 Melanie Stokke, NOR
#415 Ulrikke Eikeri, NOR
#458 Karen Barritza, DEN
#536 Jacqueline Cabaj Awad, SWE
#550 Emma Laine, FIN
==ASIA/PACIFIC==
#21 Samantha Stosur, AUS
#24 Zhang Shuai, CHN
#25 Dasha Gavrilova, AUS
#33 Yaroslava Shvedova, KAZ
#34 Yulia Putintseva, KAZ
#38 Misaki Doi, JPN
#40 Naomi Osaka, JPN
#70 Wang Qiang, CHN
#78 Kurumi Nara, JPN
#84 Nao Nibino, JPN
#85 Zhang Saisai, CHN
#94 Risa Ozaki, JPN
#97 Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE
==SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICA==
#106 Mariana Duque, COL
#116 Veronica Cepede Royg, PAR
#169 Montserrat Gonzalez, PAR
#173 Catalina Pella, ARG
#180 Paula Cristina Goncalves, BRA
#191 Nadia Podoroska, ARG
#204 Teliana Pereira, BRA
#211 Beatriz Haddad, BRA
#231 Daniela Seguel, CHI
#381 Laura Pigossi, BRA
#396 Victoria Bosio, ARG
#413 Fernanda Brito, CHI
#429 Paula Ormaechea, ARG
[Central America #1: #971 Melissa Morales, GUA]
==NON-U.S. NORTH AMERICA/ATLANTIC==
#32 Monica Puig, PUR
#47 Genie Bouchard, CAN
#164 Francoise Abanda, CAN
#291 Renata Zarazua, MEX
#300 Aleksandra Wozniak, CAN
#306 Bianca Andreescu, CAN
#352 Victoria Rodriguez, MEX
#443 Ana Sofia Sanchez, MEX
#489 Carol Zhao, CAN
#532 Marcela Zacarias, MEX
#570 Katherine Sebov, CAN
#588 Sharon Fichman, CAN
==AFRICA/MIDDLE EAST/MEDITERRANEAN==
#67 Cagla Buyukakcay, TUR
#89 Maria Sakkari, GRE
#151 Ipek Soylu, TUR
#181 Julia Glushko, ISR
#193 Ons Jabeur, TUN
#214 Valentini Grammatikopoulou, GRE
#253 Deniz Khazaniuk, ISR
#387 Basak Eraydin, TUR
#392 Ayla Aksu, TUR
#395 Chanel Simmonds, RSA
#412 Pemra Ozgen, TUR
#414 Sandra Samir, EGY
#456 Vlada Ekshibarova, ISR
#463 Fatma Al Nabhani, OMA
#467 Melis Sezer, EGY
*NATIONAL CHECKS & BALANCES*
==UNITED STATES==
#2 Serena Williams
#8 Madison Keys
#17 Venus Williams
#36 Sloane Stephens
#37 CoCo Vandeweghe
#41 Alison Riske
#45 Christina McHale
#59 Louisa Chirico
#60 Shelby Rogers
#62 Lauren Davis
#75 Madison Brengle
#76 Nicole Gibbs
#79 Vania King
==RUSSIA==
#9 Svetlana Kuznetsova
#16 Elena Vesnina
#27 Daria Kasatkina
#28 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
#30 Ekaterina Makarova
#93 Irina Khromacheva
#104 Evgeniya Rodina
#115 Margarita Gasparyan
#133 Ekaterina Alexandrova
#138 Alla Kudryavtseva
#143 Elizaveta Kulichkova
==CHINA==
#24 Zhang Shuai
#70 Wang Qiang
#85 Zheng Saisai
#102 Duan Ying-Ying
#108 Han Xinyun
#109 Peng Shuai
#117 Wang Yafan
#130 Zhang Kai-lin
#140 Zhu Lin
#153 Liu Fangzhou
==ROMANIA==
#4 Simona Halep
#29 Irina-Camelia Begu
#39 Monica Niculescu
#81 Sorana Cirstea
#112 Patricia-Maria Tig
#118 Ana Bogdan
#242 Irina Maria Bara
#246 Andreea Mitu
#254 Elena Gabriela Ruse
#255 Cristina Dinu
#256 Alexandra Dulgheru
#277 Alexandra Cadantu
==CZECH REPUBLIC==
#6 Karolina Pliskova
#11 Petra Kvitova
#20 Barbora Strycova
#49 Katerina Siniakova
#61 Kristyna Pliskova
#64 Lucie Safarova
#95 Denisa Allertova
#158 Tereza Martincova
#162 Barbora Stefkova
#170 Lucie Hradecka
#182 Tereza Smitkova
#194 Jesika Maleckova
==GERMANY==
#1 Angelique Kerber
#31 Laura Siegemund
#53 Annika Beck
#54 Julia Goerges
#56 Andrea Petkovic
#68 Anna-Lena Friedsam
#86 Carina Witthoeft
#92 Sabine Lisicki
#126 Tatjana Maria
#163 Tamara Korpatsch
#176 Antonia Lottner
#183 Mona Barthel
==AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND/PAPUA NEW GUINEA==
#21 Samantha Stosur, AUS
#25 Dasha Gavrilova, AUS
#114 Marina Erakovic, NZL
#184 Arina Rodionova, AUS
#257 Lizetta Cabrera, AUS
#279 Olivia Rogowska, AUS
#293 Storm Sanders, AUS
#325 Ash Barty, AUS
#364 Tammi Patterson, AUS
#384 Destanee Aiava, AUS
#404 Jessica Moore, AUS
#416 Alison Bai, AUS
#427 Jaimee Fourliss, AUS
#445 Naiktha Bains, AUS
#447 Abigail Tere-Apisah, PNG
#466 Olivia Tjandramulia, AUS
==ITALY==
#18 Roberta Vinci
#50 Sara Errani
#83 Camila Giorgi
#91 Francesca Schiavone
#144 Karin Knapp
#236 Martina Trevisan
#245 Jasmine Paolini
#282 Jessica Pieri
#290 Anastasia Grymalska
#331 Georgia Brescia
==FRANCE==
#23 Caroline Garcia
#42 Kristina Mladenovic
#46 Alize Cornet
#71 Oceane Dodin
#73 Pauline Parmentier
#168 Virginie Razzano
#188 Myrtille Georges
#205 Amandine Hesse
#213 Alize Lim
#235 Fiona Ferro
#240 Sherazad Reix
#270 Tessah Andrianjafitrimo
==GREAT BRITAIN==
#10 Johanna Konta
#77 Heather Watson
#88 Naomi Broady
#160 Tara Moore
#219 Laura Robson
#286 Amanda Carreras
#288 Freya Christie
#316 Katy Dunne
#338 Harriet Dart
#368 Katie Boulter
#372 Gabriella Taylor
#435 Katie Swan
==IRELAND==
#872 Sinead Lohan
#983 Jenny Claffey
==SPAIN==
#7 Garbine Muguruza
#12 Carla Suarez-Navarro
#69 Lara Arruabarrena
#107 Sara Sorribes Tormo
#128 Silvia Soler-Espinosa
#217 Lourdes Dominguez-Lino
#249 Laura Pous-Tio
#296 Olga Saez Larra
#298 Georgina Garcia Perez
#314 Paula Badosa
#462 Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor
==SWITZERLAND==
#15 Timea Bacsinszky
#43 Belinda Bencic
#57 Viktorija Golubic
#113 Stefanie Voegele
#171 Amra Sadikovic
#190 Conny Perrin
#221 Jil Teichmann
#304 Patty Schnyder
#322 Rebeka Masarova
#397 Romina Oprandi
==SERBIA==
#55 Jelena Jankovic
#65 Ana Ivanovic
#142 Nina Stojanovic
#146 Ivana Jorovic
#147 Aleksandra Krunic
#258 Jovana Jaksic
#418 Vesna Dolonc
==JAPAN==
#38 Misaki Doi
#40 Naomi Osaka
#78 Kurumi Nara
#84 Nao Hibino
#94 Risa Ozaki
#125 Misa Eguchi
#167 Hiroko Kuwata
#192 Miyu Kato
#209 Mayo Hibi
#215 Eri Hozumi
#218 Shuko Aoyama
==KAZAKHSTAN==
#33 Yaroslava Shvedova
#34 Yulia Putintseva
#148 Zarina Diyas
#328 Kamila Kerimbayeva
#371 Galina Voskoboeva
==SLOVAKIA==
#5 Dominika Cibulkova
#80 Kristina Kucova
#100 Jana Cepelova
#119 Rebecca Sramkova
#156 Magdalena Rybarikova
#225 Viktoria Kuzmova
#227 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova
#228 Daniela Hantuchova
#340 Michaela Honcova
#389 Vivien Juhaszova
==UKRAINE==
#14 Elina Svitolina
#58 Lesia Tsurenko
#72 Kateryna Bondarenko
#98 Kateryna Kozlova
#267 Valeriya Strakhova
#311 Olga Savchuk
#319 Olga Ianchuk
#324 Elizaveta Ianchuk
#342 Dayana Yastremska
#361 Olga Fridman
#365 Lyudmyla Kichenok
==POLAND==
#3 Aga Radwanska
#96 Magda Linette
#239 Katarzyna Piter
#248 Paula Kania
#264 Ula Radwanska
#321 Magdalena Frech
#387 Katarzyna Kawa
#533 Sandra Zaniesska
#638 Justyna Jegiolka
#862 Alicja Rosolska
#900 Maja Chwalinska
#903 Iga Swiatek
==BELARUS==
#13 Victoria Azarenka
#121 Aliaksandra Sasnovich
#159 Aryna Sabalenka
#198 Olga Govortsova
#320 Vera Lapko
#482 Sviatlana Pirazhenka
#528 Iryna Shymanovich
==BELGIUM==
#52 Yanina Wickmayer
#63 Kirsten Flipkens
#120 Elise Mertens
#124 Alison Van Uytvanck
#127 Maryna Zanevska
#224 An-Sophie Mestach
#232 Ysaline Bonaventure
#323 Greetje Minnen
#337 Elyne Boeykens
==CROATIA==
#48 Ana Konjuh
#82 Mirjana Lucic-Baroni
#101 Donna Vekic
#196 Jana Fett
#266 Petra Martic
#315 Tereza Mrdeza
#332 Tena Lukas
#378 Ana Vrljic
==ARGENTINA==
#173 Catalina Pella
#191 Nadia Podoroska
#396 Victoria Bosio
#429 Paula Ormaechea
#470 Julieta Estable
#535 Guadalupe Perez Rojas
#622 Maria Irigoyen
#627 Florencia Molinero
==BRAZIL==
#180 Paula Cristina Goncalves
#204 Teliana Pereira
#211 Beatriz Haddad
#381 Laura Pigossi
#513 Gabriela Ce
==NETHERLANDS==
#22 Kiki Bertens
#129 Richel Hogenkamp
#134 Cindy Burger
#174 Arantxa Rus
#186 Lesley Kerkhove
#252 Quirine Lemoine
#275 Michaella Krajicek
#295 Indy De Vroome
#518 Chayenne Ewijk
#574 Bibiane Schoofs
==INDIA==
#284 Ankita Raina
#495 Prerna Bhambri
#543 Snehadevi Reddy
#546 Riya Bhatia
#573 Dhruthi Tatachar Venugopal
#603 Karman Thandi
#636 Prarthana Thombare
#648 Kyra Shroff
#658 Pranjala Yadlapalli
#661 Natasha Palha
==HUNGARY==
#26 Timea Babos
#229 Reka-Luca Jani
#272 Dalma Galfi
#287 Fanny Stollar
#405 Anna Bondar
#432 Vanda Lukacs
#444 Agnes Bukta
==BULGARIA==
#66 Tsvetana Pironkova
#131 Elitsa Kostova
#136 Isabella Shinikova
#152 Viktoriya Tomova
#216 Sesil Karatantcheva
#243 Aleksandrina Naydenova
#344 Julia Terziyska
#564 Dia Evtimova
==GREECE==
#89 Maria Sakkari
#214 Valentini Grammatikopoulou
#530 Eleni Kordolaimi
#552 Despina Papamichail
#795 Eleni Daniilidou
==TURKEY==
#67 Cagla Buyukakcay
#151 Ipek Soylu
#307 Basak Eraydin
#392 Ayla Aksu
#412 Pemra Ozgen
#467 Melis Sezer
#590 Berfu Cengiz
==UZBEKISTAN==
#155 Sabina Sharipova
#178 Nigina Abduraimova
#356 Akgul Amanmuradova
#715 Arina Folts
==TAIWAN/HONG KONG==
#97 Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE
#154 Chang Kai-Chan, TPE
#326 Lee-Ya Hsuan, TPE
#366 Hsu Ching-Wen, TPE
#419 Hsu Chieh-Yu, TPE
#494 Lee Pei-Chi, TPE
#577 Zhang Ling, HKG
==SOUTH KOREA==
#150 Jang Su-Jeong
#179 Han Na-Lae
#436 Jeong Sunam
#441 Choi Ji-Hee
#461 Kim Na-Ri
==THAILAND==
#145 Luksika Kumkhum
#247 Varatchaya Wongteanchai
#271 Peangtarn Plipuech
#281 Nicha Lertpitaksinchai
#420 Noppawan Lertcheewakarn
==ISRAEL==
#181 Julia Glushko
#253 Deniz Khazaniuk
#456 Vlada Ekshibarova
#813 Karen Shlomo
#1017 Ester Masuri
#1092 Valeria Nikolaev
#1101 Shahar Peer
==AUSTRIA==
#122 Tamira Paszek
#149 Barbara Haas
#308 Julia Grabher
#362 Melanie Klaffner
#451 Pia Konig
==GEORGIA==
#201 Sofia Shapatava
#273 Ekaterine Gorgodze
#449 Mariam Bolkvadze
#522 Sofia Kvatsabaia
#846 Oksana Kalasnikova
==COLOMBIA==
#106 Mariana Duque
#605 Maria Herazo Gonzalez
#792 Yuliana Lizarazo
#826 Emiliana Arango
==LATVIA==
#35 Anastasija Sevastova
#44 Jelena Ostapenko
#334 Diana Marcinkevica
==ESTONIA==
#110 Anett Kontaveit
#302 Kaia Kanepi
==BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA==
#401 Dea Herdzelas
#476 Ema Burgic Bucko
#565 Jelena Simic
==PORTUGAL==
#233 Michelle Larcher de Brito
#557 Ines Murta
#741 Maria Joao Koehler
==MONTENEGRO==
#74 Danka Kovinic
#428 Ana Veselinovic
==LIECHTENSTEIN==
#285 Kathinka von Deichmann
#431 Stephanie Vogt
==MOLDOVA==
#422 Alexandra Perper
#433 Anastasia Vdovenco
==EGYPT==
#414 Sandra Samir
#607 Ola Abou Zekry
==LUXEMBOURG==
#103 Mandy Minella
==MACEDONIA==
#200 Lina Gjorcheska
==PHILIPPINES==
#551 Katherine Lehnert
==SINGAPORE==
#491 Stefanie Tan
==CAMBODIA==
#726 Andrea Ka
*BIGGEST RISES IN THE RANKINGS*
=end of '15 to end of '16 season=
[in 2016 Top 25]
+162...Zhang Shuai (#186 to #24)
+95...Elena Vesnina (#111 to #16)
+79...Kiki Bertens (#101 to #22)
+37...Johanna Konta (#47 to #10)
+33...Dominika Cibulkova (#38 to #5)
+21...Barbora Strycova (#41 to #20)
+16...Svetlana Kuznetsova (#25 to #9)
+12...Caroline Garcia (#35 to #23)
+11...Dasha Gavrilova (#36 to #25)
+10...Madison Keys (#18 to #8)
[2016 Top 26-50]
+163...Naomi Osaka (#203 to #40)
+75...Anastasija Sevastova (#110 to #35)
+60...Monica Puig (#92 to #32)
+59...Timea Babos (#85 to #26)
+59...Laura Siegemund (#90 to #31)
+59...Katerina Siniakova (#108 to #49)
+56...Alison Riske (#96 to #41)
+49...Yaroslava Shvedova (#82 to #33)
+45...Daria Kasatkina (#72 to #27)
+40...Yulia Putintseva (#74 to #34)
+35...Jelena Ostapenko (#79 to #44)
+32...Ana Konjuh (#80 to #48)
+22...Misaki Doi (#60 to #38)
+19...Christina McHale (#64 to #45)
[2016 Top 51-100]
+387...Vania King (#466 to #79)
+163...Sorana Cirstea (#244 to #81)
+158...CiCi Bellis (#248 to #90)
+147...Irina Khromacheva (#240 to #93)
+121...Viktorija Golubic (#178 to #57)
+99...Maria Sakkari (#188 to #89)
+91...Cagla Buyukakcay (#158 to #67)
+86...Shelby Rogers (#465 to #60)
+79...Oceane Dodin (#150 to #71)
+67...Kristina Kucova (#147 to #80)
+67...Kateryna Kozlova (#165 to #98)
+61...Louisa Chirico (#120 to #59)
+52...Kristyna Pliskova (#113 to #61)
+51...Risa Ozaki (#145 to #94)
*BIGGEST FALLS IN THE RANKINGS*
=end of '15 to end of '16 season=
[2015 Top 25]
-55...Lucie Safarova (#9 to #64)
-49...Ana Ivanovic (#16 to #65)
-34...Jelena Jankovic (#21 to #55)
-32...Andrea Petkovic (#24 to #56)
-30...Sara Errani (#20 to #50)
-29...Belinda Bencic (#14 to #43)
-10...Venus Williams (#7 to #17)
suspended...Maria Sharapova (#4 to NR)
retired...Flavia Pennetta (#8)
[2015 Top 26-50]
-201...Anna Karolina Schmiedlova (#26 to #227)
-159...Teliana Pereira (#45 to #204)
-139...Mona Barthel (#44 to #183)
-82...Alison Van Uytvanck (#42 to #124)
-60...Sabine Lisicki (#32 to #92)
-49...Camila Giorgi (#34 to #83)
-41...Varvara Lepchenko (#46 to #87)
-35...Madison Brengle (#40 to #75)
-25...Lesia Tsurenko (#33 to #58)
[2015 Top 51-100]
-864...Ajla Tomljanovic (#66 to #930)
-169...Ula Radwanska (#95 to #264)
-199...Alexandra Dulgheru (#57 to #256)
-151...Andreea Mitu (#94 to #246)
-147...Daniela Hantuchova (#81 to #228)
-129...Olga Govortsova (#69 to #198)
-119...Lourdes Dominguez Lino (#98 to #217)
-117...Lucie Hradecka (#53 to #170)
-114...Bethanie Mattek-Sands (#61 to #175)
-97...Anna Tatishvili (#100 to #197)
-96...Zarina Diyas (#52 to #148)
-93...Karin Knapp (#51 to #144)
-79...Magdalena Rybarikova (#77 to #156)
-68...Polona Hercog (#71 to #139)
-58...Tatjana Maria (#68 to #126)
-53...Margarita Gasparyan (#62 to #115)
-51...Aleksandra Krunic (#96 to #147)
"We beseech the tennis gods...."
— Diane Elayne Dees (@WomenWhoServe) March 24, 2016
"Fix Schmiedy!" pic.twitter.com/0d9T4zbc5S
===============================================
*DOUBLES TOP 100*
(w/ # in 2015)
12...United States (8)
9...Czech Republic (9)
8...Russia (8)
7...China (6)
6...Japan (4)
5...Germany (6)
5...Spain (7)
4...Australia (4)
4...Great Britain (2)
4...Taiwan (5)
4...Ukraine (4)
3...Netherlands (3)
3...Romania (3)
3...Belgium (2)
2...France (2)
2...Poland (3)
2...Slovenia (2)
2...Switzerland (2)
1...Argentina (1)
1...Bulgaria (0)
1...Canada (1)
1...Croatia (2)
1...Georgia (1)
1...Hungary (1)
1...India (1)
1...Italy (4)
1...Kazakhstan (1)
1...Montenegro (0)
1...Paraguay (0)
1...Serbia (2)
1...Sweden (1)
1...Thailand (0)
1...Turkey (0)
--
2015 TOP 100, NONE in 2016: Brazil (1), Liechtenstein (1), Luxembourg (1), Slovakia (2)
*DOUBLES TOP 20*
[by nation]
5...CZE (#7 Safarova, #9 Hlavackova, #10 Hradecka, #11 Ka.Pliskova, #17 Strycova)
2...FRA (#2 Garcia, #2 Mladenovic)
2...RUS (#6 Vesnina, #8 Makarova)
2...TPE (#12 H.Chan, #12 Y.Chan)
2...USA (#5 Mattek-Sands, #18 Vandeweghe)
1...CHN (#20 Xu Yifan)
1...GER (#16 Goerges)
1...HUN (#15 Babos)
1...IND (#1 Mirza)
1...KAZ (#14 Shvedova)
1...ROU (#19 Niculescu)
1...SUI (#4 Hingis)
[ages]
36...Hingis
31...Hradecka, Mattek-Sands
30...Hlavackova, Strycova, Vesnina
29...Mirza, Niculescu, Safarova, Shvedova
28...Goerges, Makarova, Xu Yifan
27...YJ.Chan
24...Ka.Pliskova, Vandeweghe
23...Babos, HC.Chan, Garcia, Mladenovic
*SINGLES & DOUBLES*
(singles/doubles ranks)
=TOP 20 IN BOTH (3)=
Karolina Pliskova (#6 singles, #11 doubles)
Barbora Strycova (#20 singles, #17 doubles)
Elena Vesnina (#16 singles, #6 doubles)
=TOP 50 IN BOTH (+14)=
Timea Babos (#26 singles, #15 doubles)
Kiki Bertens (#22 singles, #37 doubles)
Sara Errani (#50 singles, #45 doubles)
Carolina Garcia (#23 singles, #2 doubles)
Daria Kasatkina (#27 singles, #48 doubles)
Ekaterina Makarova (#30 singles, #8 doubles)
Christina McHale (#45 singles, #38 doubles)
Kristina Mladenovic (#42 singles, #2 doubles)
Monica Niculescu (#39 singles, #19 doubles)
Yaroslava Shvedova (#33 singles, #14 doubles)
Katerina Siniakova (#49 singles, #35 doubles)
CoCo Vandeweghe (#37 singles, #18 doubles)
Serena Williams (#2 singles, #31 doubles)
Venus Williams (#17 singles, #31 doubles)
*NATIONS WITH TOP 100 DOUBLES PLAYER, BUT NONE IN SINGLES*
ARGENTINA (1): #52 Maria Irigoyen
GEORGIA (1): #43 Oksana Kalashnikova
INDIA (1): #1 Sania Mirza
PARAGUAY (1): #95 Veronica Cepede Royg
SLOVENIA (2): #28 Katarina Srebotnik, #30 Andreja Klepac
THAILAND (1): #78 Varatchaya Wongteanchai
[high-ranking singles player]
ARGENTINA: #173 Catalina Pella
GEORGIA: #201 Sofia Shapatava
INDIA: #284 Ankita Raina
PARAGUAY: #116 Veronica Cepede Royg
SLOVENIA: #139 Polona Hercog
THAILAND: #145 Luksika Kumkhum
So... whew!
Yeah, yeah. I know there's quite a bit there. You didn't have to read it ALL, but now at least you know... and, hey, that surely wasn't the worst experience you've had over the past week, now was it?
Anyway, hopefully, I didn't flub up any numbers or other notes after all that transcribing.
More 2016 Backspin Awards are coming soon!
All for now.
posted by Todd.Spiker @ 10:51 PM
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