2019 Rankings Round-Up

Rankings, rankings, rise and fall
For Ash Barty, what can you say?
She pretty much did it all!

Could it have been the Vegemite,
or her stint with a cricket bat and ball?
Or maybe it was her simple decision to stay out of sight,
with a groundbreaking early-career sabbatical?

With each blazing shot back she did send,
and every "first Aussie since..." accomplishment she did deservedly nick
As the curtain comes down on a complete season's end,
it's clear it couldn't have happened to a more level-headed chick.


The annual Backspin recapping season begins now with the annual whole-lotta-love (and numbers) year-end rankings round-up. Of course, I can't promise all these words and numbers will be as head spinning as the total blindside rush formulated and pulled off by Canadian teenager Bianca Andreescu over the course of the 2019 season, or how the #1-ranked Ash Barty's ability to effectively problem-solve on so many occasions may have produced the most most spectacularly versatile single season performance put forth by any player since "peak Navratilova" several decades ago, or at the very least, what the Aussie did this year rivals a few of the best seasons from smiling original "Swiss Miss" Martina Hingis and Lindsay Davenport, or the Williamses sisters when they dominated in singles *and* simultaneously threatened to re-write the doubles records books.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ash Barty (@ashbarty) on Jun 8, 2019 at 6:16pm PDT

But, hey, what can you do, right?


First up, the fifth edition of the Backspin "All-Rankings Team."


Congratulations to the players who pulled off some of the most significant rankings accomplishments during the 2019 season!


Bianca Andreescu, CAN: the teenager was ranked #173 at the close of the '18 season. What a difference a year makes. Twelve months later, she's collected U.S. Open, Indian Wells and Toronto titles and is the #5-ranked player in the world.

Ash Barty, AUS: the Aussie was a Top 20 player (#15) in 2018, but even her most optimistic supporters would have likely been only fantasizing had they entertained the notion that she'd win a slam (and surely they'd never thought it'd be Roland Garros), the WTA Finals, Miami *and* carry the Australian Fed Cup team into the final en route to the season-ending #1 ranking.

Coco Gauff, USA: the 15-year old junior star (she was the youngest #1-ranked girl ever in' 18) took the sport by storm at Wimbledon, reaching the Ladies Round of 16 in her slam debut. By the end of the season, she'd claimed three tour titles (1 singles, 2 doubles) and finished at #68. She's the youngest player in the Top 750.

Sofia Kenin, USA: Kenin was a promising player nipping at the heels of the Top 50 at the close of '18. 2019 saw her become one of the tour's prime movers-and-shakers, winning three singles (and two doubles) crowns and posting two #1 wins (and that doesn't count her upset of Serena Williams at RG) on her way to a #14 finish.

Karolina Muchova, CZE: the next Czech threat, Muchova followed up an eyebrow-raising '18 by garnering even more notice, reaching the Wimbledon QF and winning her maiden tour title late in the season. If not for Andreescu's monstrous rise, her huge leap from #145 to #21 would be the biggest (non-Coco) ranking development of '19.

Alison Riske, USA: becoming the latest to bloom brightest in her veteran years on tour, 29-year old Riske famously reached the Wimbledon "Last 8," won her first tour title in five years and made her Top 20 debut, climbing 45 spots in a year to finish at #18.


Kristie Ahn, USA: with a looming deadline to prove to her parents the worth of her tennis dream (or else finally get "a real job"), Ahn gradually built success upon success, hitting her peak during the summer hard court season as she reached the U.S. Open Round of 16 and made her Top 100 breakthrough. She finished at #91, rising 105 positions over the course of the year.

Amanda Anisimova, USA: having ended last year just inside the Top 100, the teenager struck early in the season, reaching the Round of 16 in Melbourne (after upsetting Aryna Sabalenka), winning her maiden title in April and then reaching the Roland Garros semis (becoming the youngest to reach the Final 4 in Paris since '06) after wins over Sabalenka (again) and defending champ Simona Halep. She finished at #24.

Petra Martic, CRO: having already come back from injury to post her best season in '18 (w/ a #32 finish), Martic continued her climb, posting QF-4r-4r slam results in Paris, London and New York, winning her first career tour title and her biggest single match victory (over #2 Pliskova at RG) en route to a #15 ranking.

Elena Rybakina, KAZ: somewhat under the radar, the Russian-born Kazakh made *huge* strides in '19, winning her maiden tour title and rising from #191 to #37 even while still in search of her first career MD victory in a major.

Marketa Vondrousova, CZE: the teen Czech got off to a blazing start before being felled by injury. She reached three finals in the first half of the season, including at Roland Garros, back-to-back QF at Indian Wells and Miami and recorded a pair of #2 wins over Halep (I.W./Rome). She rose from #67 to #16, even while playing just three matches after Paris (and none after Wimbledon).

Dayana Yastremska, UKR: the former junior star won two titles, recorded her first Top 10 win (#2 Pliskova/Wuhan), and just scratched the surface of her slam potential with 3r-1r-4r-3r results in the majors as she rose from #60 to #22. She's the second highest ranked teen on tour behind Andreescu.


*BACKSPIN ALL-RANKINGS TEAMS*
[2015]
Timea Bacsinszky, SUI (1st team)
Dasha Gavrilova, RUS/AUS (1st team)
Dasha Kasatkina, RUS (1st team)
Johanna Konta, GBR (1st team)
Garbine Muguruza, ESP (1st team)
Madison Brengle, USA
Margarita Gasparyan, RUS
Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
Alona 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
Dasha Kasatkina, RUS
Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS
Anastasija Sevastova, LAT


[2017]
Ash Barty, AUS (1st team)
Caroline Garcia, FRA (1st team)
Martina Hingis, SUI (1st team)
Elise Mertens, BEL (1st team)
Alona Ostapenko, LAT (1st team)
Julia Goerges, GER
Beatriz Haddad Maia, BRA
Aleksandra Krunic, SRB
Magdalena Rybarikova, SVK
Marketa Vondrousova, CZE


[2018]
Kiki Bertens, NED (1st team)
Simona Halep, ROU (1st team)
Barbora Krejcikova/Katerina Siniakova, CZE/CZE (1st team)
Naomi Osaka, JPN (1st team)
Aryna Sabalenka, BLR (1st team)
Mihaela Buzarnescu, ROU
Danielle Collins, USA
Dasha Kasatkina, RUS
Angelique Kerber, GER
Petra Martic, CRO
Caroline Wozniacki, DEN


[2019]
Bianca Andreescu, CAN (1st team)
Ash Barty, AUS (1st team)
Coco Gauff, USA (1st team)
Sofia Kenin, USA (1st team)
Karolina Muchova, CZE (1st team)
Alison Riske, USA (1st team)
Kristie Ahn, USA
Amanda Anisimova, USA
Petra Martic, CRO
Elena Rybakina, KAZ
Marketa Vondrousova, CZE
Dayana Yastremska, UKR




**RANKINGS NOTES OF NOTE**
[as of end-of-season ranks on November 4, 2019]
Three different women held the #1 singles ranking in 2019, with three of the season's slam winners (Simona Halep, Naomi Osaka and Ash Barty) swapping the position back and forth four times over the course of the season. Barty is the first Aussie to be finish a season at #1 since the institution of the WTA computer rankings system in 1975, ending Halep's run of back-to-back #1 finishes. Barty is the sixth different woman to post a #1 season in the 2010's.

Barty and Osaka both moved into the top spot for the first time in their career, just as was the case this season in doubles, where two (Barbora Strycova and Kristina Mladenovic) of the four (w/ Barbora Krejickova and Katerina Siniakova) who led the rankings at some point during the year had never before held the top spot.

Year-End @WTA Top 10

1. Ashleigh Barty ????
2. Karolina Pliskova ????
3. Naomi Osaka ????
4. Simona Halep ????
5. Bianca Andreescu ????
6. Elina Svitolina ????
7. Petra Kvitova ????
8. Belinda Bencic ????
9. Kiki Bertens ????
10. Serena Williams ????

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) November 3, 2019

While the total of three season-ending Top 10 newcomers in 2019 is comparable to '18 (when there were four), and there were four different slam winners and seven different major finalists, there was actually considerably more stability at the top of the game than it may at first appear. Six of last year's Top 10 return this year, the most retention between seasons since six held onto their spots between 2014 and '15.

=TOP 10 RETURNEES, BY SEASON=
2010: 7
2011: 4
2012: 7
2013: 9
2014: 7
2015: 6
2016: 5
2017: 4
2018: 4
2019: 6
Additionally, eight of this season's group were at least close to a similar finish in '18, as they were present in the final Top 16 a year ago. Two - #7 Petra Kvitova and #9 Kiki Bertens -- even finished in the exact *same* position as in 2018. The only player other than Halep to repeat from last year's Top 5 is Osaka.

Halep's streak of Top 10 seasons now stands at six, the longest active run on tour. Actually, she's finished in the Top 4 in each of those seasons.

Serena Williams' sixteenth Top 10 year further secures her position in second place all-time, behind only Martina Navratilova's nineteen such seasons. Her seventh Top 10 finish this decade is tied with Kvitova and Caroline Wozniacki for the most on tour in the 2010's.

=MOST TOP 10 SEASONS - 2010-19=
7 - Petra Kvitova, CZE*
7 - Serena Williams, USA*
7 - Caroline Wozniacki, DEN*
6 - Simona Halep, ROU
6 - Angelique Kerber, GER*
6 - Aga Radwanska, POL
5 - Maria Sharapova, RUS*
4 - Victoria Azarenka, BLR*
4 - Li Na, CHN
4 - Karolina Pliskova, CZE*
3 - Garbine Muguruza, ESP*
3 - Samantha Stosur, AUS*
3 - Elina Svitolina, UKR*
3 - Venus Williams, USA*
2 - Kiki Bertens, NED*
2 - Sara Errani, ITA*
2 - Jelena Jankovic, SRB
2 - Johanna Konta, GBR*
2 - Naomi Osaka, JPN*
2 - Vera Zvonareva, RUS*
1 - Bianca Andreescu, CAN*
1 - Marion Bartoli, FRA
1 - Ash Barty, AUS*
1 - Belinda Bencic, SUI*
1 - Genie Bouchard, CAN
1 - Dominika Cibulkova, SVK*
1 - Kim Clijsters, BEL ('20 comeback)
1 - Elena Dementieva, RUS
1 - Caroline Garcia, FRA*
1 - Ana Ivanovic, SRB
1 - Dasha Kasatkina, RUS*
1 - Madison Keys, USA*
1 - Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS*
1 - Alona Ostapenko, LAT*
1 - Flavia Pennetta, ITA
1 - Andrea Petkovic, GER*
1 - LUcie Safarova, CZE
1 - Francesca Schiavone, ITA
1 - Sloane Stephens, USA*
1 - CoCo Vandeweghe, USA*
-
*-active

=MOST TOP 10 SEASONS BY NATION - 2010-19=
13 - United States
12 - Czech Republic
10 - Russia
7 - Denmark, Germany
6 - Poland, Romania
4 - Australia, Belarus, China, Italy
3 - Serbia, Spain, Ukraine
2 - Canada, France, Great Britain, Japan, Netherlands
1 - Belgium, Latvia, Slovakia, Switzerland

===============================================
The United States once again produced the most Top 100 players this season, landing seventeen in the field, five more than a year ago. No other nation's contingent hit double-digits, as the closest were the resurgent Russians (9) and stalwart Czechs (8). In all, thirty-three nations are represented in the season-ending Top 100, a number essentially on par with recent seasons.

=TOP 100 NATIONS=
2011: 37
2012: 36
2013: 36
2014: 34
2015: 33
2016: 33
2017: 34
2018: 34
2019: 33
Players from nine nations are ranked in the Top 10, with only the Czechs with more than one representative. Fourteen nations make up the Top 20 (two fewer than in '18). Only the U.S. (4), Czech Republic (3) and -- in a bit of an upset -- Croatia (2) have more than one. The rise of the young Bannerettes helped contribute to the United States having seven of the Top 31 players.

Meanwhile, the Top 50 is spread out slightly more in '19 than in recent seasons, as players from twenty-seven different nations make the cut.

=TOP 50 NATIONS=
2013: 23
2014: 23
2015: 20
2016: 25
2017: 21
2018: 25
2019: 27
===============================================
Four players rose from outside the Top 100 to finish within in the Top 50 this season: #5 Bianca Andreescu, #21 Karolina Muchova, #37 Elena Rybakina and #41 Veronika Kudermetova.

While young players are rising, it's inevitable that some veterans will slip. Two who did in '19 were Venus Williams and Maria Sharapova. Williams' #53 finish is just her second outside the Top 50 in her long career, with the last such occurrence coming back in 2011 (#103). Sharapova's injury-plagued campaign saw her drop all the way out of the Top 100, as she ended up at #136. It's her worst season-ending ranking since her season-ending ranking debut (#186) as a 15-year old in 2002.

Angelique Kerber's up-and-down trend continued in 2019. After finishing at #1 in 2016, the German slumped to #21 a year later. She rebounded in '18 with a #2 finish, but again slipped this season and fell to #20.

Of course, there's always SOMEONE with her nose pressed up against the proverbial glass, as in JUST MISSING out on a Top 10, 20 or 100 finish.

This year's #11-ranked player is the same as a year ago, as Aryna Sabalenka (who at least *did* spend some time in the Top 10 in '19) will once again enter a new season with the potential for something great on her racket, while #21 Karolina Muchova will simply be seeking to follow-up on the great strides she made over the past year. Veteran Kaia Kanepi has already had ten Top 100 finishes in her career, but the Estonian came up just short of her eleventh in '19.

*RECENT #11 FINISHES*
2005: Serena Williams, USA
2006: Dinara Safina, RUS
2007: Elena Dementieva, RUS
2008: Nadia Petrova, RUS
2009: Marion Bartoli, FRA
2010: Li Na, CHN
2011: Francesca Schiavone, ITA
2012: Marion Bartoli, FRA
2013: Simona Halep, ROU
2014: Dominika Cibulkova, SVK
2015: Karolina Pliskova, CZE
2016: Petra Kvitova, CZE
2017: Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
2018: Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
2019: Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
*RECENT #21 FINISHES*
2005: Anna-Lena Groenefeld, GER
2006: Li Na, CHN
2007: Sybille Bammer, AUT
2008: Daniela Hantuchova, SVK
2009: Amelie Mauresmo, FRA
2010: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS
2011: Julia Goerges, GER
2012: Varvara Lepchenko, USA
2013: Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS
2014: Garbine Muguruza, ESP
2015: Jelena Jankovic, SRB
2016: Samantha Stosur, AUS
2017: Angelique Kerber, GER
2018: Anett Kontaveit, EST
2019: Karolina Muchova, CZE
*RECENT #101 FINISHES*
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
2017: Kurumi Nara, JPN
2018: Heather Watson, GBR
2019: Kaia Kanepi, EST

===============================================
As was the case in '18, the group of U.S. players once again includes both the oldest (Venus Williams, 39) and youngest (#68 Coco Gauff, 15) members of the Top 100. A year ago, then 17-year old Amanda Anisimova was the youngest player in the Top 100, and Gauff the youngest in the Top 1000. Anisimova rose from #95 to #24 over the course of 2019, and is now the youngest player in the Top 50.

While the number of Top 100 ranked teens have hovered between 4-6 for much of the past decade, the exploits and notoriety of those players continue to grow. Of the six who did so this year, 19-year old Bianca Andreescu won the U.S Open, while 15-year old Coco Gauff was arguably *the* breakout personality of the entire season. Gauff and Anisimova (18) won maiden tour singles titles in '19, while Dayana Yastremska (19) won a pair of crowns. Iga Swiatek (18) reached her first tour final, while the still title-less (she made two finals in '18) Anastasia Potapova (18) climbed as high as #64 during the summer.

=TEENS IN THE TOP 100=
2014: 5
2015: 5
2016: 6
2017: 4
2018: 5
2019: 6
The youthful pool of talent continues to expand. The past few years have seen the number of teens ranked between #101-200 go from seven in '16 to seventeen in '17. In '18, the number was fifteen, and this year it's fourteen.

=YOUNGEST IN...=
Top 10: Bianca Andreescu, CAN (19)
Top 20: Andreescu
Top 50: Amanda Anisimova, USA (18)
Top 100: Coco Gauff, USA (15)
Top 200: Gauff
Top 300: Gauff
Top 400: Gauff
Top 500: Gauff
Top 600: Gauff
Top 700: Gauff
Top 800: Katrina Scott, USA (15)
Top 900: Scott
Top 1000: Isabella Kruger, RSA (14)

At the same time, the *next* wave of young stars are already making their move. 2019's junior slam finalists and their current WTA rankings...

View this post on Instagram

Australien open champion 2019!! #yonex #itf

A post shared by Clara Tauson (@claratauson) on Jan 25, 2019 at 11:22pm PST

AO W: Clara Tauson, DEN (#267)
RG W: Leylah Annie Fernandez, CAN (#209)
WI W: Daria Snigur, UKR (#324)
US W: Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL (#186)
Junior Masters W: Diane Parry, FRA (#331)
-
AO RU: Fernandez (#209)
RG RU: Emma Navarro, USA (#486)
WI RU: Alexa Noel, USA (#1045)
US RU: Alexandra Yepifanova, USA (NR)
Junior Masters RU: Snigur (#324)

As for the youngest players in the top-end of the tour rankings (including Backspin's upcoming 2020 "Player Whose Name You'll Know..." honoree Varvara Gracheva)...

What a rally!

Varvara Gracheva out-tricks Hsieh at the net to break for 5-5! #CO19 pic.twitter.com/2Z0WmV1MNv

— WTA (@WTA) August 2, 2019

*YOUNGEST PLAYER - end of '19 season*
[Top 100]
15...Coco Gauff, USA (born May 13, 2004)
18...Amanda Anisimova, USA (born August 31, 2001)
18...Iga Swiatek, POL (born May 31, 2001)
18...Anastasia Potapova, RUS (born March 30, 2001)
19...Bianca Andreescu, CAN (born June 16, 2000)
19...Dayana Yastremska, UKR (born May 15, 2000)
20...Elena Rybakina, KAZ (born June 17, 1999)
20...Marketa Vondrousova, CZE (born June 28, 1999)
20...Anna Kalinskaya, RUS (born December 2, 1998)
20...Sonya Kenin, USA (born November 14, 1998)
[#101-200]
17...Whitney Osuigwe, USA (born April 17, 2002)
17...Marta Kostyuk, UKR (born June 28, 2002)
17...Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL (born December 22, 2001)
17...Caty McNally, USA (born November 20, 2001)
18...Wang Xinyu, CHN (born September 26, 2001)
18...Wang Xiyu, CHN (born March 28, 2001)
18...Yuki Naito, JPN (born February 16, 2001)
18...Olga Danilovic, SRB (born January 23, 2001)
18...Kaja Juvan, SLO (born November 25, 2000)
19...Liang En-shou, TPE (born October 19, 2000)
19...Varvara Gracheva, RUS (born August 19, 2000)
19...Ann Li, USA (born June 26, 2000)
19...Destanee Aiava, AUS (born May 19, 2000)
19...Katarina Zavatska, UKR (born February 5, 2000)
20...Liudmila Samsonova, RUS (born November 11, 1998)

While veterans are still holding their own as a whole on tour, 30-year old Julia Goerges (in Week 1) was the only player in her thirties who managed to win a singles title in 2019. 37-year old Serena Williams became the oldest slam singles finalist in the Open era, but she's *still* seeking career major #24. After back-to-back years in which nineteen thirtysomethings finished in the Top 100, only sixteen did this season.

=OLDEST IN...=
Top 10: Serena Williams, USA (38)
Top 20: S.Williams
Top 50: S.Willliams
Top 100: Venus Williams, USA (39)
Top 200: V.Williams
Top 300: V.Williams
Top 400: Greta Arn, HUN (40)
Top 500: Arn

Not that the generation is suddenly irrelevant, as the number of 30+ players ranked between #101-200 rose from ten in '18 to eighteen this year.

*OLDEST PLAYER - end of '19 season*
[Top 100]
39...Venus Williams, USA (born June 17, 1980)
38...Serena Williams, USA (born September 8, 1981)
35...Samantha Stosur, AUS (born March 30, 1984)
34...Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS (born June 27, 1985)
33...Kirsten Flipkens, BEL (born January 1, 1986)
33...Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE (borN January 4, 1986)
33...Peng Shuai, CHN (born January 8, 1986)
33...Barbora Strycova, CZE (born March 28, 1986)
32...Tatjana Maria, GER (born August 8, 1987)
32...Andrea Petkovic, GER (born September 9, 1987)
31...Angelique Kerber, GER (born January 18, 1988)
31...Laura Siegemund, GER (born March 4, 1988)
31...Carla Suarez-Navarro, ESP (born September 3, 1988)
30...Zhang Shuai, CHN (born January 21, 1989)
30...Lesia Tsurenko, UKR (born May 30, 1989)
30...Victoria Azarenka, BLR (born July 31, 1989)
[#101-200]
35...Vera Zvonareva, RUS (born September 7, 1984)
34...Kaia Kanepi, EST (born June 10, 1985)
33...Pauline Parmentier, FRA (born January 31, 1986)
33...Varvara Lepchenko, USA (born April 21, 1986)
33...Mandy Minella, LUX (born November 22, 1985)
32...Maria Sharapova, RUS (born April 19, 1987)
32...Sara Errani, ITA (born April 29, 1987)
32...Monica Niculescu, ROU (born September 25, 1987)
31...Mihaela Buzarnescu, ROU (born May 4, 1988)
31...Bibiane Schoofs, NED (born May 13, 1988)
31...Olga Govortsova, BLR (born August 23, 1988)
31...Magdalena Rybarikova, SVK (born October 4, 1988)
31...Yanina Wickmayer, BEL (born October 20, 1989)
31...Julia Goerges, GER (born November 2, 1988)
31...Giulia Gatto-Monticone, ITA (born November 18, 1987)
30...Evgeniya Rodina, RUS (born February 4, 1989)
30...Timea Bacsinszky, SUI (born June 8, 1989)
30...Cagla Buyukakcay, TUR (born September 28, 1989)

===============================================
Sometimes the Tennis Gods like to mess with people...

Taylor Townsend, USA: the former junior star had her long-awaited breakthrough performance as a pro with the first career slam Round of 16 result at the U.S. Open, but her season-ending ranking actually went *down* over the span of twelve months from #74 to #84.

Julia Goerges, GER: in Week 1, she blasted out of the gates by becoming the first woman in fifteen years to successfully defend the singles championship in Auckland, defeating would-be U.S. Open champ Bianca Andreescu in the final. By the end of the season, though, the 31-year old German had seen her ranking fall from #14 to #28.

Barbora Strycova, CZE: even with her first career slam singles semifinal result at Wimbledon, Strycova's season-ending ranking remained static, as she repeated her #33 finish from a season ago. She *did* finish the season as the doubles #1, though.


And sometimes players get the chance to mess with the Tennis Gods...

Elina Svitolina, UKR: while the Ukrainian didn't win a title for the first time since 2012 (she was 9-0 in tour finals in 2017-18), and didn't even play in a final until her last match of the season at the WTA Finals, Svitolina maintained her Top 10 ranking by managing to accomplish a feat she *hadn't* been able to pull in recent campaigns: reaching her maiden slam semifinal. In fact, she did it twice, at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.

===============================================
There are still two full sets of sisters in the 2019 Top 100. In all, eight players with tennis playing siblings are present, with Aga Radwanska now watching it all from the sidelines in retirement.

The Sisters Top 10:

#2 Karolina Pliskova, CZE (Kristyna)
#3 Naomi Osaka, JPN (Mari)
#10 Serena Williams, USA (Venus)
#32 Hsieh Su-wei, TPE (Shu-Ying, brother Akon)
#41 Veronika Kudermetova, RUS (Polina)
#51 Ajla Tomljanovic, AUS (Hana)
#53 Venus Williams, USA (Serena)
#66 Kristyna Pliskova, CZE (Karolina)
#118 Caty McNally, USA (brother John)
#132 Whitney Osuigwe, USA (Victoria)

View this post on Instagram

As a little girl my dream was to always play night match on Ashe. Last night it happened against @serenawilliams ... Thank you @usopen for the memories that i will carry with me for the rest of my life. 🤩🤟🏼🎉 #shlime

A post shared by Caty (@catymcnally) on Aug 29, 2019 at 7:09am PDT

The rest in the Top 300:
#138 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, SVK (Kristina)
#140 Usue Arconada, USA (brother Jordi)
#154 Caroline Dolehide, USA (Courtney)
#169 Kristina Kucova, SVK (Zuzana)
#178 Lu Jia-jing, CHN (Jia-Xiang)
#203 Arina Rodionova, AUS (Anastasia)
#212 Mayar Sherif, EGY (Rana)
#277 Urszula Radwanska, POL (Aga)

===============================================





[based on November 4 end-of-season 2019 WTA rankings]
*TOP 20 BY AGE*
38...Serena Williams (#10)
31...Angelique Kerber (#20)
29...Petra Kvitova (#7)
29...Alison Riske (#18)
28...Petra Martic (#15)
28...Johanna Konta (#12)
28...Simona Halep (#4)
27...Kiki Bertens (#9)
27...Karolina Pliskova (#2)
25...Elina Svitolina (#6)
24...Madison Keys (#13)
23...Elise Mertens (#17)
23...Ash Barty (#1)
23...Donna Vekic (#19)
22...Belinda Bencic (#8)
22...Naomi Osaka (#3)
21...Aryna Sabalenka (#11)
20...Sofia Kenin (#14)
20...Marketa Vondrousova (#16)
19...Bianca Andreescu (#5)
*TOP 20 BY NATION*
4...USA (Kenin, Keys, Riske S.Williams)
3...CZE (Kvitova, Ka.Pliskova, Vondrousova)
2...CRO (Martic, Vekic)
1...AUS (Barty)
1...BEL (Mertens)
1...BLR (Sabalenka)
1...CAN (Andreescu)
1...GBR (Konta)
1...GER (Kerber)
1...JPN (Osaka
1...NED (Bertens)
1...ROU (Halep)
1...SUI (Bencic)
1...UKR (Svitolina)

*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 - 2017
2016 Dasha Gavrilova, AUS - 2017
2017 Wang Qiang, CHN - 2018
2018 Aliaksandra Sasnovich, BLR
2019 Danielle Collins, USA
-----------------------------
*TOP 50 PLAYERS WITHOUT WTA SINGLES TITLES*
#31 Danielle Collins, USA*
#35 Ekaterina Alexandrova, RUS
#41 Veronika Kudermetova, RUS*
-
*-also no tour-level finals
-----------------------------
*PLAYERS RISING INTO THE TOP 100*
2019 newbies: 25 (since end of '18 season - November 5, 2018)
2018 newbies: 26
2017 newbies: 27
2016 newbies: 27
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 ('18 rank):
(* - first career Top 100 season)
#5 Bianca Andreescu, CAN (#178)*
#21 Karolina Muchova, CZE (#145)*
#37 Elena Rybakina, KAZ (#191)*
#41 Veronika Kudermetova, RUS (#115)*
#54 Svetlana Kuznetsova, RUS (#107)
#56 Jennifer Brady, USA (#116)
#57 Marie Bouzkova, CZE (#142)*
#61 Iga Swiatek, POL (#175)*
#62 Lauren Davis, USA (#252)
#63 Fiona Ferro, FRA (#102)*
#68 Coco Gauff, USA (NR)*
#71 Jil Teichmann, SUI (#144)*
#73 Laura Siegemund, GER (#117)
#74 Misaki Doi, JPN (#139)
#75 Peng Shuai, CHN (#298)
#76 Jessica Pegula, USA (#125)*
#84 Zhu Lin, CHN (#114)*
#85 Christina McHale, USA (#155)
#86 Nina Stojanovic, SRB (#244)
#87 Margarita Gasparyan, RUS (#105)
#88 Danka Kovinic, MNE (#182)
#91 Kristie Ahn, USA (#196)*
#92 Heather Watson, GBR (#101)
#97 Paula Badosa, ESP (#143)*
#100 Anna Kalinskaya, RUS (#169)*
-----------------------------
*SMALLEST 2018-to-2019 RANKING CHANGES IN TOP 100*
0...Petra Kvitova (#7 to #7)
0...Kiki Bertnes (#9 to #9)
0...Aryna Sabalenka (#11 to #11)
0...Barbora Strycova (#33 to #33)
+1...Victoria Azarenka (#51 to #50)
+1...Anastasia Potapova (#94 to #93)
+2...Naomi Osaka (#5 to #3)
-2...Elina Svitolina (#4 to #6)
-----------------------------
*TOP 100 BY NATION*
(w/ # in 2018)
17...United States (12)
9...Russia (8)
8...Czech Republic (6)
6...China (4)
5...Germany (5)
4...France (4)
4...Spain (4)
4...Ukraine (4)
3...Australia (4)
3...Belarus (4)
3...Belgium (3)
3...Kazakhstan (2)
3...Romania (6)
3...Switzerland (3)
2...Croatia (2)
2...Great Britain (2)
2...Japan (1)
2...Latvia (2)
2...Poland (2)
2...Slovenia (3)
1...Canada (1)
1...Denmark (1)
1...Estonia (2)
1...Greece (1)
1...Italy (1)
1...Montenegro (0)
1...Netherlands (1)
1...Puerto Rico (1)
1...Serbia (1)
1...Slovakia (4)
1...Sweden (2)
1...Taiwan (1)
1...Tunisia (1)
--
2018 TOP 100, NONE in 2019: Hungary (1), Thailand (1)
===============================================
*RANKINGS OF 2019 ITF SINGLES TITLE LEADERS*
(by titles as of November 4, 2019)
9 titles - #103 Arantxa Rus, NED
6 titles - #107 Vitalia Diatchenko, RUS
6 titles - #212 Mayar Sherif, EGY
6 titles - #372 Seone Mendez, AUS
-
TOTAL TITLES: 11 (4s/7d) - #280 Marcela Zacarias, MEX
===============================================






*REGIONAL RANKINGS*==EASTERN EUROPE (non-RUS)==
#4 Simona Halep, ROU
#6 Elina Svitolina, UKR
#11 Aryna Sabalenka, BLR
#22 Dayana Yastremska, UKR
#26 Anett Kontaveit, EST
#27 Anastasija Sevastova, LAT
#44 Alona Ostapenko, LAT
#50 Victoria Azarenka, BLR
#67 Aliaksandra Sasnovich, BLR
#70 Lesia Tsurenko, UKR
#72 Sorana Cirstea, ROU
#89 Kateryna Kozlova, UKR
#99 Irina-Camelia Begu, ROU
=RUSSIA=
#30 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
#35 Ekaterina Alexandrova
#41 Veronika Kudermetova
#54 Svetlana Kuznetsova
#59 Anna Blinkova
#69 Dasha Kasatkina
#87 Margarita Gasparyan
#93 Anastasia Potapova
#100 Anna Kalinskaya
#105 Varvara Gracheva
#107 Vitalia Diatchenko
#112 Natalia Vikhlyantseva
#128 Varvara Flink
#136 Maria Sharapova
#139 Liudmila Samsonova
#141 Vera Zvonareva
[BALTIC REGION]
#26 Anett Kontaveit, EST
#27 Anastasija Sevastova, LAT
#44 Alona Ostapenko, LAT
#101 Kaia Kanepi, EST
#211 Diana Marcinkevica, LAT
#523 Daniela Vismane, LAT
(LTU: #673 Justina Mikulskyte)

==WESTERN & CENTRAL EUROPE (non-RUS)==
#2 Karolina Pliskova, CZE
#7 Petra Kvitova, CZE
#8 Belinda Bencic, SUI
#9 Kiki Bertens, NED
#12 Johanna Konta, GBR
#15 Petra Martic, CRO
#16 Marketa Vondrousova, CZE
#17 Elise Mertens, BEL
#19 Donna Vekic, CRO
#20 Angelique Kerber, GER
#21 Karolina Muchova, CZE
#28 Julia Goerges, GER
#33 Barbora Strycova, CZE
#36 Garbine Muguruza, ESP
#38 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
#40 Kristina Mladenovic, FRA
[SCANDINAVIA]
#38 Caroline Wozniacki, DEN
#43 Rebecca Peterson, SWE
#217 Johanna Larsson, SWE
#242 Ulrikke Eikeri, NOR
#267 Clara Tauson, DEN
#320 Mirjam Bjorklund, SWE
#465 Melanie Stokke, NOR
#494 Oona Orpana, FIN
#510 Fanny Ostlund, SWE
#518 Jacqueline Cabaj Awad, SWE

==ASIA/PACIFIC==
#1 Ash Barty, AUS
#3 Naomi Osaka, JPN
#29 Wang Qiang, CHN
#32 Hsieh Su-Wei, TPE
#34 Yulia Putintseva, KAZ
#37 Elena Rybakina, KAZ
#39 Zheng Saisai, CHN
#46 Zhang Shuai, CHN
#48 Wang Yafan, CHN
#51 Ajla Tomljanovic, AUS
#74 Misaki Doi, JPN
#75 Peng Shuai, CHN
#78 Zarina Diyas, KAZ
#83 Zhu Lin, CHN
#96 Samantha Stosur, AUS
#102 Nao Hibino, JPN
(INDIA: #184 Ankita Raina)

==AFRICA, MIDDLE EAST, CAUCASUS & MEDITERRANEAN==
#23 Maria Sakkari, GRE
#77 Ons Jabeur, TUN
#156 Mariam Bolkvadze, GEO
#176 Cagla Buyukakcay, TUR
#204 Pemra Ozgen, TUR
#207 Ekaterine Gorgodze, GEO
#212 Mayar Sherif, EGY
#260 Despina Papamichail, GRE
#265 Valentini Grammatikopoulou, GRE
#274 Ipek Soylu, TUR
#308 Deniz Khazaniuk, ISR
#327 Raluca Serban, CYP
#359 Chanel Simmonds, RSA
#380 Sandra Samir, EGY
#414 Julia Glushko, ISR

==SOUTH AMERICA==
#120 Beatriz Haddad Maia, BRA
#146 Veronica Cepede Royg, PAR
#186 Maria Camila Osorio Serrano, COL
#218 Paula Ormaechea, ARG
#243 Gabriela Ce, BRA
#255 Nadia Podoroska, ARG
#262 Daniela Seguel, CHI
#375 Teliana Pereira, BRA
#396 Thaisa Grana Pedretti, BRA
#399 Laura Pigossi, BRA
#407 Carolina Meligeni Alves, BRA
#417 Paula Cristina Goncalves, BRA
#418 Barbara Gatica, CHI
(CENTRAL AMERICA: #648 Andrea Weedon, GUA)

==NORTH AMERICA/ATLANTIC==
#5 Bianca Andreescu, CAN
#10 Serena Williams, USA
#13 Madison Keys, USA
#14 Sofia Kenin, USA
#18 Alison Riske, USA
#24 Amanda Anisimova, USA
#25 Sloane Stephens, USA
#31 Danielle Collins, USA
#53 Venus Williams, USA
#56 Jennifer Brady, USA
#62 Lauren Davis, USA
#65 Bernarda Pera, USA
#68 Coco Gauff, USA
#76 Jessica Pegula, USA
#80 Monica Puig, PUR
#84 Taylor Townsend, USA
#85 Christina McHale, USA
#91 Kristie Ahn, USA
#94 Madison Brengle, USA
(MEXICO: #280 Renata Zarazua)





*BIGGEST RISES IN THE RANKINGS*
=end of '17 to end of '18 season=
[in 2019 Top 25]
+173...Bianca Andreescu (#178 to #5)
+124...Karolina Muchova (#145 to #21)
+71...Amanda Anisimova (#95 to #24)
+51...Marketa Vondrosova (#67 to #16)
+45...Alison Riske (#63 to #18)
+38...Sofia Kenin (#52 to #14)
+38...Dayana Yastremska (#60 to #22)
+29...Belinda Bencic (#37 to #8)
+27...Johanna Konta (#39 to #12)
+18...Maria Sakkari (#41 to #23)
+17...Petra Martic (#32 to #15)
+15...Donna Vekic (#34 to #19)
+14...Ash Barty (#15 to #1)
[2019 Top 26-50]
+154...Elena Rybakina (#191 to #37)
+74...Veronika Kudermetova (#115 to #41)
+58...Ekaterina Alexandrova (#93 to #35)
+41...Magda Linette (#83 to #42)
+33...Polona Hercog (#82 to #49)
+25...Wang Yafan (#73 to #48)
+12...Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (#42 to #30)
+12...Rebecca Peterson (#55 to #43)
+11...Yulia Putintseva (#45 to #34)
[2019 Top 51-100]
+807...Coco Gauff (#875 to #68)
+223...Peng Shuai (#298 to #75)
+190...Lauren Davis (#252 to #62)
+158...Nina Stojanovic (#244 to #86)
+114...Iga Swiatek (#175 to #61)
+105...Kristie Ahn (#196 to #91)
+94...Danka Kovinic (#182 to #88)
+85...Marie Bouzkova (#142 to #57)
+73...Jil Teichmann (#144 to #71)
+70...Christina McHale (#155 to #85)
+69...Anna Kalinskaya (#169 to #100)
+65...Misaki Doi (#139 to #74)
+60...Jennifer Brady (#116 to #56)
+53...Svetlana Kuznetsova (#107 to #54)

View this post on Instagram

Bye bye season 2019, you’ve been shit🤪 #DD #excitedFor2020 P.S it’s not a coconut water inside the coconut🙂 #ifYouKnowWhatiMean

A post shared by Daria Kasatkina🐬 (@kasatkina) on Oct 27, 2019 at 6:55am PDT

*BIGGEST FALLS IN THE RANKINGS*
=end of '18 to end of '19 season=
[2018 Top 25]
-291...Dominika Cibulkova (#25 to #316)
-85...Mihaela Buzarnescu (#24 to #109)
-59...Dasha Kasatkina (#10 to #69)
-35...Caroline Wozniacki (#3 to #38)
-32...Carla Suarez-Navarro (#23 to #55)
-26...Caroline Garcia (#19 to #45)
-22...Alona Ostapenko (#22 to #44)
-19...Sloane Stephens (#6 to #25)
-18...Angelique Kerber (#2 to #20)
-18...Garbine Muguruza (#18 to #36)
-15...Anastasija Sevastova (#12 to #27)
-14...Julia Goerges (#14 to #28)
-9...Wang Qiang (#20 to #29)
[2018 Top 26-50]
-124...Magdalena Rybarikova (#49 to #173)
-107...Maria Sharapova (#29 to #136)
-72...Camila Giorgi (#26 to #98)
-47...Kirsten Flipkens (#48 to #95)
-43...Lesia Tsurenko (#27 to #70)
-37...Aliaksandra Sasnovich (#30 to #67)
-27...Katerina Siniakova (#31 to #58)
-13...Alize Cornet (#47 to #60)
-13...Venus Williams (#40 to #53)
[2018 Top 51-100]
retired...Aga Radwanska (#75)
-381...Ekaterina Makarova (#55 to #436)
-263...Vera Lapko (#65 to #328)
-252...Katie Boulter (#100 to #352)
-199...Dasha Gavrilova (#38 to #237)
-174...Luksika Kumkhum (#80 to #254)
-141...Dalila Jakupovic (#69 to #210)
-141...Johanna Larsson (#76 to #217)
-135...Genie Bouchard (#89 to #224)
-108...Aleksandra Krunic (#57 to #165)
-91...Mona Barthel (#81 to #172)
-89...Evgeniya Rodina (#88 to #177)
-73...Lara Arruabarrena (#84 to #157)
-68...Pauline Parmentier (#54 to #122)
-62...Sachia Vickery (#96 to #158)
-61...Anna Karolina Schmiedlova (#77 to #178)
-58...Ana Bogdan (#71 to #129)
===============================================

View this post on Instagram

I may be no better but at least i am different!! #jean-jacques rousseau

A post shared by Barbora Strycova🐝 (@barborastrycova) on Sep 5, 2019 at 10:25am PDT

*DOUBLES TOP 100*
(w/ # in 2018)
18..United States (12)
9...Czech Republic (7)
8...China (7)
8...Russia (10)
6...Japan (5)
5...Australia (8)
4...Belarus (3)
4...Romania (6)
4...Spain (5)
3...Belgium (2)
3...Germany (3)
3...Taiwan (3)
3...Ukraine (3)
2...Canada (1)
2...Hungary (2)
2...Sweden (1)
1...Brazil (0)
1...Chile (1)
1...Croatia (1)
1...France (1)
1...Georgia (1)
1...Kazakhstan (1)
1...Latvia (2)
1...Mexico (1)
1...Netherlands (4)
1...Poland (1)
1...Serbia (2)
1...Slovakia (0)
1...Switzerland (2)
--
2018 TOP 100, NONE in 2019: Great Britain (3), Slovenia (3)

*DOUBLES TOP 20*
[by nation]
3...CHN (#9 Xu, #10 Sh.Zhang, #17 Duan)
3...CZE (#1 Strycova, #7 Siniakova, #13 Krejcikova)
3...TPE (#4 S.Hsieh, #15 H.Chan, #15 L.Chan)
2...AUS (#12 Stosur, #19 Barty)
2...BLR (#5 Sabalenka, #18 Azarenka)
1...BEL (#6 Mertens)
1...CAN (#8 Dabrowski)
1...FRA (#2 Mladenovic)
1...GER (#11 Groenefeld)
1...HUN (#3 Babos)
1...NED (#14 Schuurs)
1...USA (#20 Melichar)
[ages]
35...Stosur
34...Groenefeld
33...S.Hsieh,Strycova
31...Xu
30...Azarenka,L.Chan,Duan,Sh.Zhang
27...Dabrowski
26...Babos,H.Chan,Mladenovic,Melichar,Schuurs
23...Mertens,Krejcikova,Barty,Siniakova
21...Sabalenka

*SINGLES & DOUBLES*
(singles/doubles ranks)
=TOP 20 IN BOTH (3)=
Ash Barty (#1 singles, #19 doubles)
Aryna Sabalenka (#11 singles, #5 doubles)
Elise Mertens (#17 singles, #6 doubles)
=TOP 50 IN BOTH (+10)=
Sofia Kenin (#14 singles, #39 doubles)
Alison Riske (#18 singles, #44 doubles)
Hsieh Su-wei (#32 singles, #4 doubles)
Barbora Strycova (#33 singles, #1 doubles)
Zheng Saisai (#39 singles, #27 doubles)
Kristina Mladenovic (#40 singles, #2 doubles)
Veronika Kudermetova (#41 singles, #25 doubles)
Alona Ostapenko (#44 singles, #22 doubles)
Zhang Shuai (#46 singles, #10 doubles)
Victoria Azarenka (#50 singles, #18 doubles)

*NATIONS WITH TOP 100 DOUBLES PLAYER, BUT NONE IN SINGLES*
BRAZIL (1): #75 Luisa Stefani
CHILE (1): #59 Alexa Guarachi
GEORGIA (1): #60 Oksana Kalashnikova
HUNGARY (1): #91 Fanny Stollar
MEXICO (1): #74 Giuliana Olmos
[high-ranking singles player]
BRAZIL: #120 Beatriz Haddad Maia
CHILE: #262 Daniela Seguel
GEORGIA: #156 Mariam Bolkvadze
HUNGARY: #104 Timea Babos
MEXICO: #280 Renata Zarazua


So... whew!

via GIPHY

Yeah, yeah. I know there's quite a bit there. You didn't have to read it ALL, but now at least you know.

Anyway, hopefully, I didn't flub up any numbers or other notes after all that transcribing.


(crossing fingers)



All for now.