How did Aryna Sabalenka take Iga Swiatek's WTA Player of the Year crown? How did the Pole's ban affect the race?
Updated 10/12/2024 at 13:47 GMT
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Aryna Sabalenka was announced as the WTA Player of the Year on Tuesday, taking the crown for the first time in her career after a sensational 2024 campaign. Former world No. 1 Iga Swiatek boasted the honour in 2022 and 2023, but an interrupted 2024 season has seen the Polish star relinquish the top spot in the singles rankings - a perch she held for 125 weeks.
Sabalenka beats Pegula in straight sets to lift first US Open trophy
Video credit: SNTV
Aryna Sabalenka claimed her maiden WTA Player of the Year crown on Tuesday, capping off a remarkable 2024 campaign which culminated with the 26-year-old sitting atop the singles rankings.
The three-time Grand Slam winner finally ousted Iga Swiatek as world No. 1 and Player of the Year - an honour which the Pole boasted in 2022 and 2023 following a dominant spell at the summit of the women's game.
The pair had closely jostled at the top of the women's rankings for some time. Sabalenka rose to No. 1 in September 2023, before Swiatek claimed back the top spot with her WTA Finals triumph and an imperious run of 11 victories to close out the season.
The battle continued in 2024, and Sabalenka eventually regained her perch at the summit in the final weeks of the season - a spot she will occupy at least until the end of the Australian Open, as she defends her title in Melbourne, live on Eurosport and discovery+.
We take a look at their epic battle throughout the 2024 campaign, and how Sabalenka asserted her dominance as the new world's best.
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Highlights: Sabalenka and Pegula battle through to set up US Open final
Video credit: SNTV
Sabalenka v Swiatek: 2024 campaign
Sabalenka kicked off 2024 in just about the perfect manner, producing a stunning run at the Australian Open to defend her title without dropping a set - nor a single game on her serve.
Swiatek - meanwhile - was ousted in the last 32 by Linda Noskova, a defeat which the former world No. 1 would avenge three times throughout the campaign.
And it was Sabalenka's imperious form in 2024's major tournaments which ultimately saw her replace Swiatek at the top of the pecking order - despite winning fewer all-around titles and matches across the season.
Swiatek successfully defended her Roland Garros crown in June as Sabalenka crashed out at the quarter-final stage - in the end, making up points due to Swiatek's early Melbourne exit.
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Highlights: Dominant Swiatek defeats Paolini to win French Open title
Video credit: TNT Sports
But Sabalenka's feat was made even more impressive by the fact she was forced to withdraw from Wimbledon due to injury. Swiatek, meanwhile, once again found herself tumbling out in the last 32 at the hands of Yulia Putintseva.
"I feel like on grass I need a little bit more of that energy to keep being patient and accept some mistakes," Swiatek said after her exit. "Like mentally, I didn't really do that well in this tournament. I need to recover better after clay court season, both physically and mentally."
And it was to be the US Open in which Sabalenka established 2024 as her best-ever campaign, taking her maiden title in New York as Swiatek uncharacteristically fell in straight sets to an inspired Jessica Pegula - who Sabalenka dismissed with relative ease in a straight-set victorious final.
| Player | Titles won | Match wins | Win % |
| Sabalenka | 4 | 56 | 80 |
| Swiatek | 5 | 64 | 87.7 |
But while Grand Slam success was hard to come by for five-time major winner Swiatek, she still recorded more title victories than any other player on the WTA scene, capturing titles in Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, and Rome, alongside her Roland Garros triumph.
Sabalenka, meanwhile, took four titles - with her two Slam victories supplemented by Cincinnati and Wuhan crowns.
Swiatek also added an Olympic bronze medal to her list of 2024 honours, after falling in straight sets to Qinwen Zheng in the semi-final but beating Anna Karolina Schmiedlova in the battle for third.
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'An upset for the times' - Zheng stuns Swiatek to make history
Video credit: TNT Sports
The pair faced off twice during the 2024 campaign, twice on clay and once on the hard, fast courts of Cincinnati. Swiatek prevailed 2-1 overall, taking both victories on her favoured clay in Rome and Madrid.
How did Swiatek's ban affect No. 1 race?
It was revealed in November that Swiatek tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine (TMZ) in August, ahead of her run to the Cincinnati Open semi-finals.
The Pole was handed a provisional suspension - which was successfully appealed, with her consumption of TMZ deemed to be "not intentional" - resulting in a one-month ban.
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Swiatek was absent for the Asian hard-court swing - missing the Korea, China, and Wuhan Opens, and returned to action for the Billie Jean King Cup in October, where her impressive singles efforts were ultimately in vain as Poland crashed out to Italy at the semi-final stage.
When Swiatek's ban was publicly announced, the former world No. 1 took to social media to say the process was the "most difficult" experience of her life, as she cited personal matters, fatigue and a change in coach as reasons for withdrawal from the tournaments in Asia.
And it was ultimately her absence from the three events which decided how the WTA rankings would shape up for the end of the 2024 campaign, as a Wuhan triumph and quarter-final run in China saw Sabalenka soar to No. 1.
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Australian Open final highlights: Sabalenka is champion again after triumph over Zheng
Video credit: TNT Sports
Swiatek could have clawed back enough points to end the year at the top with a strong run at the WTA Finals, but a group-stage, straight-set defeat to Coco Gauff put pay to her hopes of a place in the final four - sealing her fate at No. 2 to close out the season.
The positive TMZ test will also see Swiatek surrender the points she accrued during her run to the Cincinnati Open semi-final - another blow to her hopes of returning to the WTA's summit.
But the non-intentional nature of her positive test means she will face no further implications, and will be free to compete in Melbourne for the Australian Open in January - live on Eurosport and discovery+.
The race for the WTA No. 1 spot is sure to be hotter than ever between the pair in 2025 - but Sabalenka can at least rest easy for another month.
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Federer watches on as Sabalenka routs Zheng, Tiafoe gets Dimitrov walkover
Video credit: SNTV
Other WTA award winners
Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani were named WTA Doubles Team of the Year for 2024, fresh off the back of their Billie Jean King Cup triumph in November.
The Italian duo proved an imperious partnership, claiming titles in Roma, China and Austria, while also reaching the Roland Garros final and winning gold at the Paris Olympics.
Meanwhile, Emma Navarro was named the Most Improved Player of the Year after claiming her maiden title at the WTA 250 Hobart International.
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Highlights: Home favourites Navarro and Fritz reach US Open semi-finals
Video credit: SNTV
She also enjoyed victory over Sabalenka at Indian Wells, as well as two other wins over top five players.
Lulu Sun was named Newcomer of the Year after bursting on the scene with a stunning run to the Wimbledon quarter-finals - defeating world No. 5 Zheng as well as home favourite Emma Raducanu at the grass major.
Sun was ranked outside the top 200 ahead of the 2024 campaign but rose to a lofty No. 40 by the end of the season.
Elsewhere, Paula Badosa was named Comeback Player of the Year, following an impressive return from a back injury which cut her 2023 campaign short.
The 26-year-old won her fourth career title in Washington, while also reaching the semi-finals of Cincinnati and Beijing. Badosa also made it to the US Open quarter-finals, where she was eventually ousted by Emma Navarro.
Watch every moment of the 2025 Australian Open live on Eurosport and discovery+.
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