After the clay season and the significant lead that Iga Swiatek had taken, Aryna Sabalenka managed to return strongly to the No.1 race with an impressive streak of 11 consecutive wins in America.
Following the back-to-back titles she won at the Cincinnati 1000 and the US Open, the 26-year-old Belarusian is expected to reach 8,716 points by Monday (09/09), leaving her 2,169 points behind Swiatek.
However, in the Race for Riyadh, the gap will narrow significantly, reaching just 409 points.
It is worth noting that at the end of each season, the Race aligns with the global ranking, as the Race counts all the points each player has earned from the start of the season to date.
This means that just one tournament can change the ranking, and we could see Sabalenka at No.1 in the Race, which would automatically make her the favorite for the Year-end No.1.
Sabalenka spent 8 weeks at No.1 in the global rankings last year after the US Open, but in November, Swiatek left her behind again, and thus the Belarusian has yet to achieve a Year-end No.1 in her career. In contrast, Swiatek is vying for her 3rd consecutive Year-end No.1.