The clay court season on the Hologic WTA Tour is now in full swing following the conclusion of the Mutua Madrid Open, which was the fifth WTA 1000 event of the year. The most recent PIF WTA Rankings also reflect the results from two WTA 125 tournaments held in Saint-Malo, France, and Vic, Spain.
Aryna Sabalenka claimed the Madrid title for the third time, matching Petra Kvitova`s record, after her previous wins in 2021 and 2023. World No. 1 Sabalenka has now reached the final in six of her eight tournaments played in 2025, widening her lead over World No. 2 Iga Swiatek to 4,345 points.
Runner-up Coco Gauff achieved her third consecutive victory over the World No. 2, defeating Swiatek decisively with a 6-1, 6-1 scoreline. This marks Gauff`s first final appearance since the 2024 WTA Finals in Riyadh. The 21-year-old reclaims the World No. 3 position and the top spot among American players from Jessica Pegula.
Uchijima, Osaka, Ito, Sonobe Achieve Milestones for Japan
Japanese players have performed exceptionally well over the last two weeks. Moyuka Uchijima was a standout performer in Madrid, securing the first three Top 25 victories of her career, including an upset win against Pegula in the third round, to reach her inaugural WTA 1000 quarterfinal. Just a year ago, Uchijima broke into the Top 100 with a 19-match winning streak that included a Madrid ITF W100 title. She has now entered the Top 50 for the first time, climbing nine positions from No. 56 to No. 47.
Following a first-round exit in Madrid to Lucia Bronzetti, former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka competed at the WTA 125 level for the first time in a decade in Saint-Malo. This decision paid off, as Osaka won her first trophy since the 2021 Australian Open, and her first career clay court title at any level. She notably came back from a 4-1 deficit in the third set to defeat Diane Parry in the second round. Osaka re-enters the Top 50, rising seven places to No. 48.
Aoi Ito, known for her distinctive playing style, chose to compete in her home country. The 20-year-old reached the semifinals of the 2024 Osaka tournament on her WTA debut and won the Canberra WTA 125 title in January. Her recent semifinal run at the Tokyo ITF W100 two weeks ago has helped her break into the Top 100 for the first time, moving up one spot to No. 100.
Australian Open junior champion Wakana Sonobe made a strong impression on her WTA debut in February by qualifying and reaching the second round in Abu Dhabi. The powerful 17-year-old won her first professional title two weeks ago at the Tokyo ITF W100 and makes a significant leap of 161 places from No. 448 to a new career high of No. 287.
Ukrainians Svitolina, Kostyuk, Starodubtseva Impress in Madrid
Three Ukrainian players delivered their best-ever performances in Madrid. In her nine previous appearances at the tournament, Elina Svitolina had only won three matches, none consecutively. She made up for lost time with a run to the semifinals, extending her winning streak to 11 matches following her Rouen title and Billie Jean King Cup participation. The 30-year-old climbs three spots to No. 14, her highest ranking since October 2021.
Marta Kostyuk reached her second WTA 1000 quarterfinal of 2025 in Madrid, securing wins over Emma Raducanu and Veronika Kudermetova. Having dropped out of the Top 30 two weeks prior for the first time since March 2024, Kostyuk immediately bounced back with a nine-place jump to No. 27.
Last October, Yuliia Starodubtseva entered the Top 100 after reaching the Beijing quarterfinals as a qualifier, but then lost 16 of her next 19 matches, including all six at the tour level. The 25-year-old ended this dry spell impressively, qualifying for the Madrid main draw and reaching the last 16. She earned her second Top 20 win against Liudmila Samsonova in the third round and rises 19 places to No. 80.
Hungarians Galfi, Bondar Flourish on Clay
Former World No. 79 Dalma Galfi, a former junior No. 1, has been quietly building a strong performance record at the WTA 125 level. The 26-year-old was the runner-up in La Bisbal d`Empordà four weeks ago, followed by winning her first two WTA 125 titles in Antalya and Vic. After compiling a 14-1 record over the past month, Galfi rises 26 positions to No. 95 this week, returning to the Top 100 for the first time since June 2023.
Fellow Hungarian and former World No. 50 Anna Bondar also won a title last week, claiming the Wiesbaden ITF W100 trophy for the second time. The 27-year-old moves up 13 places to No. 89.
Other Notable Rankings Movements
Jasmine Paolini, +1 to No. 5: The Italian reached the third round in Madrid and returns to the Top 5 for the first time since February.
Diana Shnaider, +2 to No. 11: Playing her second event with former World No. 1 Dinara Safina as her coach, Shnaider won consecutive matches for the first time since January to reach the Madrid fourth round, achieving a new career high.
Anna Blinkova, +9 to No. 67: Blinkova qualified and reached the second round of Madrid, where she delivered a strong performance against eventual champion Sabalenka.
Yuan Yue, +10 to No. 93: After losing 10 of her first 13 matches of the year and falling out of the Top 100 in March, former No. 36 Yuan ended her difficult period by winning the Oeiras ITF W100 title two weeks ago – her first career trophy on clay at any level. This moves her back into the Top 100.
Mananchaya Sawangkaew, +8 to No. 105: The 22-year-old Thai player reaches a new career high after making it to the Gifu ITF W100 final last week.
Rebeka Masarova, +41 to No. 112: Former No. 62 Masarova had a tough start to 2025 but has shown strong form over the past two months with a 16-5 record since March. In the last fortnight, she reached the Madrid third round as a qualifier and then made it to the final at the Vic WTA 125.
Iva Jovic, +21 to No. 120: The 17-year-old American secured her first ITF W100 title in Charlottesville two weeks ago, reaching a new career high.
Zhang Shuai, +28 to No. 136: Former No. 22 Zhang won the Gifu ITF W100 last week. This is the 36-year-old`s first singles title at any level since Lyon in 2022.
Astra Sharma, +47 to No. 154: Sharma, the 2021 Charleston 250 champion, performed well on green clay again over the past two weeks, reaching the Charlottesville ITF W100 semifinals and then winning the Bonita Springs ITF W100 title without dropping a set.
Whitney Osuigwe, +21 to No. 158: Osuigwe’s strong form continued with a run to the Bonita Springs ITF W100 final last week. The 23-year-old American has compiled an impressive 32-10 record so far in 2025.
Julia Grabher, +76 to No. 162: Grabher’s comeback from wrist surgery has gained significant momentum over the last month with a 21-match winning streak (excluding Billie Jean King Cup). The Austrian former No. 54 won her third consecutive ITF trophy two weeks ago at the Chiasso W75 before her streak was ended by Bondar in the Wiesbaden W100 final last week.
Emerson Jones, +38 to No. 236: Junior World No. 1 Jones reached the semifinals of the Gifu ITF W100 last week before losing to eventual champion Zhang in three sets. The 16-year-old Australian reaches a new career high.
Harmony Tan, +39 to No. 244: Former No. 90 Tan won her first title in over a year at last week’s Yecla ITF W50.
Kaja Juvan, +159 to No. 356: After a 12-month break from competition in 2024, former No. 58 Juvan returned unranked in January. Last week, the Slovenian defeated Katie Volynets and Viktorija Golubic to reach the Saint-Malo WTA 125 final, her first at any level since Strasbourg in 2022.
Alisa Oktiabreva, +124 to No. 447: Oktiabreva, aged 16, won her second ITF W35 title of the year in Leme, Brazil, three weeks ago, breaking into the Top 500 for the first time.
Teodora Kostovic, +101 to No. 524: Former junior No. 5 Kostovic reached the final qualifying round of both Abu Dhabi and Miami this year as a wildcard. In Madrid, the 17-year-old Serb went one better, defeating Elena-Gabriela Ruse and Lucrezia Stefanini to make her first WTA main draw.
Katarina Jokic, +513 to No. 595: University of Georgia alumna Jokic was sidelined for six months in 2024. Last week, she defeated Iva Jovic and Laura Pigossi en route to the Bonita Springs ITF W100 semifinals.
Rupert Caldwell