Aryna Sabalenka ends season as Year End No.1 but not on Alternative WTA Rankings with surprise top four, Emma Raducanu inside top 15
WTA
While the WTA season is done, it gives time to take scope as to the season that was and where players end the year. The alternative tennis ranking (UTR) sees Aryna Sabalenka though not finish on top unlike the main ranking where she had sewn up Year End No.1 some time ago.
Sabalenka was far and away the top player on the WTA Rankings with Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff some distance off the Belarusian who has spent the past few years either fighting for top spot or to keep it. She hasn't had to do that this year but she doesn't finish top of the rankings that take into account recent matches, quality of opposition and wins.
UTR stands for Universal Tennis Rating which is a global tennis rating system that provides a single accurate measure of a players skill level using actual match results including the strength of the opponents on offer. This provides more of a fairer gauge on current form it could be said than the current WTA Ranking system.
It is done out of 16 from 1.00 to 16.50 for instance Iga Swiatek is top with 129.6 compared to 12.92 from Sabalenka over the course of the season albeit Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina would be top if done on the three month trend which has them over the 13 mark.
Swiatek sits on top of this ranking despite the fact that in reality she has had perhaps the worst year of her career in many ways. She lost her Queen of Clay shine losing the Rome, Madrid and French Open titles in recent months and had many disheartening losses including in Miami to Alexandra Eala, Indian Wells to Mirra Andreeva among others. She also dipped out of the WTA FInals in the group stages. But she sits top on 12.96 compared to 12.92 for Sabalenka.
Raducanu top 15 as top 10 names barely in top 25
Perhaps another surprise albeit not so much given her recent form is a certain Elena Rybakina being third. She is now World No.5 but sits third in the UTR with 12.89. Based on these metrics she is the second best player in the world behind Sabalenka on three month trend winning Ningbo, reaching the semi's in Tokyo and winning the WTA Finals. So despite being further down on the rankings, she would be World No.3 if done on recent success over points.
While Amanda Anisimova is next up. In the eyes of many the best player on tour this year in regards to the comeback she has made to suddenly become an all conquering force who lost in two Grand Slam finals but ended up winning multiple WTA 1000's. Coco Gauff is fifth having won the French Open this year.
But Ekaterina Alexandrova who made her top 10 breakthrough earlier this autumn is 6th showing the form she has shown this year. She narrowly missed out on the WTA Race and was a second alternate who played one match after Madison Keys withdrew. Mirra Andreeva who was ahead of her in that race was in 10th in the alternative rankings showing that despite early season form, Alexandrova was better throughout.
One surprise after Jessica Pegula in 7th is Zheng Qinwen as she is the only one without any data in the past three months and hasn't played for most of the season but she remains in the top 10. While Elina Svitolina and Andreeva sit inside the top 10. Marketa Vondrousova is next. She won Berlin and reached the US Open quarter-final in a mini resurgence. While the two facets of the Montreal final in Victoria Mboko and Naomi Osaka are next to conclude the top 13.
Emma Raducanu would be World No.15 if we go off these metrics while Jasmine Paolini, a stalwart of the top 10 would be outside the top 15. Madison Keys who has barely played all Autumn also sits outside the top 20 even. While two stars of this year in Clara Tauson and Belinda Bencic are barely in the top 25.
Just outside the top 30 too is Eva Lys who has finished the season a best of 41st but her overall season form has gotten her into the top 32 of this ranking showing the great year she had.
UTR Ranking as of 10/11/2025
| Rank | Name | Gender | Country | 3 Mo. Trend | UTR |
| 1 | Iga Swiatek | Female | POL | 12.92 | 12.96 |
| 2 | Aryna Sabalenka | Female | BLR | 13.06 | 12.92 |
| 3 | Elena Rybakina | Female | KAZ | 13.05 | 12.89 |
| 4 | Amanda Anisimova | Female | USA | 12.92 | 12.86 |
| 5 | Coco Gauff | Female | USA | 12.77 | 12.81 |
| 6 | Ekaterina Alexandrova | Female | RUS | 12.83 | 12.80 |
| 7 | Jessica Pegula | Female | USA | 12.83 | 12.78 |
| 8 | Zheng Qinwen | Female | CHN | - | 12.70 |
| 9 | Elina Svitolina | Female | UKR | 12.65 | 12.69 |
| 10 | Mirra Andreeva | Female | RUS | 12.55 | 12.66 |
| 11 | Marketa Vondrousova | Female | CZE | 12.70 | 12.66 |
| 12 | Victoria Mboko | Female | CAN | 12.55 | 12.61 |
| 13 | Naomi Osaka | Female | JPN | 12.66 | 12.60 |
| 14 | Paula Badosa | Female | ESP | 12.49 | 12.60 |
| 15 | Emma Raducanu | Female | GBR | 12.56 | 12.59 |
| 16 | Jasmine Paolini | Female | ITA | 12.64 | 12.59 |
| 17 | Karolina Muchova | Female | CZE | 12.64 | 12.57 |
| 18 | Leylah Fernandez | Female | CAN | 12.62 | 12.56 |
| 19 | Marta Kostyuk | Female | UKR | 12.53 | 12.53 |
| 20 | Linda Noskova | Female | CZE | 12.56 | 12.50 |
| 21 | Katerina Siniakova | Female | CZE | 12.53 | 12.49 |
| 22 | Marie Bouzkova | Female | CZE | 12.44 | 12.48 |
| 23 | Madison Keys | Female | USA | 12.27 | 12.48 |
| 24 | Clara Tauson | Female | DEN | 12.45 | 12.48 |
| 25 | Belinda Bencic | Female | SUI | 12.52 | 12.47 |
| 26 | Andres Medus | Female | ARG | - | 12.46 |
| 27 | Barbora Krejcikova | Female | CZE | 12.53 | 12.45 |
| 28 | Sorana Cirstea | Female | ROU | 12.54 | 12.45 |
| 29 | Elise Mertens | Female | BEL | 12.35 | 12.43 |
| 30 | Liudmila Samsonova | Female | RUS | 12.25 | 12.42 |
| 31 | Eva Lys | Female | GER | 12.45 | 12.41 |
| 32 | Tereza Valentova | Female | CZE | 12.54 | 12.40 |
| 33 | Mccartney Kessler | Female | USA | 12.38 | 12.40 |
| 34 | Emma Navarro | Female | USA | 12.36 | 12.37 |
| 35 | Veronika Kudermetova | Female | RUS | 12.31 | 12.36 |
| 36 | Anna Kalinskaya | Female | RUS | 12.32 | 12.35 |
| 37 | Janice Tjen | Female | INA | 12.35 | 12.33 |
| 38 | Diana Shnaider | Female | RUS | 12.35 | 12.33 |
| 39 | Iva Jovic | Female | USA | 12.33 | 12.33 |
| 40 | Lois Boisson | Female | MON | 12.32 | 12.32 |
| 41 | Cristina Bucsa | Female | ESP | 12.39 | 12.31 |
| 42 | Rebeka Masarova | Female | SUI | 12.02 | 12.30 |
| 43 | Dayana Yastremska | Female | UKR | 12.20 | 12.30 |
| 44 | Ann Li | Female | USA | 12.38 | 12.29 |
| 45 | Danielle Collins | Female | USA | - | 12.29 |
| 46 | Victoria Azarenka | Female | BLR | 12.32 | 12.28 |
| 47 | Lulu Sun | Female | SUI | 12.36 | 12.28 |
| 48 | Olga Danilovic | Female | SRB | 12.14 | 12.28 |
| 49 | Sonay Kartal | Female | GBR | 12.33 | 12.27 |
| 50 | Jessica Bouzas Maneiro | Female | ESP | 12.26 | 12.27 |
| 51 | Taylor Townsend | Female | USA | 12.30 | 12.27 |
| 52 | Shuai Zhang | Female | CHN | 12.32 | 12.26 |
| 53 | Ajla Tomljanovic | Female | AUS | 12.28 | 12.25 |
| 54 | Caty Mcnally | Female | USA | 12.27 | 12.25 |
| 55 | Maya Joint | Female | AUS | 12.18 | 12.23 |
| 56 | Dalma Galfi | Female | HUN | 12.23 | 12.22 |
| 57 | Oleksandra Oliynykova | Female | UKR | 12.26 | 12.22 |
| 58 | Hailey Baptiste | Female | USA | 12.19 | 12.21 |
| 59 | Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova | Female | RUS | 12.07 | 12.20 |
| 60 | Simona Waltert | Female | SUI | 12.17 | 12.19 |
| 61 | Anastasia Potapova | Female | RUS | 12.23 | 12.19 |
| 62 | Daria Kasatkina | Female | RUS | 12.18 | 12.19 |
| 63 | Maria Sakkari | Female | GRE | 12.15 | 12.19 |
| 64 | Jaqueline Adina Cristian | Female | ROU | 12.28 | 12.19 |
| 65 | Petra Marcinko | Female | CRO | 12.07 | 12.18 |
| 66 | Xinyu Wang | Female | CHN | 12.09 | 12.18 |
| 67 | Elena Gabriela Ruse | Female | ROU | 12.10 | 12.18 |
| 68 | Greet Minnen | Female | BEL | 12.15 | 12.16 |
| 69 | Magda Linette | Female | POL | 11.89 | 12.16 |
| 70 | Ella Seidel | Female | GER | 12.12 | 12.16 |
| 71 | Francesca Jones | Female | GBR | 12.03 | 12.16 |
| 72 | Beatriz Haddad Maia | Female | BRA | 12.20 | 12.15 |
| 73 | Kaja Juvan | Female | SLO | 12.14 | 12.15 |
| 74 | Peyton Stearns | Female | USA | 12.10 | 12.15 |
| 75 | Sara Bejlek | Female | CZE | 12.15 | 12.14 |
| 76 | Laura Siegemund | Female | FRA | 12.20 | 12.14 |
| 77 | Aliaksandra Sasnovich | Female | BLR | 12.24 | 12.13 |
| 78 | Alexandra Eala | Female | PHI | 12.08 | 12.13 |
| 79 | Antonia Ruzic | Female | CRO | 12.19 | 12.12 |
| 80 | Elisabetta Cocciaretto | Female | ITA | 12.08 | 12.11 |
| 81 | Jelena Ostapenko | Female | LAT | 11.86 | 12.11 |
| 82 | Katie Boulter | Female | GBR | 12.13 | 12.11 |
| 83 | Kim Birrell | Female | AUS | 12.09 | 12.10 |
| 84 | Yue Yuan | Female | CHN | 12.11 | 12.10 |
| 85 | Maja Chwalinska | Female | POL | 12.23 | 12.09 |
| 86 | Rebecca Sramkova | Female | SVK | 12.11 | 12.09 |
| 87 | Irina-Camelia Begu | Female | ROU | - | 12.08 |
| 88 | Varvara Gracheva | Female | FRA | 12.09 | 12.07 |
| 89 | Ashlyn Krueger | Female | USA | 12.01 | 12.07 |
| 90 | Bianca Andreescu | Female | CAN | 12.02 | 12.06 |
| 91 | Caroline Garcia | Female | FRA | - | 12.06 |
| 92 | Sofia Kenin | Female | USA | 11.99 | 12.06 |
| 93 | Oksana Selekhmeteva | Female | RUS | 12.09 | 12.06 |
| 94 | Viktorija Golubic | Female | SUI | 12.08 | 12.06 |
| 95 | Ons Jabeur | Female | TUN | - | 12.05 |
| 96 | Magdalena Frech | Female | POL | 12.10 | 12.05 |
| 97 | Anastasija Sevastova | Female | LAT | 12.12 | 12.05 |
| 98 | Renata Zarazua | Female | USA | 12.07 | 12.05 |
| 99 | Solana Sierra | Female | ARG | 12.02 | 12.03 |
| 100 | Aoi Ito | Female | JPN | 11.92 | 12.03 |
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
claps 0visitors 0
Just In
Popular News
Latest Comments
- I predicted whenthe list was finalised that Linda Noskova would win the WTA Finals and her matches against Gauff and Kostyuk prove that. She is the best (underrated) player in the world!Rapunzel11-11-2026
- Either Lena has a chronic internal ailment (i.e., colitis, enteritis, Crohn's, or some type of lower abdomen issue) -- or she is once again dealing with 'Vukovitis'. Mental stress can indeed cause lower body pains. No matter... whatever is truly going on sucks. "Virus" excuse is getting a bit old -- and often -- at this point.
mandoist09-11-2026 - Ironically, Martina became a U.S. Citizen about the same time as the Orange Convicted Felon & Abuser was just beginning on his road to losing all Daddy's Millions!!mandoist09-11-2026
- "Another fresh start is in the cards." Thanks for the Humor!! I'm guessing this is the minimum one can do to keep all your sponsors hanging-on in perpetuity?mandoist09-11-2026
- Vukov is doing this to Lena... AGAIN!!!!! WTA's autonomous collective should be dismantled for allowing Vukov to re-emerge from his hand-slapping suspension. Just ask WTA employees how that's been going lately as they witness his continued verbal abuses. Women's Pro Tennis should start over.mandoist08-11-2026
- Can't help but suspect Vukov is back to his old self again. Thank you, WTA. Perhaps you can give them a "Battling Couple of the Year Award 2026" ??mandoist08-11-2026
- Wtf? Why is there no reason? And what about the men's?Bel08-11-2026
- One step by another step -- WTA continues to 'lose the plot'. Too many hi-tech microphones being installed at most venues!!! Remove them (especially those along the hallways, sidewalks, and pathways throughout the venues. Not to mention (most of all) remove the mic's from the Players/Coaches Box.mandoist06-11-2026
- Enough of her bullshit. Go marry someone.mandoist06-11-2026
- Don't you just love this young lady!? We fans often expect athletes to be supermen and superwomen, often forgetting that they WILL GET TIRED! I love Alex's perspective. Tiredness for an athlete should never be viewed as a negative, especially if you are healthy, taking care of your body and mental health and putting in the work. What a mature perspective. Good for you, Alex!Rapunzel05-11-2026
