Iga Swiatek faces uphill task in reclaiming top spot in WTA rankings from Aryna Sabalenka

Poland’s Iga Swiatek is facing an uphill task in reclaiming the number one spot in women’s tennis as Aryna Sabalenka is likely to remain atop for some time to come. The 23-year-old is regarded as one of the best players currently playing in women’s tennis in the singles category.

Swiatek was the world number one for a long time but lost the spot to Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka. That happened largely because she did not take part in any events after Wimbledon last year and subsequently lost some key rating points.

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Since then, Swiatek has had a rough time on the court and has struggled to produce good results consistently. That only meant that she is now facing an uphill task in reclaiming the top spot in women’s tennis. The route is going to get even tougher going forward as she is set to lose more points in the upcoming competition.

In the month of March, two mega-events will be played — the Indian Wells and the Miami Open. Swiatek is set to lose at least 1,100 points as she had a fabulous run last year where she won one competition and reached the fourth round of the other one. Losing those points will make it nearly impossible for the five-time Grand Slam winner to return to the top any time soon. Swiatek lifted the Indian Wells competition last year after beating Greece’s Maria Sakkari in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-0.

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Swiatek is going through a difficult time this season as well. She featured in the Australian Open where she was knocked out after losing in the semifinal to America’s Madison Keys with a score of 5-7, 6-1, 7-6. She then featured in the Qatar Open, where she lost in the semifinal again, this time Jelena Ostapenko in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-1. Her last appearance was in the Dubai Duty-Free Tennis Championships, where she was knocked out after losing to Russia’s Mirra Andreeva in the quarterfinal in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-3.

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