One year of 1GA: Iga Swiatek celebrates one year since becoming World Number One, but is the gap closing?

One year has passed since Iga Swiatek took over from Ashleigh Barty as the world No. 1 and she has cemented her position as the best player in the world since then.

Starting with a 1,736-point lead over world No. 2 Barbora Krejcikova, Swiatek's lead expanded to 6,000 points by the close of 2022. This was due to an exceptional 67-win season, which marked the highest number of wins in a single season since Serena Williams accomplished the feat in 2013. Since taking over she won 7 titles including two grand slams posting a streak of 34 consecutive wins.

Having now completed her 53rd week at the top of the rankings, Swiatek currently occupies the 12th spot on the all-time WTA standings for time spent as world No. 1. In the near future, she is likely to surpass Simona Halep, who held the position for 64 weeks, and possibly even Caroline Wozniacki, who enjoyed 71 weeks at the top of the rankings during her career.

The next players in line are Lindsay Davenport with 98 weeks, Justine Henin with 117 weeks, and Ashleigh Barty with 121 weeks. At the top of the leaderboard is Steffi Graf with an incredible 377 weeks.