WTA Rankings Update: Anisimova rises to American No. 1 as early-season shifts begin

The season is officially underway after the first week of competition, and the WTA Rankings are already seeing their first early-year adjustments — with the most notable move being Amanda Anisimova’s rise into the Top 3, overtaking Coco Gauff to become the new American No. 1.

Unlike 2025 — when the season began on 30 December — players were given an extra week before the new year officially started, or at least a few additional days for those who competed at the United Cup. As a result, the rankings this week reflect the loss of points from the opening week of last season, with Gauff among those affected.

The Top 10 remains largely unchanged, mirroring the landscape seen at the end of 2025. Aryna Sabalenka continues to hold a commanding lead as World No. 1 with 10,490 points, followed by Iga Świątek on 8,178. For now, neither is under threat of losing position, with potential movement expected only once the Australian Open begins.

The Americans continue to have four representatives inside the elite group, though this time led by Anisimova, who has moved clear of Gauff (No. 4 - 6,273 points). She is joined by Jessica Pegula (No. 6 - 5,583) and Madison Keys (No. 7 - 4,335). Sitting between them is World No. 5 Elena Rybakina (5,850), who closed last season in strong form. The Top 10 is completed by Jasmine Paolini (4,236), Mirra Andreeva (4,125) and Ekaterina Alexandrova (3,375).

There were few changes at the very top of the rankings, though Linda Nosková (No. 12) and Elina Svitolina (No. 13) each climbed one place and are edging closer to the Top 10. Their progress came at the expense of Clara Tauson, who dropped to No. 14 after losing points from her ASB Classic title in the first week of last season.

Further down the rankings, Australia’s Daria Kasatkina suffered another setback following a first-round loss in Brisbane, sliding to World No. 40 — her lowest ranking since 2021, a season marked by injuries and limited time on court.

Lower down the list, several familiar names stand out for the wrong reasons, registering steep declines. Ons Jabeur dropped 20 places to No. 95 as she remains sidelined after announcing her pregnancy. The Tunisian is set to fall out of the Top 100 within a week, for the first time in eight years.

Meanwhile, former British No. 1 Katie Boulter continues her slide, now ranked No. 112 after dropping a further six places, adding to a free fall that began in the middle of last season. Recently naturalised Uzbekistani Polina Kudermetova — who was on the brink of the Top 100 at the end of 2025 — suffered the biggest drop of the week, tumbling more than 60 places to World No. 167. As a result, she faces a long road back to the main tour and will need to rebuild her ranking through Challenger-level events in the coming weeks.