Written by Claudio Gilardelli, translated by Kingsley Elliot Kaye
Even though the Indian Wells final between Iga Swiatek and Maria Sakkari wasn’t the most entertaining of matches, in terms of stats the two protagonists are worthy of praise.
The Pole has won her fifth title in six finals. We all remember her outstanding victory at Roland Garros 2020, on a chilly Autumn day, but her other crowns are quite as remarkable: Adelaide 2020 and 3 WTA 1000 titles: Rome 2020, Doha and Indian Wells 2021. The latter two were won in a row, resulting in an 11-match winning streak. After her run in Indian Wells she is ranked just behind Ashleigh Barty in the general rankings, her career best, but she is already leading the Race.
In spite of her defeat Maria Sakkari must still be proud of her run. At last she succeeded in going beyond semifinals in a top event and this proves she really belongs to the circle of the top players. Thanks to her excellent results in 2021 (semifinals at Roland Garros, US Open and WTA Finals, as well as the points she earned in California) for the first time in her career she has burst into the top 3 players. With Tsitsipas ranked No. 5, Greek tennis is definitely going through a magical period.
| WTA Rank | +/- | Player | Tournaments Played | Points |
| 1 | 0 | Ashleigh Barty | 13 | 7980 |
| 2 | +2 | Iga Swiatek | 16 | 5776 |
| 3 | +3 | Maria Sakkari | 18 | 5085 |
| 4 | -2 | Barbora Krejcikova | 26 | 5033 |
| 5 | -2 | Aryna Sabalenka | 19 | 4862 |
| 6 | +1 | Paula Badosa | 31 | 4790 |
| 7 | -2 | Anett Kontaveit | 21 | 4686 |
| 8 | 0 | Karolina Pliskova | 15 | 4252 |
| 9 | 0 | Garbiñe Muguruza | 19 | 3190 |
| 10 | 0 | Ons Jabeur | 19 | 2975 |
| 11 | 0 | Danielle Collins | 17 | 2971 |
| 12 | 0 | Jelena Ostapenko | 20 | 2860 |
| 13 | 0 | Emma Raducanu | 21 | 2699 |
| 14 | 0 | Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova | 12 | 2473 |
| 15 | +1 | Angelique Kerber | 15 | 2352 |
| 16 | -1 | Victoria Azarenka | 16 | 2336 |
| 17 | 0 | Cori Gauff | 21 | 2280 |
| 18 | +2 | Elena Rybakina | 26 | 2261 |
| 19 | +7 | Simona Halep | 18 | 2221 |
| 20 | -2 | Elina Svitolina | 22 | 2216 |
| 21 | -2 | Jessica Pegula | 19 | 2215 |
| 22 | -1 | Leylah Fernandez | 27 | 2171 |
| 23 | +1 | Veronika Kudermetova | 23 | 2035 |
| 24 | -1 | Elise Mertens | 22 | 1950 |
| 25 | -3 | Tamara Zidansek | 21 | 1931 |
| 26 | +3 | Madison Keys | 19 | 1904 |
| 27 | 0 | Sorana Cirstea | 23 | 1865 |
| 28 | -3 | Belinda Bencic | 20 | 1826 |
| 29 | -1 | Daria Kasatkina | 21 | 1790 |
| 30 | +2 | Liudmila Samsonova | 30 | 1632 |
| 31 | -1 | Camila Giorgi | 19 | 1613 |
| 32 | -1 | Petra Kvitova | 21 | 1595 |
| 33 | 0 | Marketa Vondrousova | 20 | 1577 |
| 34 | +1 | Camila Osorio | 32 | 1349 |
| 35 | +1 | Sara Sorribes Tormo | 23 | 1340 |
| 36 | -2 | Alizé Cornet | 26 | 1340 |
| 37 | 0 | Jil Teichmann | 24 | 1293 |
| 38 | 0 | Sloane Stephens | 16 | 1282 |
| 39 | 0 | Ajla Tomljanovic | 23 | 1256 |
| 40 | 0 | Clara Tauson | 31 | 1254 |
| 41 | +2 | Amanda Anisimova | 20 | 1220 |
| 42 | +9 | Viktorija Golubic | 27 | 1206 |
| 43 | -2 | Shuai Zhang | 36 | 1205 |
| 44 | 0 | Bianca Andreescu | 12 | 1198 |
| 45 | +1 | Jasmine Paolini | 35 | 1189 |
| 46 | -4 | Tereza Martincova | 31 | 1183 |
| 47 | 0 | Yulia Putintseva | 23 | 1156 |
| 48 | +1 | Shelby Rogers | 28 | 1154 |
| 49 | -4 | Nuria Parrizas Diaz | 46 | 1143 |
| 50 | +3 | Alison Riske | 23 | 1136 |
In the top50 we notice that:
- In the top ten, Iga Swiatek gains two positions and climbs to No.2. Maria Sakkari soars up into 3rd position, her career best. Barbora Krejcikova (-2, No.4), Aryna Sabalenka (-2, No.5) and Anett Kontaveit (-2, No.7) slightly drop. In spite of losing in the semifinals, Paula Badosa, who won Indian Wells in 2021, gains a position and becomes the 6th ranked player.
- Simona Halep storms back into the top 20 (+7, No.19), taking the place of Jessica Pegula (-2, No.21). Also Elina Svitolina (-2, n.20) loses positions and is close to dropping out of the top20. Elena Rybakina (n.18) makes progress as well (+2, No.18) after reaching the quarterfinals and winning a dramatic match against Victoria Azarenka (-1, n.16) in the second round.
- With regard to positions between 21 and 50, the climber of the week is Viktorija Golubic (+9, n.42). Also Alison Riske (+3, n.50) is back in. Their progress results in Anhelina Kalinina (-1, n.51) and Ana Konjuh (-4, n.52) falling out of the top50. Best career ranking for Veronika Kudermetova (+1, n.23), who is edging her way towards the top20, for Liudmila Samsonova (+2, n.30) and for Camila Osorio (+1, n.34).
Which are the most significant variations beyond the top50? Petra Martic gained 21 positions and is now ranked at No.58. Harriet Dart is even more successful, moving up 23 positions and securing her place in the top100, at No.99. Success also for Maria Bouzkova (+11, No.68), Anna Kalinskaya (+6, No.84), Kaja Juvan (+5, No.80) and Danka Kovinic (+5, No.66). Bernarda Pera (-3, No.103) leaves the top100 whereas former top10 Kristina Mladenovic (-1, No.100) still hangs in.
NEXT GEN RANKING
Also this week the first 10 positions of the Next Gen ranking are frozen. Just as 15 days ago, Emma Raducanu leads the ranking of the players born after 1st January 2002, chased by Cori Gauff and Leylah Fernandez.
| Position | +/- | Player | YOB | WTA Rank |
| 1 | 0 | Emma Raducanu | 2002 | 13 |
| 2 | 0 | Cori Gauff | 2004 | 17 |
| 3 | 0 | Leylah Fernandez | 2002 | 22 |
| 4 | 0 | Clara Tauson | 2002 | 40 |
| 5 | 0 | Marta Kostyuk | 2002 | 55 |
| 6 | 0 | Qinwen Zheng | 2002 | 72 |
| 7 | 0 | Diane Parry | 2002 | 98 |
| 8 | 0 | Daria Snigur | 2002 | 139 |
| 9 | 0 | Elina Avanesyan | 2002 | 173 |
| 10 | 0 | Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva | 2005 | 177 |
WTA RACE
As we anticipated, Iga Swiatek (+1, No.1) takes the lead of the RACE. Maria Sakkari rises to No.3. Elena Ribakina moves up nicely (+7, No.12). Barbora Krejcikova (-2, No.10), Aryna Sabalenka (-2, No.20), Garbiñe Muguruza (-6, No.28), Ons Jabeur (-4, No.29) are somewhat lagging behind, as well as Karolina Pliskova (No.212), who came back on the Tour in Indian Wells but was immediately ousted by Kovinic.
| Position | +/- | Player | Tournaments Played | Points |
| 1 | +1 | Iga Swiatek | 5 | 2920 |
| 2 | -1 | Ashleigh Barty | 2 | 2470 |
| 3 | +4 | Maria Sakkari | 5 | 1600 |
| 4 | -1 | Anett Kontaveit | 5 | 1375 |
| 5 | +1 | Madison Keys | 6 | 1307 |
| 6 | -2 | Danielle Collins | 3 | 1301 |
| 7 | +2 | Paula Badosa | 6 | 1207 |
| 8 | -3 | Jelena Ostapenko | 6 | 1146 |
| 9 | -1 | Simona Halep | 5 | 1096 |
| 10 | -2 | Barbora Krejcikova | 5 | 895 |
| 11 | 0 | Veronika Kudermetova | 6 | 832 |
| 12 | +7 | Elena Rybakina | 6 | 701 |
| 13 | +3 | Sorana Cirstea | 7 | 616 |
| 14 | -1 | Amanda Anisimova | 5 | 616 |
| 15 | -3 | Jessica Pegula | 6 | 602 |
| 16 | -2 | Daria Kasatkina | 6 | 596 |
| 17 | -2 | Elise Mertens | 6 | 566 |
| 18 | +2 | Kaia Kanepi | 3 | 525 |
| 19 | -2 | Alizé Cornet | 7 | 504 |
| 20 | -2 | Aryna Sabalenka | 6 | 497 |
