The story in 2022 was Iga Swiatek’s dominance of the WTA tour after the sudden retirement of Ash Barty.

Within that narrative was yet another very messy year of musical chairs in the top 10. Year after year, there seems to be a lack of dominance at the very top of women’s tennis. For example, look at the top 30 of the WTA. Within the top 30, you’ll find players that have won big-time tournaments only to fizzle out and not find that success again. Will that be the case again in 2023? I think so. There’s no reason why this trend is not to continue. That doesn’t mean there’s not some exciting narratives to look out for in 2023. Look out for the following!

Iga Swiatek will go on another big run in the first half of the year. Iga is the second coming of Rafa Nadal on the clay. She’s that dominant on the surface. Look for her to win some big clay court tournaments including her third French Open.

American tennis looks great. There are three players who will continue to rank close to or in the top ten. Those players are Jessica Pegula, Coco Gauff, and Danielle Collins. Those three ladies are big-time players now, and one of them can certainly win a Grand Slam in 2023.

Tennis fans will continue to cheer for Emma Raducanu throughout 2023. Can she bring some stability to her coaching staff? She’s gone through more coaches than one can count in her short professional career. If she can get her fitness right and start winning some matches, the talent is there to get back to the top of women’s tennis.

Ons Jabeur made two Grand Slam finals in 2022. She continues to play entertaining and crafty tennis in every big tournament she enters. It is for this reason that she ended the year number 2 in the world. Look for Ons to make some noise during the grass season. She has an exceptional grass game and loves a fast court.

Kvitova, Pliskova and Azarenka are three former top 10 players that are now hovering in and out of the top 30 in the world. They continue to be dangerous lurkers in draws and can make deep runs at important tournaments. Look for them to make some important runs every now and then throughout 2023.

Like always, don’t forget to jump on to the TennisPAL app to stay up to date on tennis news, find groups of friends to play with, and get a virtual coach to help with your tennis game.