Ranking Reaction: Iga Swiatek closes the gap with No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka after winning Beijing

Iga Swiatek had a phenomenal week at the WTA 1000 in Beijing—not only did she win her tour-leading fifth WTA title of the year, it was also her second-biggest title of the year after Roland Garros.

And there’s more: No. 2 Swiatek significantly closes the gap between her and No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka on both the WTA rankings and the year-to-date standings (the race to the WTA Finals in Cancun).

Sabalenka fell in the quarterfinals in the Chinese capital.

WTA RANKINGS GAP: NO. 1 SABALENKA VS NO. 2 SWIATEK
~ Last week: 1,071 points [Sabalenka 9,266, Swiatek 8,195]
~ This week: 590 points [Sabalenka 9,480, Swiatek 8,890]

YEAR-TO-DATE STANDINGS GAP: NO. 1 SABALENKA VS NO. 2 SWIATEK
~ Last week: 1,305 points [Sabalenka 8,210, Swiatek 6,905]
~ This week: 630 points [Sabalenka 8,425, Swiatek 7,795]

Year-end No. 1 will be up for grabs at the WTA Finals in Cancun in three weeks—on the WTA rankings, Sabalenka will be defending 955 points (for reaching the final with a 2-1 round-robin record last year) and Swiatek will be defending 750 points (for reaching the semifinals undefeated). There are up to 1,500 points for grabs at the event.

A little further down the WTA rankings, two of the women’s tour’s brightest young stars break into new ranking classes today.

Eighteen-year-old Czech Linda Noskova rises from No. 42 to No. 40, her Top 40 debut, after reaching the second round in Beijing, where she unfortunately had to withdraw prior to her match due to illness.

And 16-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva jumps 10 spots from No. 60 to No. 50, her Top 50 debut, after reaching the third round in Beijing, where she led Elena Rybakina by a set and a break at 6-2, 4-2 before ultimately falling to the 2022 Wimbledon champion, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1.

Andreeva isn’t just the youngest woman in the Top 50, she’s the youngest woman in the Top 150. You have to go all the way down to No. 179 to find anyone younger (16-year-old Russian Alina Korneeva).

There are no new ATP rankings this week as the men are currently in the middle of the 12-day Masters 1000 event in Shanghai.