Stat of the Year, No. 5: Barbora Krejcikova beats the entire Top 3 in three straight days

And with that string of wins in the last three rounds of Dubai, Barbora Krejcikova did something that may not be replicated for a long, long time—she became the first woman to defeat the entire Top 3 at the same event in three consecutive days in WTA rankings history.

The Czech was ranked No. 30 at the time, too.

The first leg of the sweep was the toughest, as Krejcikova had to rally from 6-0, 3-1 down to defeat a No. 2-ranked Sabalenka in the quarterfinals, 0-6, 7-6 (2), 6-1. She then beat No. 3-ranked Pegula in the semis, 6-1, 5-7, 6-0, and No. 1-ranked Swiatek in the final, 6-4, 6-2.

“It was a huge achievement, what I was able to do this week,” the 2021 Roland Garros winner said after her run at the WTA 1000 event.

Krejcikova's triumph in Dubai propelled her from No. 30 to No. 16, and she would finish the season at No. 10.

Advertising

Krejcikova is one of five women to beat the entire Top 3 at the same event since WTA rankings began in 1975, but none of the other four players achieved the feat in three consecutive days.

PLAYERS TO DEFEAT THE WTA TOP 3 AT THE SAME EVENT:

Steffi Graf at 1999 Roland Garros (d. No. 2 Davenport in QFs, No. 3 Seles in SFs and No. 1 Hingis in F)
Serena Williams at 2002 Miami (d. No. 3 Hingis in QFs, No. 2 Venus in SFs and No. 1 Capriati in F)
Venus Williams at 2008 WTA Finals (d. No. 2 Safina in RR, No. 3 Serena in RR and No. 1 Jankovic in SFs)
Aryna Sabalenka at 2022 WTA Finals (d. No. 2 Jabeur in RR, No. 3 Pegula in RR and No. 1 Swiatek in SFs)
Barbora Krejcikova at 2023 Dubai (d. No. 2 Sabalenka in QFs, No. 3 Pegula in SFs and No. 1 Swiatek in F)

Graf had a day off between Davenport and Seles, and another day off between Seles and Hingis; Serena had a day off between Venus and Capriati; and Venus and Sabalenka's Top 3 wins in the round robin of the WTA Finals were their first and third round-robin matches.

Check back tomorrow for our No. 4 Stat of the Year…