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'Big Four' starting to emerge
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Iga's 11/53.20 16-match run on hard court
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Rybakina 9/25.50warming up nicely
After five or six years of unpredictability in the women's game, there finally appears to be some sort of pecking order establishing itself on the WTA Tour.
During the past 12 months, four players have seemingly started to cement their positions at the head of world tennis.
Iga Swiatek 11/53.20 remains the No 1, closely followed by Aryna Sabalenka 7/24.50, with Cori Gauff 11/26.50 and Elena Rybakina 9/25.50ranked three and four respectively.
Fifth placed Jessica Pegula 17/118.00 is not that far behind Rybakina - with regards to WTA Ranking points.
However, the 29-year-old American has never progressed beyond the quarter-final stage of any Grand Slam, so is yet to prove herself at the very top tier of women's tennis.
As for the 'Big Four', Swiatek is a winner of four Slams, including three of the last seven.
Her record in Melbourne is not great, but she did win the US Open on hard court in 2022.
She ended last year on a high, with titles in Beijing and Cancun. At the prestigious WTA Tour Finals in Mexico, she won all five matches in straight sets.
That was a pretty impressive performance, as all five opponents were ranked inside the world's top seven.
In the final against Pegula, she destroyed the New Yorker 6-1, 6-0 in under an hour and is currently on a 16-match winning streak on hard courts.
Going into the opening Slam of 2024, Swiatek remains the most formidable opponent in the women's game right now.
Latest betting for the Australian Open women's singles
But not far behind is Sabalenka who is the only player to have reached the semi-finals in each of the last five Grand Slams.
She is the defending champion in Australia and 11 of her 13 Tour titles have come on hard court.
Gauff, who beat Sabalenka in New York last September to secure her maiden Grand Slam title, is a well-deserved world No 3.
The American doesn't turn 20 until March, so still has plenty of improving to do.
Gauff opened 2024 by successfully defending the title in Auckland thanks to a three-set victory over Elina Svitolina in the final.
Quietly making her way at No 4 is the 2022 Wimbledon champion Rybakina.
The 24-year-old who represents Kazakhstan lost to Sabalenka in last year's Melbourne final.
But when the same two players faced each other in the final of the Brisbane International last Sunday, it was Rybakina who held aloft the trophy after a crushing 6-0, 6-3 victory.
Betfair Sportsbook for the Women's Singles
However, the draw certainly favours Sabalenka and Gauff over Swiatek and Rybakina.
Swiatek's first round opponent is the 2020 champion Sofia Kenin who wasn't that far away from being seeded.
And waiting in the next round is either Danielle Collins or Angelique Kerber. Collins was runner-up two years ago, while three-time Slam winner Kerber won this title in 2016 and is returning to the sport following the birth of her first child.
Rybakina's opening opponent is the dangerous Karolina Pliskova who is a two-time Slam runner-up.
As for other potential candidates: Based on recent seasons, three-times Slam runner-up Ons Jabeur 40/141.00can't be ruled out, although the Tunisian has only once survived the first week in Melbourne.
And 34-year-old veteran Victoria Azarenka 90/191.00 might fancy her chances of having a strong run these next couple of weeks.
She is a two-time winner in Australia, and all five of her Grand Slam finals have been on hard court. The same applies to 20 of her 21 WTA Tour titles.
She reached the semi-finals 12 months ago and made it to the same stage of last week's Brisbane International.
Azarenka is certainly a tough opponent, although the current top four will take some beating when this year's opening Slam gets underway Down Under.
Last 10 Australian Open Performances (2014-23)