The 5 highest-ranked Italian women in WTA history: Jasmine Paolini joint 1st
Perhaps no WTA player has improved as much as Jasmine Paolini in 2024.
And, after her stunning season, she has been rewarded by reaching a new high of world No 4 in the WTA Rankings, a position that holds huge significance for Italian tennis on the WTA Tour.
We look at the highest-ranked Italian women in WTA history – with Paolini now matching an all-time Italian great.
5) Roberta Vinci – world No 7
Vinci is best remembered for her run to the US Open final in 2015, stunning Serena Williams in the semi-final in arguably the biggest upset in modern tennis history.
Unseeded at the time, her run in New York propelled her back into the top 20, and she finished 2015 at 15th in the world.
She continued to scale the rankings across the opening months of 2016 and reached a career-high of world No 7 in May 2016, making her the fifth highest-ranked Italian in WTA history.
Vinci retired in 2018 following a career which saw her win 10 WTA singles titles.
4) Flavia Pennetta – world No 6
The woman who beat Vinci in the US Open final nine years ago was friend and compatriot Pennetta, who became the oldest first-time female Grand Slam winner of the Open Era.
Pennetta was seeded 26th heading into the New York but climbed to a new high of eighth following her triumph at Flushing Meadows.
She would move up to sixth in the WTA Rankings at the end of September and qualified for the WTA Finals for the first time.
She memorably announced her impending retirement following her US Open win and called time on her career after the year-end championships, having won 11 WTA singles titles.
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3) Sara Errani – world No 5
Errani and Vinci combined to reach world No 1 and complete the Career Grand Slam in doubles, and the former – much like her partner – also found huge success in singles.
The Italian was a surprise finalist at the French Open in 2012 and also performed well at the other majors that season, reaching the last eight of the Australian Open and the last four of the US Open.
Consistent success across 2012 and 2013 saw her reach her singles high of world No 5 in May 2013, qualifying for the WTA Finals in both those seasons.
Still active in both singles and doubles, Errani – the third-highest Italian woman in history – is the winner of nine WTA singles titles.
=1) Francesca Schiavone – world No 4
Perhaps the greatest Italian female player of all time, it is Schiavone who holds this record jointly with Paolini.
Alongside the likes of Errani, Vinci, and Pennetta, Schiavone was one of the flagbearers for Italian tennis across the 2000s, and it was she who became the first woman from the nation to win a major.
Seeded 17th at the 2010 French Open, the 30-year-old stunned Samantha Stosur to lift the title at Roland Garros, and propel herself into the top 10 of the rankings.
A run to the last eight of the Australian Open in 2011 sealed her a new career-high of fourth, and she would reach a second French Open final later that spring – though was defeated this time around.
The WTA fan favourite called time on her historic career in 2018 after winning eight singles titles.
=1) Jasmine Paolini – world No 4
Now up at the top of the Italian WTA pecking order, Paolini’s sudden rise in 2024 has been one of the stories of the season.
The 28-year-old was ranked 30th heading into 2024 though a run to the fourth round of the Australian Open was quickly followed by an epic run to a WTA 1000 in Dubai.
Victory there sealed her place in the top 15 and she then cracked the top 10 thanks to a surprise run to the French Open final, before her Wimbledon final run cemented her place as a force on tour.
Paolini has consistently been ranked fifth or sixth in recent weeks though has now leapfrogged Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula to make history.
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