How WTA Finals hopeful Mirra Andreeva can dethrone Elena Rybakina and become world No 1
Brad Gilbert believes the No 1 ranking could “easily change hands” early in 2027 as Mirra Andreeva aims to win the WTA Finals on Sunday.
The 19-year-old is hoping to end the year on a real high as she prepares to face Elina Svitolina in the showpiece event in Indian Wells, in a repeat of their opening round-robin encounter.
The French Open champion won that match 6-4, 6-0 earlier this week, but the Ukrainian is likely to provide a stronger test this time out after winning her last three matches.
Ahead of this battle, former world No 1 Martina Navratilova is backing Andreeva to beat the sixth seed, with the teenager currently leading their head-to-head 2-1.
She told the WTA’s website, “She’s just really confident right now. She’s hit her sweet spot, and maybe playing back-to-back matches helps because you’ve built up that momentum and you can still feel it. She looks really sharp.
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“It’s hard to find an opening against her because she’s serving big and mixing it up. She hits a 90 mph serve wide with a lot of slice, and then she hits 115 down the T. It really spreads the court, particularly in the deuce court.
“It’s hard to get into her service games, and then she jumps on your second serve. So maybe you take a little off your first serve just to get it in. She knows exactly what she wants to do, and she has the confidence to execute. And I still feel like she’s not redlining it on serve. She’s still growing into her body.
“What impressed me was when she was down 4-1 in the first set against Sabalenka. I thought she was going to lose that set, and she didn’t. She made Sabalenka look silly, and that’s not easy. She’s peaking at the right time.”
And after beating Jessica Pegula in the semi-finals of the season-ending tournament on Saturday, former world No 4 Gilbert can see Andreeva fighting Elena Rybakina for the No 1 ranking, perhaps even at the 2027 Australian Open in January.
Gilbert said on The Big T podcast, “She is now two in the world; if she wins tomorrow (Sunday) she will be very close to one. At the Aussie Open this year, Rybakina has a win, so she cannot add any points, and Mirra lost in the round of 16. So I think if she has a good run in Australia, the No 1 ranking could easily change hands to start the year.”
So, what does Andreeva need to do to overhaul Rybakina, who withdrew from the WTA Finals at the eleventh hour due to illness, in the rankings?
Ahead of the final match at this year’s WTA Finals, Andreeva is on 7,306 ranking points but could climb to 7,806 if she beats 2018 champion Svitolina. Rybakina currently has a buffer of 693 points on 8,099, but that will shrink to just 293 if the unbeaten Andreeva lifts the trophy on Sunday.
Heading into 2027, both Rybakina and Andreeva fell at the quarter-final stage of the 2026 Brisbane International, meaning their 108 points will fall off.
That would take them to 7,991 and 7,698, respectively. Jumping ahead to the Australian Open, Rybakina is defending 2,000 points as the current champion, whereas Andreeva reached the fourth round and has 240 points to defend.
If Rybakina wins again Down Under, Andreeva will have to reach the semi-finals, which will pocket her 780 points, to take the No 1 ranking.
If Andreeva fails to win the WTA Finals and Rybakina wins the Australian Open again, the Russian would have to make it to the final in Melbourne to overhaul the 27-year-old. So, plenty to play for.
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