Katie Boulter set for career-defining rankings boost despite defeat in Canada
British No 1 Katie Boulter is eyeing up her biggest rankings breakthrough yet after she won her opening round match at the Canadian Open in Montreal.
The world No 72 cruised to victory in her first-round match at the IGA Stadium, beating Canadian wildcard Rebecca Marino 6-3 6-1.
He run at the National Bank Open in Montreal ended with defeat by Coco Gauff in the second round as she lost 6-2 6-2 on Wednesday, but she is still on course to claim her biggest rankings rise yet, as she is eyeing up a place in the world’s top 50 heading into the US Open.
After coming through qualifying and making it into the main draw in Montreal, Boulter has already guaranteed that she will secure a new career high ranking next week.
She is at No 58 in the provisional WTA rankings for next week and she will have a chance to add to that total when she plays in the Cincinnati Masters next week.
Then she gets a chance to compete for hundreds of ranking points at the US Open, with the 27-year-old closing in on a place in the top 50 for the first time in her career.
Boulter has limited points to defend over the final third of the year and that will give her a big chance to make a huge leap up the WTA rankings with some positive results in America over the next few weeks.
That could ensure she gains automatic entry into WTA 1000 events, ensuring she will collect more ranking points ahead of the Australian Open.
After growing into her role as British No 1 in recent weeks, Boulter admits she is relishing the rest of 2023 and the opportunities that are opening up for her.
“I’ve got a great rest of the year ahead of me,” she said.
“I’ve got virtually no points to defend. It’s a really good opportunity for me to keep pushing my ranking up and really make a statement and play many more matches like today.
“They’re the matches that I want to be playing. I want to compete against the best in the world, and I’m going to have to do that week in, week out.
“Some days you play good; some days you don’t. Some days they go your way. The more matches I play like that, the more confidence and the more information I’ll get about myself and I can try and improve myself.”
Boulter’s best performance at the US Open came in 2021, when she came through qualifying and made it into the main draw.
She lost in the first round against Liudmila Samsonova, but he path to the main draw will be a lot easier this year as she has done enough to secure automatic qualification.
Boulter’s career has been blighted by injuries, but it seems she is about to reach a career high and she will be player to watch if her big-hitting game is boosted by some victories on the biggest tennis stages over the next few weeks.
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