A season of milestones keeps on rolling for Alison Riske, and after hitting a couple more last month, she finished at the top of the fans' votes for September's Breakthrough of the Month.
The 29-year-old American had a stirring week at the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open, picking up Top 10 wins over Elina Svitolina and Petra Kvitova en route to the biggest final of her career at the Premier 5-level event, where she pushed defending champion Aryna Sabalenka to three sets.
Riske, who made her first-ever Grand Slam quarterfinal at Wimbledon in July, would go on to reach the round of 16 at the China Open the week after Wuhan, before being stopped by eventual champion Naomi Osaka.
Big-point results at two prestigious tournaments sent Riske's WTA singles ranking soaring to new heights, as she was rewarded with a place in the Top 25 for the first time in her career.
Final Results for September's Breakthrough of the Month
1. Alison Riske
2. Karolina Muchova
3. Elena Rybakina
4. Rebecca Peterson
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
Previous WTA Breakthroughs of the Month for 2019
January: Dayana Yastremska
February: Hsieh Su-wei
March: Bianca Andreescu
April: Maria Sakkari
May: Marketa Vondrousova
June: Iga Swiatek
July: Barbora Strycova
August: Marie Bouzkova
