With 16 tournaments already in the books in 2021, here is a look at the five biggest rankings jumps since Jan. 4, among the current Top 100 players.
Clara Tauson +56 (from No.152 to No.96)
Currently the second youngest player in Top 100, the Danish 18-year-old has won 23 of 29 matches played this year across all levels (including ITF Circuit events). Playing in her third tour-level, main-draw appearance, Tauson captured her first career singles title at Lyon, a WTA 250 tournament.
Tauson’s early-season success has resulted in a 56-spot rankings jump, the biggest among the Top 100. She has climbed to No.96 since making her Top 100 debut on March 8.
Viktorija Golubic +52 (from No.138 to No.86)
Across all levels, Golubic owns a 25-5 match record, the most match-wins among anyone in the Top 100. The 28-year-old reached finals in back-to-back events at Lyon and at Monterrey, both as a qualifier, finishing as runner-up at both events.
Margarita Gasparyan +36 (from No.125 to No.89)
Last month in St. Petersburg, Gasparyan reached her first singles final since the 2018 season. The following week, she returned to the Top 100. Since the start of the year, the 26-year-old Russian has jumped 36 spots.
Daria Kasatkina +35 (from No.72 to No.37)
After starting the year at No.72, Kasatkina has climbed to No.37 in the latest WTA Rankings with two titles in 2021 – Phillip Island Trophy and St. Petersburg. The 23-year-old has elevated her position as the Russian No.4 behind No.29 ranked Veronika Kudermetova, No.34 Ekaterina Alexandrova and No. 36 Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Kasatkina made her Top 10 debut in late 2018 following a season in which she reached the Indian Wells final and won the title at Moscow. After finishing the 2018 season in the Top 10, Kasatkina held her career-high of No.10 as recently as Jan. 14, 2019 but saw her ranking drop as low as No.75 last October.
The strong start to 2021 pushes her to the brink of earning a seed at Roland Garros and potentially a spot on the Olympic team.
Jessica Pegula +30 (from No.63 to No.33)
The 27-year-old American is off to the best start of her career, posting a 17-6 record in 2021. A quarterfinalist at the Australian Open, Pegula’s success continued in the Middle East as she reached the semifinals in Doha as a qualifier and quarterfinals in Dubai.
Pegula achieved a career-high ranking of No.32 after advancing to the fourth round in Miami and settled in at No.33 in this week’s WTA Rankings. After starting the year as the No.12-ranked American, she is currently the No.6 American.
