From Jessica Pegula to Karolina Muchova, who are the most likely first-time WTA Grand Slam winners in 2024?

The 2023 season saw four different Grand Slam champions on the WTA Tour, three of them first-time winners.

Aryna Sabalenka won her first major at the Australian Open before Iga Swiatek was victorious at the French Open for the third time. Marketa Vondrousova lifted the Wimbledon trophy and Coco Gauff rounded things off by winning on home soil at the US Open.

It is the seventh time in the last eight seasons there have been multiple first-time Grand Slam winners on the WTA Tour.

With that in mind, who’s next?

At the last eight Grand Slams, Jessica Pegula has made the quarter-finals of five.

She looks poised to go at least one step further in 2024.

Pegula finished the season on the up, going 3-0 in the group stage at the WTA Finals and then overcoming doubles partner Coco Gauff in the semis.

Although she was beaten by Iga Swiatek in the final, Pegula’s 9-5 win-loss record against top-10 players in 2023 gives plenty of reason for optimism – and a new-found mindset against the best seems there to stay.

“I was always good at beating those below me, but now you have to beat the one or two before you. I think you put a bigger emphasis on that. And I think this year, I’ve not really cared.

“I’ve had more confidence in those matches and that’s why I’ve got more top wins – in big moments. I feel that’s where I’ve improved a little bit.”

If Pegula continues to play with the same assuredness she did to finish 2023 then she should be in the mix for Grand Slam titles next season.

Ons Jabeur has made three Grand Slam finals over the last two seasons and has ended up as runner-up each time.

There were tears after the latest loss when Jabeur was beaten 6-4 6-4 by Vondrousova in the 2023 Wimbledon final, having led by a break in both sets.

Roddick explained: “I actually sent her a message after the final and said, ‘Listen, if you ever want to chat, I’ve been where you are right now. But I have more faith in you winning Wimbledon than I ever had in myself winning Wimbledon.’

“Take a breath, take a minute, make sure you prepare, keep your fitness going. She’s someone I really hope wins a Grand Slam title at some point.”

After two successive final appearances, Wimbledon looks the best opportunity for Jabeur to win her first major.

Her game is well-suited to the surface and she has the confidence to take on the top players on grass, as she showed in beating Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina back-to-back at SW19 this year.

Karolina Muchova really caught the eye with her run to the French Open final this year.

So impressed was Eurosport expert Mats Wilander by Muchova that he called her perhaps “the most complete tennis player on the women’s side in the world”.

Muchova came close to winning her first major in Paris, losing a tight final to Iga Swiatek in three sets, and said her performance gave her added belief moving forward.

“I was so close. I think now that I can do it,” she said.

Muchova then made the semis of the US Open, losing to Coco Gauff, and finished the season ranked No. 8 in the world.

With a brilliant all-round game – which she thinks is best suited to grass and fast hard courts – it seems more likely than not that Muchova will contest another Grand Slam final.

Staying fit and healthy will be key as Muchova has battled plenty of injury issues over the last few years.

For a player who has never been higher than No. 7 in the world rankings, Madison Keys has a strong Grand Slam record.

Her run to the US Open semi-finals this year, where she lost in agonising fashion to Aryna Sabalenka from 6-0 5-3 up, was the sixth time she has made it to the last four at a major.

She also made the US Open final in 2017 and has made the quarters on four other occasions.

“Honestly, it’s been great. I love that none of you talk about me anymore,” she joked at the US Open. “I don’t have press requests. It’s a lot off of my plate.”

Under the radar maybe, but Keys is still clearly a potential future Grand Slam champion and is one to watch at the Australian Open, where she made the semis in 2022.