Iga Swiatek admits ‘sad emotions’ at losing world No. 1 status to Aryna Sabalenka after shock US Open exit

Iga Swiatek says “there are some sad emotions” after losing her world No. 1 status following a surprise fourth-round exit at the US Open.

Swiatek had been top of the WTA rankings for 75 weeks as she succeeded Australian Ash Barty, who retired from the sport in 2022.

When the US Open concludes, she will be replaced by Aryna Sabalenka who will become the 29th different WTA player to claim the world No. 1 ranking.

The Belarusian will also become just the eighth player to have held both the singles and doubles No. 1 spots.

“Well, it meant a lot, obviously,” the 22-year-old said. “It was great. On the other hand this last part, it was pretty exhausting.

“I still need to do all this stuff that my team and all these great players like Roger or Novak or Rafa are telling about – you just have to focus on the tournaments, not the rankings.

“Usually I’m not looking at numbers, but overall I love them. I would love to extend this record a little bit longer. This is something that when I was younger, I actually kind of wanted to break some record or have something.

“I already did that because I already won a Slam as the first Polish player [to do so]. Obviously being No. 1 as the first [Polish] player in history is great.

“But for sure when it happens, when you lose it, there are some sad emotions. As I said at the beginning, all these great players know it’s going to come back if you work hard, focus on the right things, just develop as a player.

“For sure besides this match, which was pretty weird, I feel like I am progressing as a player. I have more skills.”

Sabalenka, who has won three titles this season including the Australian Open at the start of the year, says becoming world No. 1 marks the completion of a life-long ambition.

“Reaching the WTA world No.1 singles ranking is something I have dreamed of ever since I was a little girl when I started playing tennis,” she said.

“2023 has been such an incredible year for me and my team and this is the perfect reward for all our hard work.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling to join the amazing list of other WTA players to achieve this and it’s a huge honour to be able to call myself the No. 1 singles player in the world.”

Sabalenka will play Daria Kasatkina in the fourth round at Flushing Meadows later on Monday.