Iga Swiatek returns to Wimbledon to defend the title she won last year when she beat Amanda Anisimova and it also means she has a lot of points to defend.
The former world No 1 was not among the favourites to win the tournament last year as she was coming off a poor clay-court campaign while she had lost in the third round at the All England Club in 2024.
However, the Pole produced a clinical run as she dropped only one set during her trophy run, humbling Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 in the final to win her sixth Grand Slam title and pick up the maximum amount of ranking points available.
But 12 months have passed and those points will drop off at the start of this year’s tournament as the WTA uses a rolling 52-week, cumulative system for the rankings.
Points The Big Names Will Drop At Wimbledon
Aryna Sabalenka – 780
The world No 1 was the overwhelming favourite to reach the final last year, but she was stunned by Anisimova in the semi-final.
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Sabalenka – who has reached the semi-final in 2021, 2023 and 2025 – will need to enjoy a deep run as she is in danger of being overtaken by Elena Rybakina in the WTA Rankings after Wimbledon.
Elena Rybakina – 130
Having won Wimbledon in 2022, Rybakina is always one of the favourites at the grass-court Grand Slam, but she was stunned by Clara Tauson 12 months ago.
She will once again have a chance to become world No 1 and it is more achievable than at Roland Garros as she will start Wimbledon only 297 points behind Sabalenka when they drop last year’s points.
Iga Swiatek – 2,000
The six-time Grand Slam winner is currently not in the conversation for the No 1 ranking as she is well adrift of Sabalenka and Rybakina.
Swiatek is in danger of slipping down to No 8 if she loses early at Wimbledon this year.
Jessica Pegula – 10
The American’s best run at Wimbledon was a quarter-final appearance in 2023, but since then she lost in the second round and first round.
Pegula, though, is in good form on grass as she finished runner-up at the Berlin Open.
Mirra Andreeva – 430
French Open champion and world No 5 Andreeva was a quarter-finalist last year and not too many will be surprised if she reaches the business end of the 2026 tournament.
A title run at Wimbledon could see her jump to No 3.
Amanda Anisimova – 1,300
The 2025 Wimbledon runner-up will start the tournament at sixth place in the rankings and she could slip further down if she fails to reach the latter stages again.
Anisimova has struggled with injury and form in recent months as she lost in the third round at Roland Garros and the quarter-final at the HSBC Championship.
Coco Gauff – 10
The American started the 2025 edition at Wimbledon on the back of winning the French Open, but she was then stunned by Dayana Yastremska in the first round.
Having dropped to No 7 in the rankings, the two-time Grand Slam winner is in a good position ahead of this year’s tournament due to that poor performance 12 months ago.
Elina Svitolina – 130
The former world No 3 was a semi-finalist in 2023 and a quarter-finalist in 2024, but last year she was knocked out in the third round by Elise Mertens.
Linda Noskova – 240
The ninth seed reached the fourth round last year and she has been described as a dark horse by some for this year’s tournament after winning the Berlin Open.
Belinda Bencic – 780
The 2021 Tokyo Olympics gold medallist enjoyed her best run at Wimbledon 12 months ago as she was unseeded and reached the semi-final before running into Iga Swiatek.
Alex Eala – 10
The 29th seed has had some good results on grass in the build-up to Wimbledon as she has jumped to No 29 in the WTA Rankings.
And there is an opportunity to crack a new career high as she will only drop 10 points following a first-round defeat last year.
Emma Raducanu – 130
The British No 1 finished runner-up at the Queen’s Club Championship so she should be confident ahead of her home major.
Last year, she beat Mimi Xu and former Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova before losing in straight sets against Sabalenka.
