Naomi Osaka has dropped out of the women’s top 10 for the first time in three years as the Japan star pays the price for a difficult season on the court.
Osaka, a former World No.1 and four-time major-winner, has not played since exiting the US Open in the third round last month and is now ranked No.12 in the world.
The 23-year-old has been a fixture inside the top 10 ever since she clinched the US Open in 2018 in a controversial decider against Serena Williams.
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Her slide in the rankings caps off a turbulent year after she pulled out of Roland-Garros due to mental health issues.
She went on to skip Wimbledon this year to protect her mental health and was brought to tears during several press conferences in 2021.
Osaka said she was taking a break from tennis in September after her defence of the US Open title was ended by Leylah Fernandez in the third round.
The Grand Slam winner confirmed last week that she would return to competitive tennis soon, after getting the “itch” to play again.
Great Britain’s Emma Raducanu, who beat Fernandez in the final, has made a seismic leap to 22nd in the world, while Ash Barty is miles in front in top spot.
WTA rankings as of October 3
1. Ashleigh Barty, Australia, 9077
2. Aryna Sabalenka, Belarus, 7115
3. Karolina Pliskova, Czech Republic, 5285
4. Iga Swiatek, Poland, 4756
5. Barbora Krejcikova, Czech Republic, 4668
6. Garbine Muguruza, Spain, 4595
7. Elina Svitolina, Ukraine, 4376
8. Sofia Kenin, USA, 4190
9. Maria Sakkari, Greece, 4055
10. Belinda Bencic, Switzerland, 3835
11. Petra Kvitova, Czech Republic, 3735
12. Naomi Osaka, Japan, 3326
13. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russia, 3255
14. Ons Jabeur, Tunisia, 3220
15. Angelique Kerber, Germany, 3105
16. Elena Rybakina, Kazakhstan, 2983
17. Simona Halep, Romania, 2982
18. Elise Mertens, Belgium, 2885
19. Coco Gauff, USA, 2815
20. Anett Kontaveit, Estonia, 2616
21. Bianca Andreescu, Canada, 2563
22. Emma Raducanu, Great Britain, 2558
23. Jennifer Brady, USA, 2526
24. Jessica Pegula, USA, 2470
25. Danielle Collins, USA, 2361
26. Karolina Muchova, Czech Republic, 2344
27. Paula Badosa, Spain, 2298
28. Leylah Annie Fernandez, Canada, 2254
29. Jelena Ostapenko, Latvia, 2205
30. Daria Kasatkina, Russia, 2195
31. Veronika Kudermetova, Russia, 2045
32. Victoria Azarenka, Belarus, 1856
33. Tamara Zidansek, Slovenia, 1841
34. Ekaterina Alexandrova, Russia, 1801
35. Sara Sorribes Tormo, Spain, 1760
36. Nadia Podoroska, Argentina, 1722
37. Marketa Vondrousova, Czech Republic, 1721
38. Camila Giorgi, Italy, 1660
39. Jil Teichmann, Switzerland, 1650
40. Sorana Cirstea, Romania, 1594
41. Serena Williams, USA, 1591
42. Liudmila Samsonova, Russia, 1526
43. Yulia Putintseva, Kazakhstan, 1480
44. Shelby Rogers, USA, 1438
45. Petra Martic, Croatia, 1416
46. Viktorija Golubic, Switzerland, 1387
47. Ajla Tomljanovic, Australia, 1365
48. Zhang Shuai, China, 1356
49. Clara Tauson, Denmark, 1300
50. Madison Keys, USA, 1283
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