
The 2025 WTA season had a different winner at each Grand Slam tournament.
Madison Keys picked up her first major title at last year’s Australian Open, where she got past world number one Aryna Sabalenka.
Coco Gauff then added to her tally, winning her second Grand Slam trophy after also getting the better of Sabalenka in the final.
Elena Rybakina kicked off 2026 with an impressive victory at the Australian Open, and Tracy Austin believes there are only eight others on tour who can realistically match that feat this season.
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Tracy Austin names nine players she believes could win a Slam this season
Speaking to Tennis Channel, Austin was asked to list every WTA player she felt had the potential to win a major in 2026. Her response: “I have nine.”
“So I had Sabalenka, Rybakina, Swiatek, Gauff, Pegula, Anisimova, Andreeva. I’m going to put in Mboko. I’m very impressed with her. I wouldn’t be surprised if in the next year she were to win a major.”
“And I’m going to put in Muchova. Even though she lost today, she can get hot. We’ve seen her rise to the semifinals a couple of times.”
“And then I’m going to give honourable mention to Svitolina and Vekic. They’re just outside. I just want to mention their names.”
How Victoria Mboko has performed in Grand Slam tournaments so far
Victoria Mboko has already established herself as one of the best players on the planet, having risen to ninth in the world at the age of 19.
Even though she has managed to win a WTA 1000 title, Mboko still hasn’t made it deep into a Grand Slam tournament.
The Canadian made her major debut at Roland Garros last year but lost in the third round to Zheng Qinwen. She then went out in the second round at Wimbledon and was knocked out in the first round of the US Open.
Her best Grand Slam result came at this year’s Australian Open, where she reached the fourth round before losing to Sabalenka.
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