Sahaja Yamalapalli is set to become India’s new No. 1 women’s singles player.
The 23-year-old is currently ranked 303rd in the Live WTA rankings. She will surpass Ankita Raina, who has been holding India’s No. 1 position since 2018.
Ankita is currently ranked 283rd in the WTA rankings. But her recent streak of poor performance will see Sahaja rise in the rankings and replace her.
The latest change in rankings will be reflected on September 9.
In July this year, Sahaja’s moment of reckoning arrived when she became only the third Indian women’s tennis player to win an ITF pro title as she clinched the SoCal Pro Series in the United States.
Sahaja, who hails from Hyderabad, joined legendary Sania Mirza, the six-time Grand Slam winner, and Karman Thandi to achieve this feat.
In June, she won the ITF W15 USA women’s singles title in Los Angeles after winning all her matches in straight sets.
Sahaja is financially supported by Techwave Consulting, Lakshya Sports, Bharat Forge, Neeraj Kedia, Subramanyam Reddy, and Prahlad Jain of Kunal Pharma Distributors Pvt Ltd.
Sahaja, who graduated in the US in 2021, trains at PBI Bangalore when in India and at the Ashley Hobson Performance Academy in Bradenton, Florida, when in the US.
She is currently playing at the W35 Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.