Sunday, June 8, 2025

The 2025 French Open: Promotions, Demotions, and Other Stats

2025 French Open Champions:
  • Carlos Alcaraz (Yokozuna)
  • Cori Gauff (Sekiwake, ex-Ozeki)

New Career Sanyaku Rank:

Sanyaku Rank Changes
Player (career rank if different) To From
Promotions
Aryna SabalenkaYokozuna Ozeki
Cori GauffOzeki Sekiwake
Madison KeysOzeki Sekiwake
Lorenzo MusettiKomusubi Maegashira
Frances TiafoeKomusubi Maegashira
Zheng Qinwen (ex-Sekiwake)Komusubi Maegashira
Lois BoissonKomusubi Maegashira
Demotions
Daniil MedvedevSekiwake Ozeki
Barbora Krejcikova (ex-Ozeki)Komusubi Sekiwake
Jasmine Paolini (ex-Ozeki)Komusubi Sekiwake
Emma NavarroKomusubi Sekiwake
Paula BadosaKomusubi Sekiwake
Taylor Fritz ex-Sekiwake) Maegashira Komusubi
Alex de Minaur Maegashira Komusubi
Ben Shelton Maegashira Komusubi
Marketa Vondrousova (ex-Ozeki) Maegashira Komusubi
Jessica Pegula (ex-Sekiwake)Maegashira Komusubi


Kinboshi:
("gold star" - prize awarded to a non-sanyaku ranked competitor for beating an active Yokozuna)
  • none

Other noteworthy developments:

  • Aryna Sabalenka put together a series W (2024 UO) - F (2025 AO) - F (2025 FO), which, together with the two grand slam titles she had aleady won earlier, elevates her to the 20st female Yokozuna (=Grand Champion) of the Open Era. The loss in the final may have been a disappointment to her, but she still joined the top elite of the sport. In the men's game, the still relatively new Yokzouna Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner hold, for the first time, the first two spots on the sanyaku, after playing a thrilling final.
  • Both Cori Gauff and Madison Keys, the last two female grand slam winners, got themselves re-promoted to Ozeki (=Champion). Gauff is even on a Yokozuna run if she wins Wimbledon.
  • Alexander Zverev had another hold at Ozeki. With 14 tournaments at the second-highest rank (and a 15th guaranteed), he is already one of the longest-lived Ozeki of the Open Era. By contrast, Daniil Medvedev exited again early and gets demoted to Sekiwake (=Junior Champion I). Rank protection isn't fully extinguished though: he can regain Ozeki rank if he makes the semifinals at Wimbledon. Ex-Ozeki Barbora Krejcikova and Jasmine Paolini lost rank protecion and get demoted to Komusubi (=Junior Champion II).
  • Tommy Paul and ex-Sekiwake Elina Svitolina both held rank at Komusubi

Sanyaku Ranks Following the 2025 French Open

Men
Career rank 1/ East Current Rank West Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
Y Carlos Alcaraz Y1 Jannik Sinner Y
Dai-Y Novak Djokovic Y2 - -
O Alexander Zverev O - -
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
O Daniil Medvedev (o) S - -
K Tommy Paul K1 Lorenzo Musetti K
K Frances Tiafoe K2 - -

Women
Career rank 1/ East Current Rank West Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
Y Iga Swiatek Y Aryna Sabalenka Y
O Cori Gauff O Madison Keys O
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
- - S - -
O Barbora Krejcikova K1 Jasmine Paolini O
S Emma Navarro K2 Paula Badosa S
S Elina Svitolina K3 Zheng Qinwen S
K Lois Boisson K4 - -

1/ Highest sanyaku rank achieved in a player's career
Inactive Yokozuna: Naomi Osaka
(k): kadoban
(o): Sekiwake-Ozeki

Thursday, June 5, 2025

Aryna Sabalenka, Yokozuna

Aryna Sabalenka became the 20st  female Yokozuna (= Grand Champion) of the open era today,
 by defeating (now) co-Yokozuna Iga Swiatek in the French open semi-finals and adding at least a final participation to her final at the 2025 Australian Open and victory at the 2024 U.S. Open. Given that Sabalenka already holds three grand slam titles, this series (W-F-F) suffices for a promotion to the highest rank. 

Sabalenka had been close before, and with her dominant, aggressive game she seemed poised for Yokozuna, but only in the last three grand slam tournaments did she find the top-level consistency that is befitting for a Grand Champion. There are several paths to Yokozuna, hers took a bit longer - almost 8 years after her grand slam debut. But now Sabalenka has joined a small circle of elite players who have dominated female grand slam tennis since the beginning of the Open Era in 1968. 

A full update will come later.