Australian Open 2025: Who are the other women's contenders to look out for?

The following are the dark horses for the women's singles title at the Australian Open, which starts on Sunday:

JASMINE PAOLINI (ITALY)

Ranking: 4

Paolini is no longer an underdog after her standout season last year when the 29-year-old from Tuscany finished runner-up at the French Open and Wimbledon while she also won doubles gold at the Paris Olympics.

Having capped off 2024 with the Billie Jean King Cup title with Italy, Paolini will hope to improve on last year's fourth-round exit when she returns to Melbourne Park ranked a career-high world number four.

Paolini, who has an aggressive style of play and relies on powerful groundstrokes to overwhelm her opponents, did not play a hard-court tournament until she was a teenager but both her WTA singles titles have come on the surface.

While she is capable of producing a real upset, Paolini will have to do better than the 6-2 6-2 United Cup quarter-final loss to Czech Karolina Muchova to become the first Italian women to win the Australian Open.

ELENA RYBAKINA (KAZAKHSTAN)

Ranking: 6

Rybakina is looking to add a second Grand Slam title to her trophy cabinet after her Wimbledon triumph in 2022.

The big-serving Russian-born Kazakh, who came agonisingly close at the 2023 Australian Open when she lost to world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the final, has hired Novak Djokovic's former coach Goran Ivanisevic for the 2025 season.

While there are no doubts about Rybakina's quality, the 25-year-old missed several tournaments last year - including the Paris Olympics and the U.S. Open - through illness and injury.

But she helped Kazakhstan to reach the semi-finals of the United Cup before losing to five-times Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek of Poland.

JESSICA PEGULA (U.S.)

Ranking: 7

Pegula is