Gauff and Rybakina send warnings to Australian Open rivals with first-week titles

The term 'Big Three' has long been associated with the greatest era of men's tennis when Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic dominated and transformed the sport.

That same phrase was adopted by women's tennis last season as Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, and Elena Rybakina took a collective stronghold on the WTA Tour. By the end of 2023, their exclusive club brought in one more member; Coco Gauff's sensational form and victory at the US Open expanded the group to a 'Big Four'.

Inevitably, the 'Big Four' are the leading contenders for the Australian Open, so the early weeks of the season provide an ideal opportunity to assess their form and fitness ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year.

On Sunday, two of the group enjoyed extremely productive outings, another a bittersweet day, while the fourth endured nothing short of a disaster.

Gauff and Rybakina, ranked third and fourth respectively, completed their first week of the 2024 season by lifting trophies, Gauff successfully defending her Auckland Classic title, and Rybakina victorious at the Brisbane International.

Gauff was forced to grind and dig deep against former world No 3 Elina Svitolina, who appeared troubled by a foot problem, but the American ultimately prevailed in an entertaining final to win 6-7, 6-3, 6-3.

"I don’t know if I was expecting this result, but I’m really happy with how I managed to play today," Gauff said. "I think today level-wise was definitely not my best match or best level this week, but sometimes when you win when you’re not playing your best, it makes you feel more satisfied."

She may only be 19 years old with plenty of her generational potential still to realise, yet Gauff is already one of the best players in the world – a