Wimbledon 2023 women's contenders: Who are the emerging players to look out for?

Six different women have won the Wimbledon title in the last six editions and as the 2023 tournament begins on July 3 there is still no clear favourite for the grasscourt Grand Slam.

World number one Iga Swiatek has conquered clay and hardcourts but the Pole has yet to taste success on grass having never reached the quarter-finals at the All England Club.

Big-serving Elena Rybakina will aim to retain her title but other players have emerged as serious contenders:

ARYNA SABALENKA (BELARUS)

* World ranking: 2

The big-hitting Belarusian has polished her game this year and become less erratic with her shot-making, which helped her win the Australian Open in January.

The 25-year-old has also reduced what seemed to be an insurmountable gap to world number one Swiatek in the rankings during the claycourt swing, beating her in the Madrid final, but was stunned in the French Open semis by Karolina Muchova.

Sabalenka will look to make up for lost time after missing last year's tournament due to the ban on Russian and Belarusian players after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, which Russia calls a 'special military operation', and she was in the spotlight at Roland Garros when her stance on the war was questioned.

Sabalenka has distanced herself from Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko. The world number two will have to compete under a neutral flag at Wimbledon.

ONS JABEUR (TUNISIA)

* World ranking: 6

After Jabeur lost in the French Open quarter-finals, she had only one thing on her mind - the grass season.

Jabeur said she was a little rusty at Roland Garros after a string of injuries this year but the determined Tunisian trailblazer vowed to work harder during the grasscourt swing.

Jabeur came close last year when she took the first set in her