The French Open trophy is back in the spotlight as defending champion Coco Gauff and World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka reignite their drive fo the title in Paris. Both women contested a highly-comptetive final last year, pushing each other to the limit.
Clay tends to do that to players — force them to dig deep into the reserves. Over the years, some players have fare better in doing so that others. And here, we have put together the women’s singles power rankings for this years’ French Open based on players’ performances over the European claycourt swing in the last three years.
Thanks for the submission!
Note: The following formula was used to calculate the power rankings for this year’s French Open: (1x points earned in the 2026 European claycourt swing + 0.5x points earned in the 2025 European claycourt swing + 0.25x points earned in the 2024 European claycourt swing).
8 Jasmine Paolini
Managing to sneak into the French Open power rankings courtesy largely her title in Rome last year and the final in Paris from a couple of years ago, Jasmine Paolini might as well be the one player that has the most to prove heading into the claycourt Slam.
With a 12-6 win-loss for the season and a negative 2-3 on her beloved clay, the Italian has not had a good season in 2026. But like a true champion, she continues to fight till the very last in her matches.
Paolini’s all-court game and excellent movement make a natural claycourter. All she needs to do is rediscover the winning momentum. In 2024, she had virtually no wins at the French Open but went on to make the final. The surprise factor may have played its part, but it was still her hitting consistent groundstrokes one after the other and chasing down balls like it was nobody’s business. If she can take things one match at a time, there’s no reason why the former finalist cannot turn things around for herself.
7 Elena Rybakina
Elena Rybakina has never been much of an outdoor claycourt enthusiast. In fact, she has beaten a top-10 player on the surface only twice in her career. That said, both the wins are worthy of a callback.
The first moment came at the 2021 French Open. In one of her early Grand Slam breakthroughs, she outplayed, even outserved none other than Serena Williams. The Kazakh announced herself on the big stage with the upset. The second time she beat a top-10 player, Iga Swiatek for that matter, she went on to capture the title — the 2023 Italian Open.
In more recent years, Rybakina has captured claycourt trophies indoors in Stuttgart twice (including 2024 and this year) and Strasbourg (last year). She leads the WTA ladder in both the Race (4,318 points) and Ace (244 aces) fronts. So despite not being the most effective on clay, she has truly cemented her spot in the French Open power rankings and will be a contender no less.
6 Marta Kostyuk
Marta Kostyuk’s sublime runs to the titles in Madrid and Rouen back-to-back may have surprised some, but the signs were there for us to see all along.
The Ukrainian first reached the final at Stuttgart in 2024, losing to Elena Rybakina. But she had beaten a French Open champ (Coco Gauff), a former finalist (Marketa Vondrousova) and the Paris Olympic champ Zheng Qinwen to get there. A year later, she made the Madrid quarterfinal.
Kostyuk’s obvious talents and natural movement on the red dirt, a surface that she spent most of her formative years, finally shone through during her 12-match winning streak through Rouen and Madrid — the latter being the biggest of her career. She has spoken about wanting to take the “next step” in her career this year. A maiden WTA 1000 was the start of just that and a Slam would well and truly get her where she has always wanted to be.
5 Mirra Andreeva
With the rally tolerance of Mirra Andreeva, one would never lose a match on clay. Yes the youngster has shown signs of volatility, but there’s no denying her skills on the red dirt. At 19, Andreeva leads a pack of fast-rising future champs. Except for her, the future is now. She has already captured multiple WTA 1000 crowns, become a regular feature in the top-10 and has added doubles laurels to her illustrious lists of achievements.
It all began on clay for Andreeva, who shot to fame by reaching the French Open semifinals in 2024. She followed it up with another quarterfinal last year (accompanied by the same result at both Rome and Madrid). This year, she finally captured a trophy on the surface in Linz.
The title in Austria was especially timely as her season was just beginning to unravel a little. That win renewed her focus and she has put together an impressive 15-3 record on clay — losing to Elena Rybakina in the Stuttgart semifinal, Marta Kostyuk in the Madrid final and Coco Gauff in the Rome semifinal. No one has played as much or as consistently well on clay as the teen sensation this year. A spot right in the middle of the French Open power rankings then feels just right.
4 Elina Svitolina
With 33 wins at the French Open, Elina Svitolina stands behind only one other player on the power rankings. Her wealth of experience (12 total appearances) should automatically make her a major contender, but it’s her form that elevates her this high in the list this year.
The Ukranian ensured that the claycourt WTA 1000s stayed in the country, capturing the Rome title after Marta Kotyuk’s Madrid heroics. It was her first win at this level since she had won the same event back in 2018.
Svitolina’s claycourt pedigree doesn’t just end in Rome. She also has a title to show for, 2025 Rouen, besides a semifinal run in Stuttgart a few weeks ago. Add a French Open quarterfinal and a Madrid semifinal from last year to the mix, and things begin to look ominous for her opponents.
3 Aryna Sabalenka
Clay has given Aryna Sabalenka more heartbreak than all else. Topping the list would be her French Open finals loss from last year, but there’s more to dig here.
The World No. 1 lost the summit clashes in Rome and Madrid back-to-back (courtesy Iga Swiatek) in 2024 and was also a beaten finalist in Stuttgart last year. The only time that she has managed to get over the line on the red dirt in the last three years was Madrid 2025.
That said, just the fact that Sabalenka continues to make these big finals despite her obvious discomfort in the slower conditions speaks volumes of her adaptability. Her powerful groundstrokes and big serves might not have been able to get the job done in the past, as recently as against Sorana Cirstea, in Madrid, but that doesn’t mean that she will stop trying.
Now, more than ever, Sabalenka is playing with an eye on diversifying her game. That willingness will only help her on the red dirt when her A-game is not working.
2 Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek’s claycourt stature has taken a bit of a beating in the last couple of years, but she is still a force to reckon with on the surface and a top contender in the French Open power rankings. Her movement and hitting on the surface is practically as good as it was when she was sweeping titles back in 2022, all she needs is a calmer mind.
The Pole tends to lose her bearings when pitted against power hitting. It was evidenced in her defeats against Elina Svitolina, Mirra Andreeva and even Ann Li over the last few weeks.
Swiatek is coming fresh off what’s easily her worst clay swing in years, but she is the same player who has a 93% win-loss record at the French Open and wins across the board in Madrid and Rome to show for in the last three years. Also, the good thing about being at the bottom of something (her clay results in this case) is that the only way left is up.
1 Defending French Open champ Coco Gauff
When Coco Gauff steps out onto a claycourt, opponents often expect a slugfest for each point. The 2025 French Open champion does not give anything away for free — ask Aryna Sabalenka of all people.
The American was so resilient in the final last year, capturing the French Open title three years after making her first final. In fact, she has not lost before the quarterfinal stage of the tournament since her debut in 2020.
Yes there have been certain concerns, including the season-leading 244 double faults and a title drought in 2026. That said, the spring that saw her achieve success on the red dirt (she was in the finals of all three big clay events last year) seems to be back in Gauff’s step. By reaching the Rome final, she has managed to peak just in time for a successful title defence in Paris.
Honourable mentions
The likes of Sorana Cirstea, Anastasia Potapova, Madison Keys, Zheng Qinwen and Jelena Ostapenko have all done well on clay in recent past and could spring up a surprise or two.
Edited by Vedant Chandel