Aryna Sabalenka has been knocking on the Grand Slam door all season, but it just won’t open. Two finals, one semifinal, and still no shiny trophy to show for it. But hold the pity party, because she’s pulled off something that the GOAT Serena Williams last did. And guess what? That’s bad news for Coco Gauff. Let’s break it down.

Sabalenka has officially crossed the 12,000-point mark in the WTA rankings. She now sits at a towering 12,420 points, up from 11,640 before Wimbledon. Since she missed the tournament last year with a shoulder injury, all 780 of her semifinal points counted toward her total.

Here’s the history she just matched. The Belarusian becomes the first woman since Serena Williams in 2015 to go past 12,000 ranking points. Back then, Serena held 12,721 points during the two weeks of the US Open. That number dipped to 11,501 after she lost in the semifinals of Flushing Meadows. Still, Serena’s mark was untouched until now. That makes Sabalenka’s rise even more impressive. Iga Swiatek came close earlier this year with 11,695 points, but the 27-year-old has now gone one step further. Her grip on the No. 1 spot is tighter than ever. She leads by a personal-best margin of 4,751 points over the No. 2-ranked player.

And that No. 2? It’s none other than Coco Gauff. While Sabalenka added 780 points from Wimbledon, Gauff lost ground. She had reached the fourth round last year, which gave her 240 points. But after falling in the first round this time, the American accumulated just 10 points. That’s a sharp drop, and it could cost her more later.

The 21-year-old is now sitting at 7,669 points. She’s got 3,060 points to defend in the rest of the season. That’s nearly 40 percent of her current total. She raked in most of those points with a title run in Beijing, a triumph at the WTA Finals, and a deep semifinal push in Wuhan.

The pressure is starting to build. Iga Swiatek is climbing fast after her brutal 6-0, 6-0 Wimbledon win over Amanda Anisimova. The Pole has jumped from No. 8 to No. 3 and now has 6,813 points. Even more dangerous is the fact that Swiatek only has 830 points to defend the rest of the season. If Coco Gauff stumbles again, she might find that No. 2 spot slipping through her fingers.

But here’s a break the American won’t mind taking.

Coco Gauff gets golden opportunity as Aryna Sabalenka withdraws from the Canadian Open

Aryna Sabalenka has pulled out of the WTA 1000 Canada Open, citing fatigue. “I’m looking forward to kicking off the North American hard-court swing, but to give myself the best chance for success this season, I’ve decided it’s in my best interest to skip Montreal,” she said in a press statement.

That leaves a big opening. With the World No.1 out, Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek will headline the Montreal draw. Gauff didn’t have the best showing here last year, losing 4-6, 1-6 to Diana Shnaider. Afterward, she admitted she wasn’t even sure she should’ve played, coming off an emotional exit at the Paris Olympics. But Canada hasn’t always been unkind to her. She reached back-to-back quarterfinals at the tournament in 2022 and 2023. And this time, she’ll have more time to prep after that early stumble at Wimbledon.

Mentally, she’s already flipped the switch. “I’m not going to dwell on this too long because I want to do well at the US Open,” she said. “Maybe losing here first round isn’t the worst thing in the world because I have time to reset.”

And when it comes to the US Open, she’s got less to defend. Last year, defending champion Coco Gauff exited in the fourth round at Flushing Meadows after a loss to compatriot Emma Navarro. That leaves plenty of room for her to stack up points this time around.

Sabalenka’s dominance leaves a wide gap to close, but Gauff has the court all to herself in Canada to secure that No. 2 position. The next few weeks could shake things up. Can she rise to the occasion?