While the 2025 tennis season is already underway, we’re gearing up for its unofficial start this weekend as the Australian Open gets underway from Melbourne.
Aryna Sabalenka is back to defend her title, entering in strong form, and unlike many Grand Slams last season, there are plenty of questions about the other members of the “big three” in the WTA. That doesn’t mean that she won’t have some stiff competition, however, and it could be a pair of Americans — or a rising young star — who stand to be her toughest tests.
Find out with our 2025 Australian Open Women’s Singles betting preview.
Australian Open 2025 women's singles odds
| Player |  |
|---|---|
| Aryna Sabalenka | +225 |
| Coco Gauff | +425 |
| Iga Swiatek | +450 |
| Elena Rybakina | +900 |
| Qinwen Zheng | +1500 |
| Karolina Muchova | +2500 |
| Mirra Andreeva | +2800 |
| Naomi Osaka | +4000 |
| Emma Navarro | +5000 |
| Madison Keys | +5000 |
Odds as of 1-9.
Australian Open 2025 Women's favorites
Who's Hot
Aryna Sabalenka (+225 at DraftKings)
The World No. 1 has kept her foot on the gas pedal after a strong close to 2024, where she won three of the final five tournaments she entered including the US Open and Cincinnati Masters.
Sabalenka’s started off the year with an unblemished 5-0 record, taking down a couple of young upstarts in Mirra Andreeva and Polina Kudermetova to lift the trophy in Brisbane and dropping just one set all week.
She doesn’t have the easiest draw in the world, meeting a former Grand Slam champion in Sloane Stephens out of the gate and looking likely to see Andreeva again in the fourth round. If she comes through, that would set up a projected rematch of last year’s final with Qinwen Zheng in the quarterfinals.
Coco Gauff (+425 at DraftKings)
Gauff looks the part of a future World No. 1, something that could come as soon as this season. She competed at the United Cup to begin the year, winning each of the 10 sets she played which included a straight-set win over old rival Iga Swiatek.
The American’s forehand looks to be improving, as she was able to create some offense off a wing that’s been a glaring weakness for the last few seasons, and her serve continues to grow even stronger. With all the tennis she’s played in the last six seasons, it’s easy to forget she’s just 20 years of age – and the best is still yet to come.
Naomi Osaka (+4000 at DraftKings)
Osaka played sparingly last season but finished on a high note with a few wins in Beijing before retiring from a very close match with Gauff prior to the third set of their fourth-round encounter.
She’s picked up right where she left off, reaching the final of Auckland and moving out to a 5-1 lead in the first set against Clara Tauson before an abdominal injury forced her to pull the plug on that one as well.
The former World No. 1 claims she’s fit enough to compete in the upcoming Australian Open with a full week to recover, but we’ve heard that from players before. Her health will be worth monitoring, but if she’s up for the challenge the two-time Australian Open champion looks as good as anyone on tour right now.
Polina Kudermetova (No Odds)
It’s hard not to include Polina Kudermetova here, given she’s stunned the tour with 10 wins in 11 matches to begin the season. Ranked just 57th in the world, she’s had to come through qualifying twice already to give her five extra matches, but we can’t hold that against the 21-year-old.
Even with a qualifier winning a Grand Slam just a handful of years ago when Emma Raducanu took home the US Open, it would seem Kudermetova’s a waste of money in the outright market especially residing in a quarter with Sabalenka and Zheng.
With that said, she absolutely has to be included in this section after taking down some very high-quality opponents already this season in Luidmila Samsonova, Darya Kasatkina, and an in-form Ashlyn Krueger. She also negotiated the first set off Sabalenka in the Brisbane final before falling in three sets. Get ready to buy some shares now.
Who's not
Iga Swiatek (+450 at DraftKings)
It’s not like Iga Swiatek has done a ton of losing, but she hasn’t exactly looked the part of the unbeatable force she’s been for many years.
The World No. 2 dropped a set to Katie Boulter in the United Cup before a narrow escape against Elena Rybakina and a loss to Gauff in the tournament final.
She seems rather out of sorts mentally with some confidence waning, perhaps dating back to disappointing losses in the semifinals of Cincinnati, the quarters of the US Open, and an exit from the group stage of the WTA Finals a season ago.
Karolina Muchova (+2500 at DraftKings)
Karolina Muchova has all-world talent, and even in an injury-shortened 2024 season, she was able to showcase that on a number of occasions.
As it stands, however, she’s just 2-2 on the season with a couple of losses to Gauff and Swiatek which featured little drama. She does have a win over Jasmine Paolini in her pocket, but for the chances oddsmakers are giving her you’d hope to see a little more fight out of the former World No. 8.
Australian Open 2025 Women's sleepers
Players to watch
Mirra Andreeva (+2800 at DraftKings)
Andreeva’s first Grand Slam win will come at some point, and it’s anyone’s guess as to when that is. The 17-year-old simply has too much talent, and we witnessed it on several occasions last year as she took home her first title on tour and finished the season with a run to the final in Ningbo and a thrilling three-set loss to Swiatek.
The Russian made the fourth round here a season ago, seeming to run out of gas after some narrow escapes, and with the benefit of a full year under her belt, perhaps the time is now.
She may first have to solve Kudermetova in the early rounds before meeting Zheng, and even then will require a win over Sabalenka barring a shocking upset. Andreeva did take down Sabalenka at last year’s French Open but has lost each of the other three meetings between the two in straight sets.
Jessica Pegula (+5000 at DraftKings)
You simply can’t ever look past Jessica Pegula, who’s flown under the radar in many of the last few Grand Slams thanks to a lack of form.
Well, she doesn’t appear to have the injury concerns so far this year that have popped up in years past, and she’s played clean tennis thus far in Adelaide this week. If she can build up a head of steam, there’s little reason why the former World No. 3 can’t make a run here on her favorite surface – returning to a tournament where she’s made the quarterfinals three times.
Australian Open long shots to avoid
Qinwen Zheng (+1500 at DraftKings)
She’s not the largest of longshots, but I’m not among those in line to back Qinwen Zheng this year at the Australian Open after a huge 2024 campaign which started with a run to the final at this event and saw her win two titles and a Gold Medal at the Olympics.
Zheng hasn’t played since November, and she’s also going to be thrown into a very tough quarter with some exciting young talents who we covered above and the woman who denied her a Grand Slam last year in Sabalenka.
