25. Jennifer Brady
Right out of the gate in 2021, the veteran sprinted early, reaching the final at the Australian Open. She played spectacularly versus Karolina Muchova in the semis. In the final, she went down to Naomi Osaka in straight sets. Yes, the Japanese plays amazing deep in the Slams, but at least the American looked very good, even though she could have returned better. After that, she did little the rest of the year, likely because she was injured, and she stopped playing after August. She can hustle, and she is very stout, so when she starts again, in 2022 she will have to rehab and look ahead.
24. Leylah Fernandez
Almost out of nowhere, at the U.S Open, she went ga-ga. She was on fire, smashing the ball from both sides, and she was totally intense. Following up on her Monterrey victory, she ran and ran, into the corners, deeper, and very concentrated. She is only 19, so in the next few years, she will continue to grow, to understand how that the other players tend to hit the ball. The older she becomes, the smarter she will be off and on the court.
23. Belinda Bencic
The Swiss can look fantastic, and other times, she mentally went down. She is darn good, and she also had some fun variety. She plays a lot, and when you watch her, she can be pissed off. Yes, a few years ago, her body was very hurt, so she stopped for months. When she came back, it was almost zero, and she had to rethink her path. She does look sharp at times and get back into the top 10. She is going to have to much more find a bigger game or she will never win a Grand Slam.
22. Coco Gauff
The 17-year-old had a very good year, growing up quickly on the court. Sure, she has a lot of learning to do, but she gets better all the time. Her forehand and her backhand are strong, and she can flatten it out or spin it when she has to. Her first serve is pretty good, and, she is decent at the net. She is climbing up the hill of the rankings. However, she has lost a number of matches this year due to inexperience and lack of focus when the match isn’t going her way. In 2022, she will be even more intelligent, and thoughtful.
21. Elise Mertens
This player from Belgium put together some high level tournaments early on, but later, she collapsed, here and there. The veteran can be very consistent, or she can hit the ball when it is too short. She does like to hustle, and also in the doubles, she returns very well. But really, if she wants to go to the Grand Slam final for the first time, she is going to hang it out.