No. 20: Liudmila Samsonova
In the summer the Russian began to take off, winning Washington Cleveland and Tokyo. She didn’t beat a lot of the top 5 players, but she edged out Emma Raducanu Kaia Kanepi and Garbine Muguruza. The light switched it is on. She can real hustle, and she can also whip her backhand. Her forehand is mighty, but sometimes she can misses it. If she can add more variety to her first serve and at the net, then next year she will a chance to reach the top 10. To do that, she really has to learn to grind in tough matches.

No. 19: Ekaterina Alexandrova
The veteran Russian had some very good tournaments, winning Korea this fall on the hardcourts in the Netherlands on grass in the summer. She was hurt at the beginning of the year, so it took her some time resume at a high level. She has won three titles, but not the biggest events. Her forehand is mammoth, and her backhand can be reasonable. However, in the Slams, she has never reached the second week, ever. She needs to find a consistent mindset. The positive thing as when she lost, almost all of them were three-setters. Yes, she lost, but at least she was trying super hard. Next year, maybe she will turn it around.

No. 18: Jelena Ostapenko
When she won ‘17 Roland Garros, it seemed like she was going to win a bunch of Grand Slam titles. She attacked constantly, went for the lines, especially crosscourt and with her returns. But after that, she started to be messy, and then she was not listening. Sure, she won a few other titles, but at the Slams, she made too many errors. She rose to reach ‘18 Wimbledon in the semis. But after that, she only made in the second week one time in the Slams. There was nowhere to go. This year, she was pretty decent, winning Dubai, beating three very good players. However, that was in February, and after that she lost early. In order to reach the top 10 again, she will have to re-adjust. Just try some new stuff.

No. 17: Anett Kontaveit
When she is thinking really well, then she was very respectable, winning in Russia and she reaching the finals in Doha, Hamburg and Estonia. So that was good, but she lost some other early matches. A couple years ago, she was not only fit, but more focused and determined to hit winners. Now, she does not know where she is going. Does she want to be aggressive or be patient? Should she mix it up, or punch the ball? Somehow, when she is in to it, she looks terrific, but other times, her head begins to slide. She just have to focus again and fast.

No. 16: Petra Kvitova
Years ago, she won Wimbledon twice with her hard, flat ground strokes. It was all about one strategy: attack. She also won some other big events on the hard courts. While she can waiver, she can be locked in at times. She went deep at the Australian Open and Roland Garros, which was unusual. She is a terrific person, talkative and thoughtful. However, to win another Grand Slam, that would be surprising. The 33-year-old can reach into the second week, but the younger players think that she is slowing down now. But look, she has won 29 titles, a very strong career. In 2023, Kvitova has to show that she is still compete at a high level.