Jasmine Paolini, Jessica Pegula, Elena Rybakina, Naomi Osaka: Four big questions

Looking back, looking forward. With the 2024 WTA season in the books, Joel Drucker has nine notable storylines to consider over the next few weeks—before the next year of women's tennis begins. (On mobile devices, scroll down to read more WTA takeways; on desktop, you'll see additional entires on the left side of your screen.)

Jasmine Paolini, Jessica Pegula, Elena Rybakina and Naomi Osaka each had seasons that trigger questions.

After never having even reached the third round of a major prior to ‘24, Paolini advanced to the finals at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and finished at a career-high of No. 4. Will the smiling Italian maintain that level of excellence?

A similar question applies to Pegula, who’d never been past the quarterfinals of a major prior to a breakthrough run to the US Open final.

Rybakina, at her best able to beat the likes of Sabalenka and Swiatek, suffered various ailments all year long that triggered many withdrawals and early exits. How will it work for her with a new coach, Goran Ivanisevic?

Osaka, back from maternity leave in January, has now made her way back to No. 59 in the world. Though still far from the heights this four-time Grand Slam singles champion once occupied, Osaka showed occasional signs of past brilliance, most notably at Roland Garros, when she held a match point versus eventual champion Swiatek.

She too has a new coach, commencing work with Patrick Mouratoglou this fall. Will the optimism Osaka shared all this year be backed up with more results in ’25?