Coco Gauff Will Drop in WTA Rankings After Madrid Open

Coco Gauff will take a hit in the WTA Rankings after her early exit at the Madrid Open.

Coco Gauff lost to Linda Noskova at the Madrid Open. | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Every WTA Masters 1000 tournament presents unique challenges to the world's best tennis players. However, the Mutua Madrid Open has been especially difficult due to pollen, stomach illnesses, and bad smells (according to Mirra Andreeva).

Look no further than the second, third, and fourth-ranked players all going down over the past 48 hours. Elena Rybakina is safe as the World No. 2 after her shocking loss to Anastasia Potapova, but Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek are about to shake up the standings.

Coco Gauff Falls to World No. 4

Iga Swiatek will rise to world #3 with Coco Gauff’s loss in Madrid.

Gauff down to #4.

— José Morgado (@josemorgado) April 27, 2026

Gauff fought through a stomach illness against Sorana Cîrstea on Sunday. Gauff beat Cirstea in three sets after vomiting off the court (4-6, 7-5, 6-1). She clearly was unwell, but did not want to retire again after having to do so at Indian Wells due to a shoulder injury.

Still not at 100%, Gauff came up short against the 13-seed Linda Noskova yesterday in the Round of 16. Noskova beat Gauff in three sets (6-4, 1-6, 7-6 ). After Monday's defeat, Gauff will fall to World No. 4 in the updated WTA Rankings next week.

Gauff has a singles record of 19-8 with zero titles. Gauff has to defend 650 points at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia (April 28 - May 17) after making it to the finals last year. After that, she must defend 2,000 ranking points at the French Open as the defending champion.

Iga Swiatek Rises to World No. 3

Iga Świątek is forced to retire against Ann Li in the third round 😓#MMOpen pic.twitter.com/0QSfW6mLYf

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) April 25, 2026

Swiatek was also battling stomach issues, which forced her to retire mid-match against Ann Li. In a shortened match, Li won in the decider: 7-6 (4), 2-6, 3-0 ret. If there is any consolation prize, it is that Swiatek will rise to World No. 3 in the WTA Rankings next week.

Swiatek has a singles record of 14-8 with zero titles. She did not have as many points to defend this year in Madrid (390) as she lost to Gauff last year in the semifinals.

Additionally, she only has to defend 65 points at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia after her third-round exit to Danielle Collins last year. Finally, Swiatek must defend 780 points at the French Open after losing to Aryna Sabalenka there in 2025.

The 2026 Mutua Madrid Open runs through May 3, and the clay court season continues through June. Stay locked into Sports Illustrated's Serve On SI for all of your tennis news from the court and beyond.