Italian Open 2024: 5 favorites to win the women's singles title ft. Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka

The WTA Tour heads to Rome for the 2024 Italian Open from May 7-19. With the French Open just a few weeks away, this is the final opportunity for a lot of players to get their ducks in a row.

Jessica Pegula and Karolina Pliskova are among the notable names to have withdrawn due to injuries. Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber, meanwhile, continue their comebacks.

While a few top players have failed to live up to their rankings, others have solidified their credentials as the tour's top guns and are also the ones who are likely to do well in Rome.

On that note, here's a look at the leading contenders to win the women's singles title at the Italian Open:

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#5 Coco Gauff

Coco Gauff is the third seed at the 2024 Italian Open.

Gauff's results have been lukewarm during the clay swing. She reached the quarterfinals of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart and the fourth round of the Madrid Open.

The American won four matches across both tournaments. Gauff's woes can be attributed to her misfiring serve. She has hit 48 double faults across her six matches on clay this year.

Gauff is a former semifinalist at the Italian Open but hasn't made it past the third round the last couple of years. If she's able to get herself back on track and improve her game, she's consistent enough to get a shot at the title.

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#4 Ons Jabeur

Ons Jabeur at the 2024 Madrid Open.

Jabeur's injury woes didn't let her compete at the highest level until quite recently. She had won just a couple of matches this season before the Madrid Open. The Tunisian rediscovered her mojo in the Spanish capital with her trademark flair.

Jabeur knocked out players like Jelena Ostapenko and Leylah Fernandez en route to the last eight, where she lost to Madison Keys. She made it all the way to the championship round of the Italian Open in 2022 but was defeated by Iga Swiatek.

Jabeur is a great player on clay, and if she's able to build on her run in Madrid, she could prove to be a credible threat in Rome as well.

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#3 Elena Rybakina

Elena Rybakina is the fourth seed at the 2024 Italian Open.

Rybakina started her run on the red dirt with a bang, as she won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart. Her unbeaten run continued until the semifinals of the Madrid Open, where she was bested by her rival Aryna Sabalenka.

Rybakina is the defending champion at the Italian Open. She has won three titles this year, but all have been at the WTA 500 level. She reached a couple of WTA 1000 finals as well but came up short in both.

Rybakina was bested by Swiatek in the Qatar Open final while Danielle Collins got the better of her in the Miami Open final. The Kazakh has been in fine form this year, so it won't be too surprising if she defends her Rome title.

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#2 Aryna Sabalenka

Aryna Sabalenka is the second seed at the 2024 Italian Open.

Sabalenka's results took a turn for the worse after a successful title defence at the Australian Open. From that triumph in Melbourne until the start of the Madrid Open, she went 4-4.

However, something about a title defence simply gets Sabalenka going. It wasn't an easy task but she fought her way to the final with victories over players such as Rybakina and Collins.

Sabalenka went toe-to-toe with Swiatek in the final, but the latter emerged victorious. Nevertheless, it was a good tournament for the Belarusian who will aim to maintain this form in Rome.

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#1 Iga Swiatek

Iga Swiatek is the top seed at the 2024 Italian Open.

Swiatek won the Qatar Open and the Indian Wells Open prior to the clay swing, both WTA 1000 tournaments. She was the two-time defending champion at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart but lost to Rybakina in the semifinals.

Swiatek captured her first Madrid Open title with a win over Sabalenka in the final. She saved three championship points in a high-quality contest between the tour's top-two ranked players.

With her triumph in Madrid, Swiatek has won all significant titles on the red dirt. She's a two-time Italian Open champion and the frontrunner to claim her third crown at the venue.