| Player | Previous Rank |
|---|
| 1. Venus Williams (USA) | 1 |
| Capped year with Sony Ericsson Championships crown. |
| 2. Serena Williams (USA) | 2 |
| U.S. Open champ. |
| 3. Jelena Jankovic (SRB) | 3 |
| No. 1 in the WTA rankings? |
| 4. Dinara Safina (RUS) | 4 |
| French Open and Olympic runner-up. |
| 5. Elena Dementieva (RUS) | 5 |
| Captured Olympic gold in 2008. |
| 6. Vera Zvonareva (RUS) | 6 |
| Hot down the '08 stretch. |
| 7. Ana Ivanovic (SRB) | 7 |
| Dismal second half this past season. |
| 8. Maria Sharapova (RUS) | 8 |
| Looking for a comeback campaign in 2009. |
| 9. Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) | 9 |
| Battler from Poland. |
| 10. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) | 10 |
| Is she still Top-10 material? |
