The 2024 tennis season is done and dusted, with the big winners and losers clearly defined in the final weeks of a hectic year.

Jannik Sinner’s final shot of an eventful year saw Italy regain the Davis Cup in convincing fashion in Malaga, with Carlos Alcaraz’s stunning season seeing him emerge victorious at the French Open and Wimbledon.

Alexander Zverev ends the year as world No 2 after showing impressive consistency, Rafael Nadal’s retirement coming in a year that also saw the exits of Grand Slam champions Andy Murray and Dominic Thiem.

In the women’s game, Aryna Sabalenka was the queen of the court as she claimed two Grand Slam titles and ended the year as world No 1.

Her nearest rival was Iga Swiatek, but the Pole struggled to hit the heights in the second half of 2024 as Coco Gauff claimed the WTA Finals title in Saudi Arabia and China’s Zheng Qinwen finished the year on a real high with some stunning performances.

What comes next is a question all tennis fans are now asking and here are some bold predictions for 2025.

JANNIK SINNER GETS A SUSPENSION

Will world No 1 Jannik Sinner get banned from tennis after his failed drug tests last March?

The jury appeared to have cast their verdict in this story as Sinner was allowed to continue his career after a judgement from the International Tennis Integrity Agency accepted his version of events that the banned substance clostebol got into his system by accident and was not a performance-enhancing substance.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) have appealed that verdict and is pushing for a two-year ban for Sinner and if the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) sides with WADA, Sinner is likely to face a suspension from tennis.

The length of that ban may not be the full two years, with the tiny amount of clostebol in Sinner’s system unlikely to have had a performance-enhancing impact.

Yet if the verdict was CAS came in on Sinner in early 2025, he could face a six-month suspension that would take him out of the final three Grand Slams of the year and see his world ranking plummet.

It would also be a huge scar on his image and reputation, with the Italian’s lawyers certain to be doing all they can to avoid that fate.

RADUCANU BITES BACK

Emma Raducanu has been one of the biggest talking points of 2024, with her impressive performance on court mixed with healthy debate over her decisions off it.

The 2021 US Open champion admitted she got her scheduling plans wrong after Wimbledon, as she failed to play enough events and was undercooked as she was beaten in the first round of this year’s US Open.

Injuries have also been a constant theme of her season, but Raducanu proved that when she can get on court in a physical condition that allows her to compete, she is a champion in the making once again.

Her run to the fourth round at Wimbledon and her five straight wins in the Billie Jean King Cup were hugely impressive and if she can stay fit, a return to the top 20 of the WTA Rankings should be within her grasp next year.

THE END OF DJOKOVIC

The tennis world was stunned by the news that Novak Djokovic had hired his former rival Andy Murray to his team as a coach for January’s Australian Open and it was a hugely positive sign for fans of the Serbian legend.

Had Djokovic arrived in Australia without a new coach or any changes to his set-up, the perception may have been that he no longer had the stomach to push for more after setting so many remarkable tennis records.

Yet Murray would not have agreed to travel to Australia with his old rival unless he had been given assurances he was fully committed to winning his 25th Grand Slam title and his 11th in Melbourne.

The Murray appointment is a left-field move few saw coming and it might give Djokovic a new source of inspiration, but this story still feels like it could end sooner rather than later.

If Djokovic fails to reach the latter stages in Melbourne and even if he feels as if his motivation is waning on court in a tournament he loves more than any other, don’t be surprised to see him bring down the curtain on his career at some point in 2025.

THE WILDCARDS


The jury is still out on Alexander Zverev after his fine run of form saw him end 2024 at No 2 in the rankings.

His dream of winning a Grand Slam proved to be elusive once again and when he had chances to push for victory in the French Open final against Carlos Alcaraz, his old demons returned to haunt him.

Zverev’s serve will carry him to the back end of most tournaments he plays, but his defeat against Taylor Fritz at the ATP Finals highlighted his lack of killer instinct when the pressure is applied.

Coco Gauff will be another player to watch next season.

She was brilliant as she beat the game’s best players to win the WTA Finals and claim her biggest prize money in women’s tennis history, but her serving issues have not gone away.

Gauff played some of the best tennis of the year and her big hitting from the back of the court was hugely impressive, but that serve needs to be fixed as when it breaks down, it can destroy her hopes in double quick time.

If Gauff spends the off-season getting her service motion in order and working on her mindset when that shot breaks down, she could hit the world No 1 ranking for the first time next year.