Katie Boulter enjoyed a career-best year in 2024, as she soared up the WTA rankings with several impressive performances.
Having begun the year ranked 58th on the WTA Tour, Boulter finished 2024 just outside the world’s top 20, as she rose 34 spots.
Before this year, Boulter had won just a singular title on the tour, but took home two more in 2024, as she announced herself as a real contender in women’s tennis.
Boulter won the San Diego Open, in March at the WTA 500 level, as she took home the biggest trophy of her career to date against Marta Kostyuk.
She then defended a title for the first time in her career, as Boulter beat Karolina Pliskova in the Nottingham Open final, as she won her third WTA title.
Pliskova, one of three players that Boulter has recently praised following the conclusion of the 2024 season.
Katie Boulter says Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, and Karolina Pliskova have the best WTA serves
Speaking in an interview with Sky Sports, Boulter was asked which WTA stars have the strongest serves.
“There are some big servers out there,” she said.
“[Karolina] Pliskova, Coco [Gauff], [Aryna] Sabalenka, there are some rockets out there.
“Can I choose all three? They are pretty fast!”
Boulter played Pliskova, Gauff, and Sabalenka in 2024, beating the Czech star, but falling to two of the world’s top three.
Her match against the current world number one came in the Toronto Open last 16, where the British number one fell in straight sets to her Belarussian opponent.
It was the fourth time the pair had faced off against one another on the WTA Tour, as Boulter remained winless against Sabalenka.
The Brit surprisingly served better than her opponent in their match in Canada, as she had one more ace, and a higher first serve percentage over the two sets.
The same cannot be said for her Beijing contest with Gauff, who ‘out-aced’ the 28-year-old 5-0 and enjoyed a far better first serve percentage of 70.9% compared to Boulter’s 65.6%
Gauff won the China Open, having taken down Boulter in the round of 32, as she secured her second career WTA 1000 title.
Who is statistically the best server on the WTA Tour?
Whilst Boulter certainly rates the likes of Gauff, Sabalenka, and Pliskova highly when it comes to serving, what do the numbers say?
Plenty of metrics can be used to measure serving success such as; number of aces, first serve %, first serve points %, and service games won %.
How do the top ten on the WTA Tour stack up in these measures, and are Pliskova and Boulter able to compete?
| ATP rank | Name | Aces | First serve % | First serve points % | Service game win % |
| 1 | Aryna Sabalenka | 307 | 62.8 | 69.9 | 78.5 |
| 2 | Iga Swiatek | 128 | 66.1 | 69.5 | 82.6 |
| 3 | Coco Gauff | 250 | 57.6 | 71.8 | 73.4 |
| 4 | Jasmine Paolini | 89 | 67.7 | 63.1 | 68.2 |
| 5 | Qinwen Zheng | 445 | 52.8 | 75.7 | 77.4 |
| 6 | Elena Rybakina | 358 | 61.2 | 72.8 | 79.5 |
| 7 | Jessica Pegula | 167 | 61.9 | 66.7 | 71.8 |
| 8 | Emma Navarro | 83 | 65.6 | 63.7 | 70.1 |
| 9 | Daria Kasatkina | 106 | 66.5 | 61 | 61.8 |
| 10 | Barbora Krejcikova | 122 | 62.2 | 67 | 68.5 |
| 24 | Katie Boulter | 184 | 56.5 | 71.3 | 75 |
| 41 | Karolina Pliskova | 250 | 64.7 | 68.2 | 71.5 |
Sabalenka, Gauff, and Pliskova perform very well in most metrics, with Sabalenka head and shoulders above the rest regarding service game win percentage.
What shouldn’t be ignored, however, is just how well Boulter has served this year. While her first serve percentage was weaker, she outperformed Pliskova in both first serve points percentage and service games won percentage.
She was also stronger than Sabalenka and Gauff in certain measures, as her serve dramatically improved as she rose up the rankings in 2024.
Boulter will hope to carry that serving form into the new year, when she begins her season at the United Cup which begins on December 27.
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