The 2025 season is in the books, and it was one for the ages. In a remarkable display of parity and depth, five different players won the four majors and the WTA Finals title.
The swings all told their own unique stories, from the hard courts to the clay to the grass and back to the hard courts, culminating with a memorable week in Riyadh.
With the offseason officially underway, we’re looking back at the top moments, biggest surprises, best tournaments and more from the year that was.
More end-of-year content: Best moment of ’25 | Best tournament of ’25 | Biggest surprise of ’25
Today we’re making our picks for the best match of 2025.
Krejcikova d. Townsend 1-6, 7-6 (13), 6-3 (US Open)
Brad Kallet: It wasn’t the most high-profile match of the year, but no contest had my heart beating a million miles a minute quite like Barbora Krejcikova’s 1-6, 7-6 (13), 6-3 win over Taylor Townsend in the fourth round of the US Open. The darling of the tournament in its first week, Townsend failed to convert eight match points in a raucous Arthur Ashe Stadium that was waiting to erupt. And these weren’t flubs from Townsend. They were excellent, hard-fought points that Krejcikova won. It was a heartbreaking ending for the American and a Grand Slam-worthy comeback from the Czech, on perhaps the most exciting stage in tennis.
Siegemund d. Maria 7-5, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (2) (Montreal)
Alex Macpherson: Tatjana Maria and Laura Siegemund were two of the MVPs of the grass swing, with the German veterans — the two oldest players in the Top 100 — slicing and volleying their way past a slew of more powerful Top 10 opponents to the Queen’s title and Wimbledon quarterfinals, respectively.
A couple of weeks later, the two 37-year-olds were pitted against each other in the Montreal first round. They knew each other’s games inside out — they’d been playing against each other since they were children — and naturally, it was a classic. The wildly entertaining 3-hour, 26-minute feast of finesse, tactics and net play went down to the wire before Siegemund emerged a 7-5, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (2) victor. For tennis fans who value artistic appreciation, this was the season’s masterpiece.
Siegemund triumphs over Maria in Montreal in third-longest match of 2025
Pegula d. Sabalenka 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2) (Wuhan)
Greg Garber: This might be a case of recency bias, but I don’t think so. I thought the Wuhan semifinal between Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula was spectacular. On paper, this is a mismatch; the head-to-head going in was 8-2 in favor of Sabalenka. The World No. 1 ran off the first set and was up a break in the second when Pegula started to solve the puzzle. Counter-punching and using all the guile at her command, Pegula rallied and won it in a third-set tiebreak. That win ended Sabalenka’s amazing 20-match win streak in Wuhan, and was another reminder that Pegula is a top-shelf player herself.
Eala d. Tauson 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (11) (US Open)
Noah Poser: Everyone remembers Alexandra Eala’s epic run to the semifinals in Miami. But her most awe-inspiring moment of the season, for my money, came at the US Open.
Facing a 5-1 (!!!) deficit in the third set of her first-round match against Clara Tauson, Eala managed to force a tiebreaker, which she won in dramatic fashion. Though she needed five match points of her own to close it out, she didn’t face a single match point over the course of her comeback. She would go on to win 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (11) in just over two-and-a-half hours to become the first player from the Philippines in the Open era to win a Grand Slam main-draw match.
Swiatek d. Rybakina 1-6, 6-3, 7-5 (French Open)
Cole Bambini: Iga Swiatek’s comeback win over Elena Rybakina in the Round of 16 at Roland Garros was absolutely stunning. Down 6-1, 2-0, Swiatek was out of sorts with 27 unforced errors through nine games. Her 24-match winning streak at Roland Garros, where she had won the previous three titles, looked as if it was about to be snapped.
But the former World No. 1 rallied, as she does so well. She won six of the last seven games in the second set to force a decider. After exchanging breaks through 4-4 in the third, Rybakina held to put herself one game away from victory. But Swiatek’s momentous love hold for 5-5 foreshadowed the final burst she needed. Swiatek broke this season’s top server, then hit some dominant forehand winners to emerge victorious 1-6, 6-3, 7-5 in the two-and-a-half-hour thriller.
Mboko d. Osaka 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 (Montreal)
Matt Wilansky: The match that truly stood apart: Victoria Mboko vs. Naomi Osaka in Montreal. A teenager in her first big final, playing at home against a four-time major champion. Mboko lost the opening set 2-6, adjusted and played sharper, cleaner tennis from there. The crowd backed her, point after point, and she handled it with a composure well beyond her 18 years. She’d already beaten three other Slam winners that week, and this one capped it. By the end, it felt less like an upset and more like a sign of where she’s headed — a local talent stepping into a new lane in front of her city.
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