The Future of Women's Tennis: 7 WTA Players on the Rise

The WTA thrives on its stars. Since its beginning, it's needed a steady pipeline of talent to keep its position as the top female sport in the world.

Those of you who think that tennis is all about the Williams sisters, Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijsters should prepare to take note of these youngsters who threaten to become breakout stars.

No. 7: Christina McHale (United States)

Tenacity, desire and consistency: ingredients for a potent champion. America's hopes now sit on the shoulders of young New Jersey native, Christina McHale.

This young American captured the imagination in Cincinnati this year by defeating World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki at her own game. While Wozniacki looked frustrated, McHale took charge, lengthening rallies and went for smart winners.

So why does a player who upsets the top women's tennis player in the world sit so low on this list?

She's not done something outstanding in the major tournaments yet except for Cincinnati. In fact, she had reached the round of 16 in 2010 (losing to Kim Clijsters) two years in a row in southern Ohio, but has since only materialized the good result into something longer lasting.

She made the second round at Wimbledon this year, defeating the 28th seed, Ekaterina Makarova (who had won Eastbourne the year previous), and made the third round of the U.S. Open.

Flushing proved to be her best major result all year, upsetting ninth seeded Marion Bartoli (who knocked Serena out of Wimbledon en route to the quarterfinals) before becoming subdued under the lights of Arthur Ashe by Maria Kirilenko.

Her game may not have amazing weaponry as some of the other top women, but she has something that you can't teach: competitiveness. She wants it and is willing to change her game and step up to the plate when she needs to.

Big moments don't scare her. As her experience grows, so will her game, and that's an exciting prospect for the red, white and blue, who look to McHale to carry the future.

No. 6: Sloane Stephens (United States)

The young American talent really reaches exciting heights with Sloane Stephens, the 18-year-old from Plantation, Florida. The exciting part of her game is that she brings the same sorts of physicality that makes Serena Williams so formidable.

She has a great serve, explosive movement and groundstrokes that penetrate through the whole court.

Her game began to take better shape during the U.S. Open Series, where she reached the quarterfinals at the Mercury Insurance Open in San Diego, losing to Andrea Petkovic after defeating Julia Goerges.

Then she took her game to the U.S. Open, where she used her wild card to good use, making the third round. She upset 28th seed Shahar Pe'er before losing to 16th seeded Ana Ivanovic, a former No. 1 and Roland Garros champion.

What makes Sloane's game so attractive is that one recognizes how much physicality is needed to play like she does. If you've ever played the game before, you know that hitting winners on the run is something that requires great timing and strength.

In this highlights package, even though Ivanovic would win the match, you recognize that she's got enough fire power and raw talent to compete with the best of them. A few more refining touches and she could really make her way into the top 50.

No. 5: Bojana Jovanovski (Serbia)

Serbia has been placed on the map with its tennis talent. With the success of Novak Djokovic, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic, Victor Troicki and Janko Tipsarevic, there's little doubt that Serbia can produce quality tennis players in this day and age.

So when it comes to Bojana Jovanovski, or BoJJ as she is known in some circles, it does not surprise anyone that she is a quality player. What is surprising is that she hadn't taken her results further.

She has defeated Jankovic in Beijing, and at the beginning of the year made the semifinals in Sydney.

But as of late, she hasn't done anything noteworthy partly because of her draws (being told you've got to play Serena Williams in a first round of a slam, where she has never lost, may be a little intimidating), but partly because of the hot and cold nature of her game.

Like so many of the girls, her whole game revolves around the ground strokes. Having seen her play in person before, they pack a wallop. Flat, hard and close to the lines.

When confidence is flowing, that is probably the best combination of adjectives to get the job done. However, when the game is not on the boil, it gets harder to maintain levels, which is why Jovanovsk hasn't progressed much further.

Add in a serve that could crack under the pressure, and that's a lot riding on her superb service returns and atomic ground strokes. If she is going to go any higher in the rankings than top 60 or 50, she's got to work on that serve and build in some more safety into her game.

No. 4: Heather Watson (Great Britain)

There's not many people who say they aren't intimidated by playing a top three player on a large stadium court at a Grand Slam.

That's why Heather Watson of Great Britain caught the attention of many when she said she was not afraid to play Maria Sharapova in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the largest tennis stadium in the world. She took it to Maria, losing 6-3, 5-7, 3-6.

The score does not show you how much Watson fought and scrapped in that match. She did not have a stellar start to the match but once she got her teeth into it, the equally fierce competitor in Sharapova did not find it easy to deter the 19-year-old Watson.

Her court coverage is frightening to some players, as is her ability to counter punch, which is not a style that bodes well for many women in the game today.

She looked intelligent out there and built her chances for the upset, but then realized who she was playing and lost the script a bit.

Watson's been around for a while, and this year began to show more consistent results.

She qualified and reached the quarterfinals of the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand, reached the third round of the AEGON Classic in Birmingham, England and most importantly became the first British woman to qualify for Roland Garros in 28 years.

She also became the first to then reach the second round since 1994. She's put together a good year so far and it can only get better for her as she gets stronger and learns how to use her brain to step up and be aggressive in the big moments of matches.

No. 3: Caroline Garcia (France)

A damp, cold day in Paris does not sound like a good start to any story. But for Caroline Garcia, it was an amazing day of play.

Up on Philippe Chatrier at the biggest tournament in her home country, after winning her first round, she was due to play Maria Sharapova.

Instead of fearing her, Garcia really brought her A-game and took charge of rallies and play early and often. She rode her big serve and forehand combination to a 6-3, 4-1, 15-0 lead on Maria Sharapova, who looked out of sorts until, like Watson at the US Open, she suddenly felt the occasion hit her hard.

At the Australian Open, her first appearance in a WTA main draw, she reached the second round before losing to Morita Ayumi.

At only 17, she is one of the better future prospects with raw, athletic game. She reminds one, at first, of Mary Pierce, the way she really goes after the ball when she's confident.

It certainly isn't the kind of Gallic flair that one finds with compatriots Amelie Mauresmo, Fabrice Santoro, Gael Monfils and Nathalie Dechy.

No, this kind of game is the international game of power, and it will start to take its shape soon. Still green around the edges, experience will groom her for the day when she begins to make deep runs at Slams and dares the French to think of her as a new champion.

No. 2: Madison Keys (United States)

We're talking some serious talent here, folks. That's what Madison Keys has. She is one of the most exciting prospects in professional tennis, let alone in the United States.

She burst on to the scene by winning her first ever professional match on the WTA tour in Ponte Vedra Beach, defeating Alla Kudryavtseva before losing the next round. Quite impressive for a 14-year-old.

She even took out Serena Williams 5-1 in a World Team Tennis match. Beating Serena anywhere generates buzz, but when you're 14? That's almost unreal.

At this year's U.S. Open, Keys defeated Jill Craybas, and had 27th seed Lucie Safarova on the ropes before 55 unforced errors derailed her efforts.

It's not just results with her; you have to see her play before you get a sense of what truly is special about her.

She moves athletically across the court, something remarkable for her height (and she can only grow more), but there's something more telling.

She reminds us something of Venus and Serena, combining a booming serve with immense ground strokes. The heft and pace of shot are something to see. If she play an ITF tournament near you, be sure to get your ticket immediately.

But I'd suggest for her first match. She still has yet to build consistency and has lost matches in her very young career by hitting the back fence instead of painting the lines. But boy, does she pack a punch.

No. 1: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Russian Federation)

It's rare to think that at 20, some are considered old on the WTA these days, what with Francesca Schiavone and Li Na bagging majors while Serena Williams and Kim Clijsters are the standard, the former turning 30 today.

However, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has been around for awhile in the tennis circle. She was an outstanding junior player winning the 2006 and 2007 Australian Open junior titles. Pavlyuchenkova then took the leap into the big time exclusively in 2008 and has begun a steady rise to the top 20.

So many of the talents we've seen recently have had splashes followed by slumps. But Pavlyuchenkova is different in the fact that she has maintained a slower rise rather than a flash, giving her time to mature.

This year was her break out year, in fact. She reached the quarterfinals at both Roland Garros (losing to Schiavone) and the U.S. Open (losing to Serena).

She's now solidly in the top 20 and she looks to continue her great run of form. She's got the game and she feels like, as Mary Carillo puts it, she belongs in the top echelon of professional tennis. Now, it's only a matter of when instead of if she gets to the semis and finals of the majors.

Her game is part of the Russian cookie cutter: big forehand, steady backhand, somewhat decent touch and a shaky serve. In fact, in one tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan, she lost a 3-set match, hitting 27 double faults.

That's the equivalent of seven games worth of only double faults (Kournikova anyone?), but she still managed to win a set. That's the kind of game off of the ground Pavlyuchenkova has.

She can absorb the pace very well, redirect it and hit some of her own. If she were to have the serve of, let's say, Serena Williams, she may have already claimed the French and U.S. Open titles, considering the surprise winners Li and Samantha Stosur.

Straightening out her serve has become a priority because it has only become worse with time. But don't worry, if her career indicates anything, she will still be making consistent strides in the right direction, unlike many who have tasted success.