As the U. S. Open Series concludes at the end of this week, the top women players from around the world will gather in Flushing Meadows for the last Grand Slam tournament of the year, the U. S. Open. We look ahead at the top WTA contenders and dark horses who could lift the trophy at the end of the tournament.

Contenders

Serena Williams

At the seasoned tennis age of 32, Serena Williams is still conquering her rivals. Despite not reaching a quarterfinal at any Grand Slam this year, Serena heads into the U. S. Open as the favorite, where she hopes to pick up her 18th major singles title. Since losing in the fourth round of Wimbledon to Alize Cornet, the two-time defending U. S. Open champion has proved to fans why she is still the best in the world. In her past three tournaments, Serena has gone 12-1, with her only loss coming to her sister, Venus. She has captured titles in Stanford and Cincinnati, along with winning her third U. S. Open Series bonus challenge in the last four years. Her lowly results in Grand Slams may have driven her to succeed this summer and helped her regain her top form. If she holds her momentum for next week, expect her to make a serious threat to hoist her sixth U. S. Open trophy.

Maria Sharapova

At many times this season, Maria Sharapova has been unbeatable. Her three titles and consistent results have lifted her atop the year-to-date rankings heading into next week. Even though her best results this year have been on clay, Sharapova knows the can contend for this title. The 2006 champion ended her season early last year after Cincinnati, when she withdrew from the U. S. Open and the year-end championships due to right shoulder problems. With no points to defend for the rest of the year, Sharapova will be able to build on her ranking and possibly end the year at world No. 1. A key for her success in New York is to have a favorable draw away from Serena Williams. This year, Sharapova has conquered all the top players except Serena, posting a 7-1 record against other members of the top 10. If Serena stumbles before Sharapova does, she could raise the trophy on championship Sunday.

Agnieszka Radwanska

Radwanska has had an inconsistent season by her standards but has posted notable results as of late. In Montreal, she captured her second Premier Five title and reached the quarterfinals in Cincinnati to help boost her seeding to No. 4 next week. The U. S. Open is the only Grand Slam where Radwanska has yet to make a quarterfinal appearance. However, her crafty style of play gives all foes headaches, and as long as she holds her game, she will be threatening to any player. 

Ana Ivanovic

With Li Na withdrawing from the U. S. Open, Ivanovic will go into next week with a top-eight seed. Her best achievements of the season include a win over Serena in Melbourne and two wins over Sharapova in Rome and Cincinnati last week. She has also won three titles and has made five finals this year. During the U. S. Open Series, Ivanovic made the final in Cincinnati and pushed Serena to three sets in Stanford. She is confident in her game and could be Serena’s biggest threat if they were to meet. This Grand Slam has been Ivanovic’s best chance at a major title since winning the French Open in 2008. She has only made two quarterfinals in a Grand Slam since then but is due for a deep run. 

Simona Halep

The new world No. 2 has had an even better season since making her breakthrough last year. Halep deserves the ranking she has and wants the world to know it. She has gone deep into each Grand Slam this season, including falling just a set short of the Roland Garros title, and hopes to add another impressive appearance to her resume. Halep’s best result in Flushing Meadows came last year, when she reached the fourth round. She was seeded 21st at the time, but this time her high seeding will give her a chance to lift her first major title.

Dark Horses

Venus Williams

This U. S. Open Series was not only an eye opener for Venus herself, but for the players around her. At 34 years old and playing in Montreal for the first time in her career, Venus battled her way through four three-set matches to reach the final. Her results highlighted a win over her sister, Serena, for the first time since 2009. Venus has reentered the top 20 for the first time since the beginning of 2011, and claims she’s playing her best since that year. It’s tough to say whether or not she can go all the way in seven matches, but Venus has given herself new life and a chance to make some noise in her home Grand Slam. 

Caroline Wozniacki

Since Caroline Wozniacki and Rory McIlroy split in May, both have been able to put themselves back in winning form. This summer, Wozniacki has arguably put up her best results in tournaments since losing the No. 1 singles ranking in the beginning of 2012. In July, she picked up her first singles title in nine months when she won the Istanbul Cup. She has shown glimpses of her top form during the North American swing, pushing Serena Williams to three sets in consecutive weeks in Montreal and Cincinnati, and she earned her first top-10 wins of the year last week over Angelique Kerber and Radwanska. The 2009 U. S. Open finalist is giving her fans belief, and with an expected No. 10 seed in the draw, she will be a tough out against any top player early.

Victoria Azarenka

It’s odd to see Azarenka in this category, but with her disappointing season continuing with a withdrawal from Cincinnati where she was the defending champion, she has dropped to No. 17. Azarenka is desperate for a good result. She will be defending finalist points at the U. S. Open. If she doesn’t make a good showing, she could drop outside the top 20. The positive note for her next week is that the U. S. Open is her second-best Grand Slam tournament statistically after the Australian Open. She is a two-time defending finalist and loves the crowd in New York. It’s not too late for her to get things going this season, and when her game is on, she’s dangerous.

Garbine Muguruza

Spain’s youngest star on the women’s side has shown she’s not afraid of the big stage in tennis. This season, Garbine Muguruza earned her first title in Hobart, along with her first win over a top-ranked player when she defeated Serena Williams in the second round of the French Open. She’s backed up her three top-10 wins with seven quarterfinal appearances this season. With a seeding inside the top 25, expect the 20-year-old to make some headlines in just her second appearance in Queens.

Coco Vandeweghe

Like many young Americans on the rise, Coco Vandeweghe has shown she can compete with the best. Vandeweghe started the season outside the top 100 with a ranking of No. 113. With the year she has had, however, she has skyrocket edto a career-high ranking of No. 38, with her first title coming at s’Hertogenbosch in June. In Montreal, Vandeweghe came through qualifying and defeated two top-10 players, Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic, before falling to Ekaterina Makarova in the quarterfinals. Her ranking outside the top 32 means she will be unseeded next week, but she’s proven she can be a threat to any player in any round. She is peaking at the right time and is ripe to pull off some big upsets.