No one knew her name. No one knew she was coming. Suddenly, lightning struck Victoria Mboko's tennis journey during her phenomenal 22-match win streak that vaulted her up the WTA rankings since the beginning stages of the 2025 season. Now, she's a massive winner.
Many times in the past, we've seen a surprise candidate emerge from the shadows and wow the tennis world by ripping through a major tournament, causing everyone to speculate if they are the next big thing.
Melanie Oudin's captivating US Open run in 2009 brings back similar memories. Her dream run shocked the world and her opponents. She came out of nowhere and was the story of the year, but it wasn't long after that that Oudin faded. It's been quite some time since we've seen someone shoot out of the cannon so unexpectedly, and in the fashion that Oudin did, and now Mboko has just done.
Will Victoria Mboko take the reins and run, or fade away?
It's incredibly hard not to root for someone who so suddenly appeared and pulled off the greatest victory of their life, only to have their next event be one of the biggest tournaments of the year. This is the reality that awaits Mboko after capturing the National Bank Open just over a week ago.
After her win, Mboko now sits in the top 25 on the WTA tour, which was a substantial jump from where she sat at the beginning of the year. In seven months since January, Mboko has embarked on a stunning ride, going from outside the top 300 to where she is now.
Her rapid rise was aided by her four titles won on the ITF circuit during that 22-match win streak. Now, she will walk into the US Open as a seeded player in the main draw of the US Open in New York. While the chance to represent herself on the stage of a Grand Slam event is everything she's dreamed of, Mboko isn't taking it for granted by any means.
Not long ago, Mboko was not a name anyone paid attention to, if anyone knew her name at all. Now, she's arguably one of the biggest stories going into the US Open. How she fares in her first Grand Slam test is another story that will be followed closely. She's carrying tons of good vibes and motivation to perform at her highest level.
Hopefully, for the sake of her incredible story, at the very least, Mboko's rise and the hype that now surrounds her will continue after the US Open, regardless of her results over the coming two weeks. Hopefully, Mboko's story is not one that fades quickly, but one that sees more lightning. Now, everyone knows her name.