The 2023 Australian Open begins Monday, with top American players Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula both set to take the court on the first day of action.

Just Women’s Sports highlights Gauff, Pegula and two more players who should have your attention at the year’s first major tournament.

Coco Gauff

Gauff had a year to remember in 2022, including her first major final appearance at the French Open. And she’s off to a strong start in 2023 with a title win in Auckland. While just the third title of her career, she sits at No. 7 in the world.

“Honestly it’s been a fantastic week for me despite the rain, I can’t ask for a better start to the season,” Gauff said after the win in Auckland.

At the Australian Open, she’ll face off against world No. 48 Katerina Siniakova on Monday, though the match will begin at 7 p.m. ET Sunday in the United States, with Iga Swiatek potentially waiting in the quarterfinals.

waited my whole life for this 💀😭@FTiafoe https://t.co/5QR8o2ieg4

— Coco Gauff (@CocoGauff) January 11, 2023

Ons Jabeur

Ons Jabeur also had a standout 2022, reaching her first two Grand Slam finals at Wimbledon and the US Open. In doing so, she became the first African woman and the first Tunisian and Arab player – man or woman – to make a Grand Slam final.

While she didn’t come out on top in those matches, Jabeur did rocket up to a career-high world No. 2 ranking.

She’ll start her Australian Open run Tuesday against Slovenia’s Tamara Zidansek.

I hope to have inspired Tunisia, the African continent and the Arab world throughout my Wimbledon journey. I'll be back on Centre Court! Keep dreaming young girl 🍓

Eid Mubarak to all muslims around the world ✨ pic.twitter.com/gj1dRWPDlo

— Ons Jabeur (@Ons_Jabeur) July 9, 2022

Iga Swiatek

Last year, Swiatek made the Australian Open semifinals, but she fell to Madison Keys, who then lost to Ash Barty in the championship match. Barty retired immediately after that tournament, which clears the path between Swiatek and the title.

After the 2022 tournament, Swiatek went on a historic 37-match winning streak to cap off her ascent to the world No. 1 ranking.

She also won two majors on the year, including the US Open. At the US Open, she faced off against Jule Niemeier, who will be her first-round opponent at the Australian Open. Swiatek won their meeting in Flushing Meadows in three sets.

“It’s nice also that we played not so long ago, so I can take a lot from that match,” she said. “Now I know how her ball feels on the racquet. But she has the same.”

🎾 Time for the @AustralianOpen. 1st round tomorrow
🎾 Czas na #AustralianOpen. Jutro o 9.00 rano mój mecz pierwszej rundy pic.twitter.com/v16tue33MO

— Iga Świątek (@iga_swiatek) January 15, 2023

Jessica Pegula

Historically, Jessica Pegula has done well Down Under. In her past two appearances in the Australian Open, Pegula has made the quarterfinals. To open the year, she went 4-1 at the United Cup, which included a straight-set win over world No. 1 Swiatek.

She currently sits at No. 3 in the world, which is a career high. She’s the highest-ranked American, male or female, after only just cracking the top 100 in 2019. Last year, she made three quarterfinal appearances in the Grand Slams, including the US Open.

A month after the year’s final major, she won her first WTA 1000 title in Guadalajara, defeating four consecutive Grand Slam champions to do so.

PWHL fans can now own a piece of hockey history, as the third-year league unveiled a new memorabilia collection with auction site The Realest on Thursday morning.

According to a release, the partnership creates "the first-ever witness-based, fully-authenticated collection of game-used and player-sourced PWHL hockey jerseys, equipment, and one-of-a-kind artifacts."

"As we enter our third season of unprecedented growth and record-shattering fan support, it was important to preserve our league's history and share those moments with our fans," PWHL VP of merchandising Kate Boyce also added.

The debut collection features memorabilia from all six original franchises as well as the two new 2025/26 expansion teams, with fans able to bid on game-used collectables like Montréal Victoire captain Marie-Philip Poulin's game-worn 2025 PWHL Playoffs jersey, a stick from then-Boston Fleet star and now-Seattle Torrent captain Hilary Knight, and Minnesota Frost defender Natalie Buchbinder's helmet.

Additional items include 2025 PWHL Draft selection cards as well as autographed posters and pucks, among other exclusives.

"From day one, we set out to make women's sports memorabilia a true category, not an afterthought, and our record-setting work across women's leagues proves the demand," said The Realest CEO Scott Keeney.

How to score PWHL memorabilia

The PWHL collection is now open for bidding via The Realest, with all items in the league's debut auction set to close on Sunday, December 28th.

The WTA scored a major victory this week, entering into a multi-year partnership with luxury automaker Mercedes-Benz that has the potential to become the largest deal in women's sports history.

Mercedes-Benz signed on as the pro tennis association's premier partner on Wednesday, committing $50 million per year to the WTA for up to 10 years — a possible lifetime value of half a billion dollars.

What's more, the deal's intention is to help the WTA Tour reach its goal of achieving equal prize money across all men's and women's tournaments and standalone tennis competitions by 2031.

While the four Grand Slams already achieved equal purses nearly two decades ago, this week's partnership allowing the WTA to recommit to adopting that prize money parity across all its events.

The move also reflects the growing global investment in women's sports, building on the WTA's expiring four-year, $20 million-per-year contract with Hologic.

"From the day we founded the WTA, our mission was to ensure that every girl, every woman, could have a place to compete... and make a living playing the sport she loves," legend Billie Jean King said in a press release. "Seeing a global brand like Mercedes-Benz stand with us sends a message that echoes far beyond tennis. It says women's sport matters."

One NWSL legend isn't hanging up her club boots just yet, as former USWNT goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher signed a one-year contract to remain in net for the Chicago Stars this week.

The 2026 NWSL season will mark the 37-year-old's 11th season with the Stars, where she holds the club record for regular-season starts and appearances (165), minutes played (14,821), and saves (512).

"I feel like I still have more to give and want to be out there competing with my teammates and continue to push this organization forward," Naeher said in a Wednesday club statement. "We made a lot of positive strides to close out last season and I want to build on that."

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Naeher and her veteran presence will be a boost for Chicago as the team welcomes new head coach Martin Sjögren, with the Stars aiming for consistency after cycling through three interim sideline leaders following Lorne Donaldson's April firing.

The Stars finished the 2025 season in last place, and have not made it past the first round of the NWSL Playoffs since 2021.

"If you feel like you can still give 100% to what you're trying to do, then keep going," Naeher told fellow NWSL vet Ali Riley on Monday's episode of BFFR. "If you don't think that you can, then it's not fair to yourself or the team to do that."

With just one league-phase matchday left, a trio of unbeaten clubs — Barcelona, OL Lyonnes, and Chelsea — stand alone atop the 2025/26 Champions League table, leading the 18-team pack after all three squads notched midweek wins.

No. 1 Barcelona and No. 2 OL Lyonnes each have 13 points, with the Spanish contenders earning the edge over their French counterparts with a +15 goal differential.

Meanwhile, Chelsea sits in third with 11 points following a 6-0 drubbing of No. 17 AS Roma on Wednesday, though the Blues will need a result against No. 7 Wolfsburg next week to secure a spot in March's quarterfinals with a top-four finish.

Though the byes into the quarterfinals are still up for grabs, with just one matchday left before the knockouts, several of Europe's biggest teams have qualified for February's playoffs.

Wolfsburg alongside No. 10 Paris FC, No. 9 Manchester United, No. 8 Arsenal, No. 6 Juventus, No. 5 Real Madrid, and No. 4 Bayern Munich have already racked up enough points to advance out of the league phase.

Three clubs — No. 13 Vålerenga, No. 12 Oud-Heverlee Leuven, and No. 11 Atlético de Madrid — are fighting for the two remaining playoff tickets, with December 17th's simultaneous kickoff set to determine the winners.

How to watch the final 2025/26 Champions League league-phase matches

Determining both the first four UWCL quarterfinalists and the eight teams entering the playoffs, the final league-phase matchday will see all 18 clubs kicking off at 3 PM ET next Wednesday.

All 2025/26 Champions League matches will stream live on Paramount+.