On 23 September 2002, she reached her career-high singles ranking, when she peaked at world No.

2002 was the first year that Panova really jumped into the spotlight, reaching finals in Auckland and Sarasota early in the season.

That year she also reached quarterfinals of Miami Open by beating Arantxa Sánchez Vicario in straight sets.

She reached the third round of Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and at the US Open, defeating Mirjana Lučić and Anna Kournikova along the way.

Martina Navratilova, at age 45, beat her at Eastbourne, in her first singles match in eight years.