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By The Numbers: Battle For No.1

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

CINCINNATI, OH, USA – At the beginning of January few would have pegged Angelique Kerber as the player most likely to overthrow Serena Williams atop the rankings. This number would have dwindled further when she stood match point down against Misaki Doi in the opening round of the Australian Open.

What happened next will go down in tennis folklore, Kerber somehow negotiating her way out of this cul-de-sac and going on to lift her maiden Grand Slam trophy. A wonderfully consistent summer has built on this career momentum, establishing Kerber as a rival to long-time World No.1 Williams at the game’s summit.

Victory over Karolina Pliskova in Sunday’s final of the Western & Southern Open will not only give her more silverware but also the No.1 ranking. Should she do so, it will end one of the most dominant reigns in WTA history. So to mark the potential changing of the guard, wtatennis.com has picked out some notable numbers…

38,473,935 – Williams’ sixth and current spell at the top of the rankings began on February 18, 2013. Since then she has amassed $38,473,935 in prize money – nearly half her career total of $80,899,060.

4,880,887 – Not including her earnings this week, Kerber has already accumulated a career-best $4,880,887 this season.

6,355 – At the start of 2016, then No.10 Kerber trailed Williams by 6,355 points in the rankings.

306 – Williams is currently enjoying her 306th career week at No.1 (third-most weeks at No.1 in WTA history after Steffi Graf’s 377 and Martina Navratilova’s 332).

183 – Of the above total, 183 have come in her latest reign. Williams is spending her 183rd straight week at No.1 (the second-longest streak at No.1 in WTA history after Graf’s 186). Her previous longest streak was 57 (between July 8, 2002 and August 10, 2003).

47 – Kerber has already notched up 47 wins this season, a record not matched by any other player on tour. Williams has posted 33.

34 – Thirty-four-year-old Williams is the oldest No.1 in WTA history, a record she first set when returning to No.1 on February 18, 2013

28 – At 28, Kerber would be the oldest first-time No.1. Her closest competition is Jennifer Capriati, who was 25 years and seven months old.

22 – Kerber is bidding to become the 22nd woman to reach the summit of the rankings.

18 – Williams’ win-loss record in this latest stint at the summit is a staggering 204-18.

12 – When a 20-year-old Williams reached No.1 for a first time in July 2002 she was the 12th different woman to scale the top of the rankings.

2 – Kerber is hoping to become the second German, after Graf, to be ranked No.1. Other nations to have multiple No.1s are the United States (Chris Evert, Navratilova, Tracy Austin, Monica Seles, Lindsay Davenport, Capriati, Venus Williams, Serena), Serbia/Yugoslavia* (Seles, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic), Belgium (Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin) and Russia (Maria Sharapova, Dinara Safina).

* Before her change of citizenship Seles, who was born in the Serbian city of Novi Sad, represented Yugoslavia

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News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MELBOURNE, Australia – Serena Williams won her 23rd Grand Slam title with a 6-4, 6-4 win over sister Venus Williams at the Australian Open, earning an Open Era record in tennis.

Click here to relive Serena’s 23rd Grand Slam title courtesy of the WTA Insider Live Blog.

“It’s such a great feeling to have 23,” she said after the match. “I’ve been chasing it for a really long time. When it got on my radar, I knew I had an opportunity to get there, and I’m here. I’m here.

“It’s a great feeling, and no better place to do it than Melbourne.”

Williams, 35, had equaled Stefanie Graf’s record with her 2016 Wimbledon triumph. The German’s original 22-slam mark had stood since the 1999 French Open.

Serena now has seven Australian Open titles, making it her joint-most successful Grand Slam alongside Wimbledon. She has also won six US Open titles and three at Roland Garros.

Venus and Serena mowed throught the draw playing vintage tennis to book their first meeting in Melbourne in 14 years, when Serena took a three-set thriller to capture the first of two Non-Calendar Year “Serena” Slams.

“My first Grand Slam started here, and getting to 23 here, but playing Venus, it’s stuff that legends are made of. I couldn’t have written a better story.

“I just feel like it was the right moment. Everything kind of happened. It hasn’t quite set in yet, but it’s really good.”

The sisters were facing off in the 28th match of their storied rivalry, and their ninth Grand Slam final, but the first since 2009.

“I don’t think I felt at all awkward,” Venus said in her post-match press conference. “I felt ready. I mean, I haven’t played in a final for a number of years, but I don’t think it’s something you forget. I mean, I played a good amount of ’em, so…

“Experience was right there for me.”

Saturday’s match was similarly tense, with both sisters aware of what was on the line; a win for Serena would not only break the Open Era record but also restore her atop the WTA rankings after dropping to No.2 last summer at the US Open.

Venus and Serena exchanged breaks to start the match, with the No.2 seed settling in sooner to take the opening set behind seven aces and 16 winners.

The crowd did its best to lift Venus in the second set in the hopes of seeing a decider, and the Americans continued performing at a high level throughout the 81 minute match.

“I feel like I had opportunities, for sure,” Venus said. “Just missed some shots. But it’s not like I missed shots that I wasn’t going for. I went for those shots. It’s a matter of inches.

“Some errors here or there can mean the difference between a break of serve or a hold.”

But Serena, who came into the match with a 20-0 record after winning the first set in Grand Slam finals, proved too strong in the end, breaking serve just once in the seventh game to serve out the record-breaking victory, hitting a total of 27 winners to just 23 unforced.

Serena improved her overall head-to-head against Venus to 17-11, and an impressive 7-2 in Grand Slam finals – the only two losses to big sister coming at the 2001 US Open and 2008 Wimbledon Championships, which was, incidentally, the last time the Williams sisters and Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal all met in the same major final.

The win was Serena’s 316th at Grand Slam tournaments, improving on her already-record total, and returns her to No.1 in the world, usurping Angelique Kerber.

As for Venus, the result is still her best at a major tournament in seven years, and brings her back to within 200 points of returning to the Top 10.

In the meantime, she was more than happy to give kudos to her younger sister after her historic achievement.

“[23], it’s a great number,” Venus said. “I know she would like to have a little more. Who wouldn’t? It was a great moment. I’m very happy that she’s been able to, you know, get to No.23 because there’s 22 ahead of that that she also earned, and she earned it.

“It was great to have an opportunity to play for the title. That’s exactly where I want to be standing during these Grand Slams, is on finals day, having an opportunity. That’s the highlight of all this, is to be in that moment.”

Serena Williams

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Where To Watch: Dubai

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Premier
Prize Money: $2,000,000
Draw Size: 28 main draw (4 byes)/32 qualifying
Qualifying Dates: Saturday, February 13 – Monday, February 15
First Day of Main Draw: Monday, February 15
Singles Final: Saturday, February 20, NB 7.00pm GST
Doubles Final: Saturday, February 20, 5pm GST (before singles final)

MUST FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@DDFTennis – official tournament handle
Get involved in conversations with the official hashtags, #ddftennis and #WTA.

TOURNAMENT NOTES:
· Simona Halep has accepted a wildcard to defend her Dubai title.
· There have been five different champions in the past five years in Dubai. There are two returning champions in the field this year – Halep (2015), Petra Kvitova (2013).
· For the complete draw click here.

WILDCARDS:
Simona Halep (ROU), Petra Kvitova (CZE), Karolina Pliskova (CZE)

WITHDRAWALS:
Angelique Kerber (right thigh injury), Agnieszka Radwanska (left leg), Lucie Safarova (bacterial infection), Serena Williams (illness), Caroline Wozniacki (left knee injury)

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Insider Podcast: Kerber One Win Away

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

CINCINNATI, OH, USA – No.2 seed Angelique Kerber has looked better and better throughout a tough week at the Western & Southern Open, and stands just one win away from not only clinching her first Cincinnati title, but also the No.1 ranking.

Hear from Kerber and fellow finalist Karolina Pliskova, along with vanquished semifinalists Simona Halep and Garbiñe Muguruza, on their throughts from a wet and windy day in Cincinnati, and whether Kerber’s felt the burden of potentially becoming the oldest woman to ever debut atop the WTA Rankings:

Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn or on any podcast app of your choice to ensure you never miss an episode when they go live. Reviews are always helpful, so if you like what you’ve heard so far, leave us one. You can also get new episode alerts by following us on Twitter @WTA_Insider.

Follow @WTA_Insider

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News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

TAIPEI CITY, Taiwan – No.6 seed Misaki Doi survived a rollercoaster encounter against her countrywoman Nao Hibino to record the first win of the tournament at the Taiwan Open, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

“It was a very tough match, she was playing really good and very aggressive,” Doi told press after the win. “After the second set, I just tried to believe in myself and that I could do it, and just focused my tennis.”

The No.41-ranked Japanese, who reached the final here last year, started out strong against Hibino, breaking twice to ease through the opening set. But Hibino, ranked No.102, hit back in the second – breaking twice and saving two break chances to restore parity.

“When he came to the court my coach told me to be more aggressive and add more spin, because [Hibino] likes to play with a flat ball,” Doi explained. “I tried to move her around a lot, too.”

In the third set, Doi saw her 2-0 lead erased as Hibino climbed back to level the match at 4-4. The pair wrestled for momentum until Doi finally broke for a third time to close out the two-hour battle and move into the second round.

Shelby Rogers

No.7 seeded American Shelby Rogers had a more straightforward road into round two, breezing past local wildcard Lee Ya-Hsuan in an hour and 15 minutes.

“Playing a local girl like Lee was pretty fun,” Rogers enthused after the match. “She had a lot of fans out there, and she had a really great game. She’s definitely got a lot of potential.

“The first round is never easy, especially with the crowd against you but I’m happy I got through it and being in the second round.”

Lee thrilled the Taiwanese fans when she grabbed the first lead of the match with a well-earned break to the Rogers serve, but it was short-lived as the American broke straight back. From then it was all Rogers, who eased into the second round in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4.

Also through at the Taiwan Open are No.4 seed Anastasija Sevastova and No.5 seed Katerina Siniakova, who moved past Kato Miyu and Galina Voskoboeva, respectively.

Tunisian qualifier Ons Jabeur knocked out Nicole Gibbs in a three-set battle, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1, while Mandy Minella advanced after a 1-6, 7-6(2), 6-4 win over Jana Cepelova. Romania’s Sorana Cirstea saw herself being forced to retire in her match due to a left wrist injury, sending Risa Ozaki through, 7-6(3), 3-2.

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Ranking Watch: Pliskova On The Move

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Understandably, given the potentially seismic shift at the top of the rankings, Karolina Pliskova’s mightily impressive progress through the draw at last week’s Western & Southern Open went largely unnoticed. Unnoticed that is until she scuppered plans for Angelique Kerber’s World No.1 coronation with a flawless display in the final of the Premier 5 event.

Having enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2015 – reaching six finals and threatening to qualify for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global – Pliskova has found success harder to come by this time around. There have been flashes of her explosive brilliance – most notably in Indian Wells, where she reached the last four, and on the grass of Nottingham and Eastbourne – but consistency has remained elusive.  

This past weekend, the Czech proved once more that her place at tennis’ top table is very much warranted, outplaying Garbiñe Muguruza then Kerber to take home the sixth and most prestigious title of her career. The result bumps Pliskova several places up the rankings from No.17 to 11. Not only is Pliskova now certain to be among the leading 16 seeds for the US Open, she is also within touching distance – a measly 55 points, to be precise – of reclaiming the Top 10 spot she held briefly last season.

A more pressing concern is fulfilling her undoubted potential at the Grand Slams, where she is yet to make it beyond the third round. Her ranking rise has aided hopes of a good showing at the US Open, which begins next Monday.

Pliskova, though, was not the only player to receive a potential seeding boost.

Timea Babos (+8, No.41 to No.33): Also performing well in Cincinnati was Babos, whose first quarterfinal at an event of this stature was rewarded with a career-high ranking and a possible seeding at the US Open.

Alizé Cornet (+11, No.58 to No.47): It has been a testing campaign for Cornet, injuries precipitating a slide down the rankings and, in Cincinnati, forcing her to qualify for a WTA event for the first time since April 2012. She came through the test, going on to upset Kiki Bertens in the first round to edge back into the Top 50.

Alison Riske (+11, No.70 to No.59): Another player to come through qualifying was Riske, and while she was unable to capitalize on a bright start to upset Svetlana Kuznetsova in the second round, the points earned ensure she continues to close in on a return to the Top 50 for the first time since last September.

And finally…
Strictly speaking, Sania Mirza did not move up in the rankings last week, but by outperforming former partner Martina Hingis in Cincinnati she now assumes sole ownership of the doubles No.1 ranking. It is her 70th week on top – only Gigi Fernandez (80 weeks), Paola Suarez (87), Sara Errani (87), Roberta Vinci (110), Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario (111), Natasha Zvereva (124), Lisa Raymond (137), Cara Black (163), Liezel Huber (199) and Martina Navratilova (237) have been World No.1 for longer.

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