Ana Ivanovic has reclaimed the World No.1 singles ranking, a distinction she will hold for at least the next two weeks.
The 20-year old Serb, who held the No.1 ranking for nine weeks earlier this year, returns to the top of the rankings replacing compatriot Jelena Jankovic.
Entering the Olympics three players had a chance to capture the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour World No.1 – Ivanovic, Jankovic and Svetlana Kuznetsova. Both Jankovic and Kuznetsova had a chance at the No.1 ranking if they could reach the finals in Beijing, but an opening round loss to China’s Li Na ended Kuznetsova’s bid, while Jankovic was eliminated by silver medalist Dinara Safina in the quarterfinals.
2007 POINTS DROPPED ON AUGUST 18: Toronto (Tier I)
Top 20 Rankings (August 18, 2008)
1. Ana Ivanovic – Serbia – 3612
2. Jelena Jankovic – Serbia – 3515
3. Svetlana Kuznetsova – Russia – 3455
4. Serena Williams – United States – 3341
5. Elena Dementieva – Russia – 3194
6. Maria Sharapova – Russia – 3131
7. Dinara Safina – Russia – 3077
8. Venus Williams – United States – 2586
9. Vera Zvonareva – Russia – 2117
10. Agnieszka Radwanska – Poland – 2076
11. Anna Chakvetadze – Russia – 2041
12. Daniela Hantuchova – Slovakia – 1805
13. Marion Bartoli – France – 1635
14. Agnes Szavay – Hungary – 1624
15. Victoria Azarenka – Belarus – 1593
16. Patty Schnyder – Switzerland – 1542
17. Flavia Pennetta – Italy – 1335
18. Alize Cornet – France – 1291
19. Dominika Cibulkova – Slovakia – 1202
20. Nadia Petrova – Russia – 1181
SONY ERICSSON WTA TOUR RANKINGS
The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Rankings is the worldwide computer ranking for women’s professional tennis.
The ranking system is a 52-week, cumulative system in which the number of Tournament results that comprise a player’s ranking is capped at 17 Tournament results for Singles and 11 Tournament results for Doubles.
The results used to determine a player’s ranking are the Tournaments yielding the player’s highest Ranking points over the past 52 weeks.
I didn’t think I’d ever seen the day when Serena Williams had the real chance to be number one without totally dominating again (given his own inconsistencies and limited playing schedule), but if she stays healthy and puts in a great performance at the US Open (semi or better), she has a great shot to get to number one with the inconsistencies of the top players.
Kurt, I agree. If Venus and Serena boost their schedules a bit, one of them could very well make a big challenge for No. 1.
Serena is less than 300 points behind Ivanovic, so a run for the top spot is certainly a possibility.
This might just be her best opportunity to reclaim her past glory.