You’ve probably heard by now that Serena Williams and Dinara Safina are playing for the No. 1 ranking this week at the China Open. With all the trash talking Serena’s done this season, it will be interesting to see if she snaps up this opportunity.
After a so-so win over Kaia Kanepi in her first match in Beijing, Serena sounded so-so about being No. 1 in her press conference:
Q: You withdrew from Tokyo with knee and toe injuries, how are you feeling now?
SERENA: I’m definitely not at 100 percent, but I’m just fighting and trying to do the best that I can.
Q: If you do better than Safina this week, you will take over the world number one spot, is that something you’re thinking about? Are you determined to do it here?
SERENA: You know it’s definitely on my radar, but honestly I have to make sure I am doing the best that I can, whatever that is. I would love to be number one, but I also want to pay the price to be number one. It will come eventually, if not, I’ll just keep trying.
Huh. So what does that mean?
*UPDATE* Dinara Safina was knocked out of the tournament on Monday by a Chinese wild card. So if Serena Williams can win her match on Tuesday, the No. 1 ranking is hers. . .for now.
Word has it that regardless of who is No. 1 this week, the ranking will still be up for grabs in Doha. Which means that the Real No. 1 drama could continue on to the bitter end!
Loading ...Tags: China Open, Safina, Serena, tennis, WTA
RELATED ARTICLES ON GOTOTENNIS |
Well Safina is out, so it's Serena's for the taking.
My sister-in-law
It's interesting, Serena can grab the #1 ranking again now that Safina is out. I remember she lost the #1 ranking to Jelena Jankovic about the same time this year.
i'm so over this whole thing. as much as i love tennis, it's been a long season and i'll just be happy to see the year end championships (hopefully on tv somewhere) and look forward to next season, with the return of justine, kim and hopefully an ever improving maria, plus improved serving and confidence!
improved serving for many of the top women is what i meant. it was frustrating to watch all the double faults and the drop in quality of play in many matches. now that i think about it, it might be the best thing ever for dinara to lose the #1 ranking. she put so much pressure on herself that it hurt her more than anything. sure she was impressive throughout the year, had some decent slam results, but overall she might be better off chasing the #1 ranking instead of desperately trying to hold onto it. i'd almost rather see her win her 1st GS, get that big monkey off her back and this way she can enjoy her tennis again! she should also have marat in her player's box whenever possible now that he's retiring.
well said…and yes, it would be great to see marat, or even her parents there supporting her.
i’m so over this whole thing. as much as i love tennis, it’s been a long season and i’ll just be happy to see the year end championships (hopefully on tv somewhere) and look forward to next season, with the return of justine, kim and hopefully an ever improving maria, plus improved serving and confidence!