Is Serena Williams’ Hold on the WTA’s No. 1 Ranking Suddenly in Danger?

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at Internationaled.org

Published: April 1, 2016

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Serena Williams has held the No. 1 ranking on the WTA Tour for 163 consecutive weeks. She's been so dominant over the past three years that even after a loss, her reign at the top never seemed in doubt, until now.  

A surging Victoria Azarenka and surprisingly consistent Angelique Kerber pose a serious threat to Williams' No. 1 ranking.

Williams leads the WTA field with 9,505 points. She'll lose 880 of those points after failing to defend her title in Miami. 

When the new rankings come out on Monday, Azarenka will be back in the Top 5 for the first time since May 2014. Kerber will return to No. 2 and be within 2,600 points of Williams.

The points' math is stacked against Williams, and the pressure is on. 

After losing to Roberta Vinci in the semifinals of the 2015 U.S. Open, Williams had 11,500 points and nearly a 6,000-point lead over then-No. 2 Simona Halep.

But after shutting down her season early and failing to defend titles at the WTA Tour Championships, the Australian Open and Miami, Williams is suddenly vulnerable.

She heads into the clay-court season with 4,000 points to defend at the French Open and Wimbledon. 



Meanwhile, because she struggled last year, Azarenka has fewer than 1,000 points to defend between now and Wimbledon. Early exits by Williams and title wins from Azarenka could put Vika in position to get back on top by the end of this year. 

Although Kerber has to defend titles at Charleston and Stuttgart, last year she lost in the third round at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. With more favorable draws, Kerber could make a run at points in the last three Slams. 

Williams' best chance to make up ground comes in Rome, where she did not play last year. At stake is a chance to best Steffi Graf (186) for most consecutive weeks at No. 1.

Azarenka began the year with just 2...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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