Caroline Wozniacki: The Next Anna Kournikova Or a Legitimate No. 1?
This looked like it was going to be the one for Caroline Wozniacki. It really did.
Having cruised in her first five matches and a favorable semifinal matchup against No. 9-ranked Li Na, Wozniacki was just two wins away from capturing her first Grand Slam title at this year's Australian Open.
But then, just like it it has so many times before, it all fell apart for the 20-year-old Wozniacki.
Having match point in her favor, needing just one final ace to put the match away and reach the final, Wozniacki could not hold her serve and she allowed Ni to come back and eventually win the match 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Wozniacki's No. 1 world ranking has been publicly scrutinized since the second she earned the title. She won six WTA titles in 2010, more than any other woman on the tour, but again, she has yet to win a major Grand Slam tournament.
The verdict is still out there on Wozniacki as to whether she is as good as she is hyped up to be. Is she the next Anna Kournikova, a female player who receives a ton of attention and is extremely well known in the women's tennis world, but doesn't quite have the resume to back up all the gratitude surrounding her? Or is Wozniacki truly worthy of the title "top women's tennis player in the world?"
Let's break this down and figure out if Caroline Wozniacki is a legitimate No. 1?
Legitimate- Look at Her 2010 Resume
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Despite not winning a major tournament, Wozniacki had a very good year in 2010.
In total she won six WTA titles in the year, which was more than any other woman tennis player on the tour circuit.
In the four major Grand Slam tournaments, she made it to at least the fourth round, losing to respectable opponents each time.
Perhaps the most impressive statistic about 2010 was how Wozniacki closed out the year. She won five titles in the final five months of the year and was playing great tennis heading into 2011.
Not Legitimate- This Was Her Chance
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Everything in this Australian Open seemed to align perfectly for Caroline Wozniacki to win the tournament. She had a winnable matchup against Li Na, and then would have faced No. 3 ranked Kim Clijsters in the final round had she won.
She was quoted after the match for saying "my time will come," but how long are fans and everyone in the tennis world really going to keep believing that statement?
The No. 1 ranked player in the world has to win a major tournament in order to retain that ranking. At least one would think that's the case.
Legitimate- She Racks Up The Wins
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Since the start of the 2010 season, Wozniacki has competed in 23 events and has reached the semifinals at least 11 times, and the finals eight times. That is an outstanding number, which just adds to her case for being the world's No. 1 ranked player.
Wozniacki tops both Serena Williams and Kim Clijsters with those numbers and also has more total wins than both of them since 2010.
Again, she has not won a Grand Slam title, but her consistency is certainly there and she has piled on the victories at a greater pace than anyone over the past 13 months.
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Not Legimate- She's On Her Way to Being The Next Anna
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Anna Kournikova will always maintain her title of being the biggest sex symbol in not only all of tennis, but quite possible all of women's professional sports.
People often forget that she is even competing at the sport, because they are so busy trying to find her photos on a goggle images search or in a Maxim top-100 magazine.
Well guess what folks, Caroline Wozniacki could very well be coming down that path as well. The more time she spends without winning a major title, the less time people invest in believing she is a great tennis player and start wondering how long until she is going to be the next big sex symbol in women's tennis?
She has the looks that fit a model and maybe not to long from now, the soon-to-be 21 year old star gets in front of the camera and shows off her stuff outside of the tennis court.
Legitimate- Just Look at The Formula To Be No. 1
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According to the Womens Tennis Association, their world rankings are based on a 52-week cumulative system, and a singles player's ranking is determined by her results at a maximum for 16 tournaments.
The tournaments that count towards a player's ranking are those that yield the highest ranking points during the 52-week period. They must include points from the Grand Slams, Premier Mandatory tournaments and the WTA Championships.
With that said, Wozniacki's stats in the past year should tell why she is a ligament No. 1 player. She won more WTA singles titles than any other player, has a 67-19 record from the start of 2010 to now. She very well could be overtaken soon, but as of now, she stands ground with that top ranking.
Not Legitimate- She Can't Beat The Best of The Best
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Let's take a look at how Caroline Wozniacki has fared against some of the best women's tennis players in the world.
Well for starters, her career record against the woman who many believe is the top player in the world, Serena Williams, currently stands at 0-2. Serena's sister Venus, who has dropped in the rankings over the past couple of years, holds a 4-0 record against Wozniacki.
Alright, well she has to hold a better record against Kim Clijsters, who is the No. 3 ranked player in the world, right? Not so much. Wozniacki is winless against Clijsters as well, losing to her in straight sets at the 2009 U.S. Open and in three sets at the 2010 Tour Championships.
It's very difficult to declare someone as the best in the world if they have not beaten the best...not even once.
Legitimate- She Has Some Big Wins and Is Still Very Young
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At just 20-years-old, Caroline Wozniacki has accomplished a lot in her young, professional tennis career. Regardless of who she has yet to beat at this point, the fact is that she still has plenty of time to prove that she is a worthy No. 1.
Wozniacki might be winless against the Williams sisters and Clijsters, but she does have some other impressive wins on her resume. She currently holds a winning record against Vera Zvonareva, who is currently the No. 2 ranked player in the world right now.
She has also defeated No. 6 ranked Samantha Stosur on two separate occasions and holds a 2-2 series tie with Francesca Schiavone, who is ranked at No. 7 in the world.
Wozniacki has a lot of tennis ahead of her and she will get her shot at the Williams sisters and Kim Clijsters. It is only a matter of time.
Not Legitimate- Not a Good Start To 2011
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With a new year comes new hope, and for Caroline Wozniacki, 2011 was chance to come out strong and show the world that she isn't going to be the next Anna Kournikova. She is going to earn just as much attention on the tennis court as she has with her looks outside of the tennis court.
But so far this year, that has simply not been the case.
Wozniacki started off the year with a 6-3, 4-6 loss to Kim Clijsters on New Year's Day in Thailand.
At the Medibank International she was embarrassed in her first match losing to 32nd-ranked Dominika Cibulkova in straight sets. This came a week after she was humiliated by Vera Zvonareva at the Hong Kong Tennis Classic in Beijing, losing 6-1, 6-1.
To be kind and honest, this new year has not been a pretty one so far for Wozniacki.
Legitimate- Can't Argue With The Rankings
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Now this isn't the BCS we're talking about here, but if the system says that Caroline Wozniacki has accomplished enough to be the world's No. 1 player, then that is just how it is and how it is going to be.
It certainly isn't Wozniacki's fault that the system ranked her as the world's No. 1 player. Who even really knows if she truly believes she is worthy of that ranking?
Either way, the WTA uses a very proven set-in-stone criteria, which determines the worlds rankings and who is spotted where. Until someone puts up the wins and tournament victories to surpass Wozniacki in those rankings, that's just the way it is going to be.
Not Legitimate- Hasn't Won a Grand Slam
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I know that I have mentioned this already in this slideshow, but when it really comes down to it, this is the biggest reason hands-down why Caroline Wozniacki is not worthy of the worlds No. 1 ranking.
Whether or not the system proves to be correct, you will not find many people that follow women's tennis who believe that Wozniacki is worthy of her ranking until she wins a Grand Slam tournament.
She came close back in 2009, when she fell to Kim Clijsters at the US Open. She came close this past week when she made it to the semifinals and lost to China's Li Na in three sets. But in the world of professional sports, coming close simply doesn't cut it.
Conclusion
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Caroline Wozniacki has youth on her side.
At just 20 years old, she has not even entered her tennis prime yet. She has plenty of time to improve her game and show people that she is worthy of a No. 1 world ranking by winning a Grand Slam tournament.
But also keep in mind, that with the hype that surrounds being the No. 1 player in the world, comes some pressure. Wozniacki has the skills of a champion, but also contains the looks of a supermodel. She could easily get caught up in the attention and become the worlds most popular female athlete for reasons outside of the tennis court, very similar to what happened with Anna Kournikova.
Next to Serena Williams, Kournikova is the most popular womens tennis player in the world. But how many matches have people actually cared to see her play? Probably not that many. In fact, some people aren't even sure if she even does play tennis anymore.
Lesson to Caroline Wozniacki: Stick to focusing on tennis and do not go down the winding celebrity model road. If you stick to it, win some major tournaments and show that you can beat the best of the best, then you will earn that No. 1 ranking not only by the computers, by in the eye of everyone in the tennis world as well.
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