Wozniacki beats Schiavone to secure year-end No. 1 ranking
Caroline Wozniacki secured the year-end No. 1 ranking Thursday after rallying to beat Francesca Schiavone of Italy 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 and book her place in the semifinals of the WTA Championships.
The 20-year-old Dane becomes the 10th woman to end the season on top of the rankings and the youngest since Martina Hingis in 2000. She replaced the injured Serena Williams at the top earlier this month and has won more titles (six) and more matches (61) than any other player in 2010.
''It's really great, that is something I've dreamed about since I was a little girl,'' Wozniacki said of the No. 1 ranking. ''I'm really happy, really proud about what I've achieved this year.''
Wozniacki admitted even a victory in Sunday's final probably won't be enough to silence the cynics who say she is undeserving of the top spot as she hasn't won a Grand Slam. But she said she wouldn't let the doubters diminish what the WTA called a ''fantastic achievement.''
''To be honest, there will be always skeptics,'' she said. ''There are always people saying you'll never reach the top 10, never reach the top 5 and ... you'll never win a big tournament. If you win a Grand Slam, people will say it was a lucky shot or an easy draw. For me, the most important thing is that I know I had a great season.''
Wozniacki's place in the semifinals was confirmed by the WTA later Thursday. Elena Dementieva could join Wozniacki on two wins and a loss if she beats Schiavone in Friday's final Maroon Group match, but she would be unable to win enough games to overhaul the top-seeded Wozniacki.
Sam Stosur, who beat Wozniacki on Wednesday, is also through to the semifinals from the Maroon Group, despite a defeat by Dementieva.
A win for Kim Clijsters against Victoria Azarenka in Thursday's final match would send her and No. 2-ranked Vera Zvonareva into the last four from the White Group.
French Open champion Schiavone started strongly against Wozniacki, who continued the erratic play that saw her upset by Stosur on Wednesday. Schiavone closed out the set with the help of three aces in the final game, but Wozniacki, with the help of some on-court coaching from her father, began to dictate play from the second set onwards.iu
''Francesca was playing really, really good in the first set and I didn't have too many chances to break her,'' Wozniacki said. ''I just hung in there and kept my focus and tried to get a little more aggressive and not let her dictate the game and that helped me through.''
Dementieva of Russia rallied to beat Stosur 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4) for her first group-stage win.
Stosur, the French Open runner-up, started out strong, but just as she looked in control after the first set, things began to unravel. She committed more than 34 errors during the 2 hour and 42 minute match and only managed to win a third of her break points.
She ceded the momentum to the quicker Dementieva in the second set, who repeatedly rushed the net and managed to unnerve Stosur with a mix of successful drop shots, backhands and a powerful forehand. Dementieva also proved a fighter, repeatedly coming back in the final set, closing out the match with a strong serve that Stosur returned long.
''I was trying to improve my game coming in this match,'' Dementieva said afterward. ''Playing someone who had a great win last night, I was trying to fight for every point and it feels great to win 7-6 in the third.''
Stosur, who rallied on Tuesday to beat Schiavone and has played some of her best tennis this tournament, said she didn't see the loss as a setback and wouldn't dwell on the fact she was up 5-4 and two points from winning the match.
''Yeah, I would have preferred to have won, there's not a doubt. To lose 6 in the third, it's not fun, but at least you know it's a matter of a few points here and there,'' the seventh-ranked Stosur said. ''You know, I know at 5-4, love-30 I was two points from winning the match and definitely had some chances to go ahead and do better.
''That's tennis. I'm not going to dwell on it. I tried my hardest and didn't quite come off. That's what happens when you play quality opponents.''
