Halep AGAIN escapes from the No.1 ranking, hands Pliskova the throne

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Wilson Blade 9

Not even the third try was a lucky charm for Simona Halep, as after lost chances at the French Open and Eastbourne, the Romanian failed to grab the No.1 ranking from Angelique Kerber by losing her Wimbledon quarterfinal to Johanna Konta, meaning that Karolina Pliskova will be the new top-ranked WTA player when the standings are updated on Monday.

The second-ranked Halep first had a chance to clinch the No.1 ranking in the French Open final, but the claycourt Grand Slam title went into the hands of underdog Jelena Ostapenko, 4-6 6-4 6-3. At her next tournament, on the grass of the Aegon International Eastbourne, the 25-year-old was two matches away from occupying the historic ranking, but lost to Caroline Wozniacki 5-7 6-4 6-1 in the quarterfinals. Shortly afterwards, at Wimbledon, Halep got her third opportunity.

Current world No.1 Kerber lost in the fourth round of Wimbledon, having had to make at least the final to retain her ranking, meaning that Halep’s win in the quarterfinals would automatically take her to the top spot. Despite winning the opening set and being two points away from victory in the second-set tiebreak, that was not to happen and British darling Johanna Konta made history for her country by winning that tiebreak and then the deciding set, becoming the first British semifinalist at Wimbledon since Virginia Wade in 1978. Konta’s 6-7(2) 7-6(5) 6-4 triumph booked her a meeting with five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams, who is heading back to the Top 10.

Notice that in all these three matches Halep won the first set!

So, third-ranked Karolina Pliskova will be the new WTA No.1 in Monday! It feels a bit weird to congratulate her, as the Czech lost to Magdalena Rybarikova way back in the second round of Wimbledon, but the big-server definitely deserves the top spot.

The WTA CEO Steve Simon promptly acknowledged Pliskova’s big achievement.

In the meantime, Halep will wait for yet another chance, dreading that this nightmare could come true:

5 COMMENTS

  1. It’s a shame that a lot of people are too focused on Karolina’s lack of grand slams and writing her off because other than that early Wimbledon exit she’s had a really good past 12 months (4 titles, quarter/semi/final in the other slams). Hopefully this will lead to something for her 🙂 I wonder how long she’ll be able to hang on to it since she’s got those Cincinnati and US Open points from last year.

    I saw it coming but I still feel gutted for Halep. Konta should be proud of her progress, though I admit the whole “home favourite/home crowd” situation bugs me. I want Venus to win, but good on her if she does make the final!

    I’m rooting for Muguruza in the other semifinal but damn I’m happy for Rybarikova, what a great comeback she’s had.

  2. On a side note I didn’t get to catch the Halep/Konta match so I watched the Wimbledon videos on YouTube and YIKES @ the dislikes. The crowd was terrible especially on that one point but it wasn’t Konta’s fault 🙁 also as a fellow Aussie all those “she’s not even British” complaints make me laugh. She’s a good person, she doesn’t deserve all this negativity.

  3. Jo Konta has won three competitive and tight 3 set matches at Wimbledon this year..against Vekic, Garcia, and now Halep. Methinks the home crowd definitely gives her an advantage. She will probably play another 3-setter against Venus in the semifinals.

    Btw Marija, love the video of the dog and the frisbee..I used to have a golden retriever who was like this with the frisbee, but she sure could catch the tennis balls! 🙂

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