Clijsters knocks Wozniacki from the top ranking

In a close match, Kim Clijsters of Belgium has effectively knocked Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark from her perch as World No. 1. In the Quarterfinals of the Australian Open, Clijsters defeated Wozniacki in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6(7-4).

Wozniacki will now be usurped by either Victoria Azarenka, Petra Kvitova, or Maria Sharapova, all three of whom are still in contention.

Clijsters dominated from the baseline for much of the match, and showed no visible effects from the twisted ankle she suffered against Na Li in the fourth round.

Wozniacki cruises into round 4 over Niculescu

Caroline Wozniacki cruised into the 4th round of the 2012 Australian Open with a straight sets win over Monica Niculescu.

World No. 1 Wozniacki had little trouble against No. 32 ranked Niculescu, closing out the match 6-2, 6-2.

Niculescu broke serve when Wozniacki was serving for the match at 5-1, but it was too little too late. Wozniacki closed out the match on the next game, and completed the match in one hour 16 minutes.

Wozniacki had 23 winners and three aces in her third round victory.

Wozniacki upset by Radwanska, could lose No. 1 ranking

World No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, was upset on Wednesday in a quarterfinal match at the 2012 WTA Apia International Sydney tournament by No. 7 seed, Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland.

Wozniacki had a chance to serve out the match at 5-4 in the second set, but was broken, then lost four straight games leading to a 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 defeat. In that final set, the 21-year-old Dane underwent multiple treatments on her left wrist.

Cibulkova dismisses Wozniacki, Pironkova sends Venus packing

No. 24 seed, Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia, played her heart out and narrowly defeated No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark in round four at Wimbledon, 1-6, 7-6(5), 7-5.

Also, No. 32 seed, Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria easily downed No. 23 seed, Venus Williams of the USA.

In the Quarterfinals, Dominika will face No. 6 seed, Maria Sharapova of Russia. Tsvetana will face No. 8 seed, Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic.

With Wozniacki, and both Williams sisters out of the picture, it sure opens up the field for the remaining players. Perhaps this is the year Maria Sharapova will add another championship to her list of titles.

Hantuchova wins stunning upset over Wozniacki

No. 28 seed, Daniela Hantuchova, pulled out a stunning upset over No. 1 seed, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, in a straight sets victory, 6-1, 6-3 in the third round of the 2011 French Open.

The 28-year-old Hantuchova from Slovakia stayed mentally tough the entire match, while 20-year-old Wozniacki of Denmark had trouble keeping the ball in the court.

Tied at one all in the opening set, Hantuchova went on a nine game winning streak running Wozniacki ragged, taking the first set 6-1 and gaining a 4-0 lead in the second. Wozniacki finally held serve again to bring it to 4-1, then broke to get to 4-2. She then held serve again, giving fans some hope that maybe she could launch a comeback and pull the match out.

Sharapova downs Stosur for title

No. 7 Maria Sharapova of Russia defeated No. 8 Samatha Stosur of Australia 6-2, 6-4 to win the championship at the Internazionali BNL d’ Italia Alice Cup in Rome on Sunday.

Sharapova was dominant from the start, winning 14 of the first 15 points in the match to take a 4-0 lead, finishing off that first set 6-2. Sharapova broke Stosur’s serve five times in all, winning the second set 6-4 to win the title.

Goerges defeats Wozniacki in 2nd meeting in a row

Julia Goerges, the 22 year-old rising star from Germany, defeated World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark for the 2nd time in two weeks. Goerges won the 3rd round of the 2011 WTA Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open in Madrid, Spain in a see-saw 3-set match ending up 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

Goerges downs Wozniacki for Porsche Tennis Grand Prix title

Unseeded Julia Goerges of Germany finished the best week of her career with her biggest victory, defeating World No. 1,
Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 7-6(3), 6-3.

There was only one break of serve in the 1 hour, 39 minute match, but that was all it took for Goerges to win the match.

The first set was a struggle with both players serving well, not allowing the other into their service games. Wozniacki created one break-point opportunity in the set but failed to convert, before Goerges raced through the tie-break.

Azarenka triumphs over Sharapova

No. 8 seed, Victoria Azarenka of Belarus easily triumphed over No. 16 seed, Maria Sharapova of Russia in a straight-sets victory, 6-1, 6-4, in the Final of the 2011 WTA Sony Ericsson Open in Miami on Saturday.

Azarenka came out with guns blazing, while Sharapova hardly got her guns out of the holster, with the resulting match not really what we would expect from a WTA Final. Azarenka broke serve the first eight times Sharapova served, taking a 6-1, 4-0 lead before Sharapova held serve for the first and only time. Sharapova then broke Azarenka’s serve twice to bring it up to 4-5, giving a little glimpse of hope. But Azarenka closed it out at 6-4.

Petkovic upsets Wozniacki at Sony Ericsson Open

No. 21 seed, Andrea Petkovic of Germany, pulled an upset over World No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark at the 2011 WTA Sony Ericsson Open, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3.

It was the biggest win of Petkovic’s career. Her previous best was a win over then No. 6 Svetlana Kuznetsova in 2009.

Petkovic fired an ace on set point to end the 1st set, and another ace on match point to finish the match. She totaled 3 aces, with 4 double faults, while converting 6 of 14 break points and scoring 101 points overall. Wozniacki only had 1 ace, with 5 double faults, scored on 5 of 17 break points against Petkovic, and won 97 points in all.