31 Jan 2011

Women's tennis top ten features 10 different countries

3:03 pm on 31 January 2011

Confirming tennis as the most global of all individual sports, the women's top 10 features 10 different nationalities for the first time.

Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki retains her top ranking, with Belgium's newly-crowned Australian Open champion Kim Clijsters replacing Russian Vera Zvonareva as world number two.

Zvonareva drops to No.3, while Italy's French Open champion Francesca Schiavone will rise to a career-high No.4 after making the Open quarter-finals for the first time.

Australian Samantha Stosur will climb to an equal-personal best of No.5, followed by American Venus Williams, China's Australian Open runner-up Li Na, Serbian Jelena Jankovic, Belarussian Victoria Azarenka and Pole Agnieszka Radwanska will round out the top 10.

In addition, Israel's Shahar Peer will be ranked No.11.

Long-time World No.1 Serena Williams slips from fourth to 12th after being unable to defend her Open crown due to a foot injury that has sidelined the American since she won Wimbledon last year.

All up, there will be 30 different nationalities in the women's top 60 - and 34 in the top 100.

The men's top 10 currently includes players from eight different countries - Spanish world No.1 Rafael Nadal and compatriots David Ferrer and Fernando Verdasco, plus Swiss Roger Federer, Serb Novak Djokovic, Swede Robin Soderling, Scot Andy Murray, Czech Tomas Berdych, American Andy Roddick and Russian Mikhail Youzhny.

In total, there are 25 different nationalities in the men's top 50 and 38 in the top 100 - including representatives from places like Cyprus, Finland, Lithuania, Turkey, Portugal and Uzbekistan.