Wimbledon - Serena: I don't care about rankings
Eurosport - Sat, 04 Jul 21:00:00 2009
How can an athlete own three of the four major titles in their sport yet still not be rated the world's best?
That was the question puzzling not only Wimbledon champion Serena Williams on Saturday but everyone in tennis.
The American was all smiles on court after beating elder sister Venus 7-6 6-2 to win her third Wimbledon crown and she doubled up in laughter when asked to explain why Dinara Safina, yet to win a grand slam title, held the number one ranking.
"I think Dinara did a great job to get to number one - she won (non grand slam titles in) Rome and Madrid," Serena joked.
"I think if you hold three grand slam titles maybe you should be number one but not on the WTA Tour obviously, so... You know, my motivation is maybe just to win another grand slam and stay number two, I guess," she grinned.
Serena has every right to feel baffled after she added the Wimbledon crown to the US and Australian Open titles she has won in the past 10 months.
Safina on the other hand has been rewarded by a system that appears to value consistency rather than the quality of tournaments won.
It has led many people to criticise the way the rankings are calculated and when Serena was usurped by Safina this year, the American claimed she was still the "real number one" no matter what the rankings said. Now she prefers not to dwell on it.
"I would go crazy just thinking about it. I think anyone really could," said the 27-year-old.
"I'd rather definitely be number two and hold three grand slams in the past year than be number one and not have any. I don't know what to do to be number one. I don't even care anymore.
"I think the girl, Dinara, who is number one, you can clearly see by her physique how hard she works. You can't get anywhere by not doing the best and not working your hardest.
"So I'm happy for her (but) I'm really excited that I won Wimbledon."
Safina, a finalist at the Australian and French Opens in 2009, has constantly had to defend her status but she did herself no favours when she was walloped 6-1 6-0 in the Wimbledon semi-finals by Venus.
According to WTA records, the result was the most lopsided win over a current world number one at a grand slam event.
In his last address as WTA chief, Larry Scott defended the system.
"The ranking system is designed sort of around king or queen of the hill - who is the strongest, most consistent performer over the year," he said.
"While I know it does stir debate, the one place it doesn't stir a debate is in the locker room. The players believe in that ranking system."
Related Stories
This site is Copyright © 2009 Yahoo! and Eurosport. All rights reserved.
- Terms of Service
- Updated Privacy Policy
- Copyright/IP Policy
- Remarks and Suggestions
- Corporate info
- Jobs at Eurosport
Notice: We collect personal information on this site. To learn more about how we use your information, see our Privacy Policy.
Comment 80 - 99 of 119
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
All what will be remembered is that you were a freakin bitchh
U Federer was way behind in points, now he's won 3 out 4 slams like Serena but he's back to number 1 where as Safina who's slamless is ranked 1......Serena's right!
AS MUCH AS I TOTALLLY UNDERSTND U SERENA, BUT THEN AGAIN YALL SHUD THINK ABOUT IT BEING WORLD no 1 hence the best player IN A YEAR MEANS U WERE MORE CONSISTENT IN THAT YEAR,YOU WON MORE POINTS DAN THE other players in the year.....jus think abt it IF RANKIN DEPENDS ON THE GRAND SLAMS ALONE THEN NO PLAYER WILL BOTHER GOIN TO PLAY FOR THOSE OTHER SMALLER ONES AND EVRY ONE WILL BE LYIN IN WAIT TO PLAY JUSST IN THE GRAND SLAM....so u guys just try to see form the organisers n WTA's point of view on the rankin system......
Flawed rating systems aside, at the end of the day, she's right. Tennis lovers will remember who dominated Wimbledon, Roland Garros, US Open, Oz Open etc not who was no.1 without winning any majors back in 09. If we wanted to see consistency we should just put robots on the courts...
Serena is JUST A CRAZY ARROGANT B...h. She said she did not care about the ranking but yet in her interview she said that she was happy that she could defend her points from last year. POINTS is about ranking SERENA. You only won in AUSTRALIA OPEN and WIMBLEDON.
well said VICTOR in #82. I don't know why all these pagans have thumbed you down to be honest..........lol
I am delighted at the performances of the Williams girls. They gave the US a great birthday presents. I am a Venus supporter and would have loved her to successfully defend her title. On this day, Serena was the better player. I slaute her. To Andy Roddick, sorry you lost such a great match. Unfortunately there had to be a winner and you came up just a tad short. There is no reason to hold your head in shame, you gave a great performance. To the Fed, congratulations on a momentous achievement.
Post 82 - You're kidding right?
why will some ppl stop hating those that are better than them,calling d william sisters ugly,is absord.hope we could see ur face and see d beauty and d beast u r. d girls are d best consistence tennis players ever.
In this modern world, the critics always have their ways, but what they've have failed to understand is that the ground have shifted beneath them! The people are no longer blind to the politics and bitterness that have for so long deprived them of their rights. And for those of you who have commented on the issue of ranking i said..listen! let it swell around you and let the truth be to you as the clothes that covers your nakedness. Consistency in tennis means to be victorious on every ground especially on bigger occassions. Safina has failed to live up to this expectation and yet she's still the No.1! This is alright b'cos she's Safina!....Sharapova won 1 grand slam and out-ranked Serena few years ago, this is alright b'cos she was Sharapova! But Serena won 3(THREE) major grand slams in 4 years and still ranked as No.2! wait a minute, No.2? Well, this is alright 'cos she's Serena. Keep winning my little girl and don't be bothered about the system.
so the ugly one won then whoops sorry they both ugly
Whilst i do agree with the sentiment I thought it most unsporting that she said anything to be honest
The WTA ranking system does in this case seem to reward number over substance ie you get RANKING points to a greater or lesser degree depending on the tournament but if you only choose to play 13-14 tournaments per year you will be luck to get a number 2 ranking which I feel does show exactly how good she and Venus are
But personality and demeanor wise Venus is a champion in the purest and truest sense of the word i could not imagine her giving such a press conference after winning she is just too sporting !!! I think that Serena needs to learn when it is best to say nothing and to circumvent some questions bating the ball firmly back to the WTA to answer
Darling Serena, the end justifies the means. What Have you to do whether you are no 1, no1/2 or no 10?. What matters is winning laurels especially Grand Slams. The Lord God is on your side. God bless America that you even won the Wimbledon title. on American Independence day. Praise to God Almigjhty who indeed did crowned your efforts. Let WTA use any criteria they want. You are the undisputed no 1 by God's standard. Once again, Congratulations. Do not however relent in your faith in God and daily supplications and prayersto Him who supplies strenght to the weak, and make them strong. You will always be on top if you do this. Best of luck my sweetheart.
Please login to post a comment
Not already a Yahoo! user ? Sign up to get a free Yahoo! Account