Left field

Is Wozniacki a worthy number one?

Worthy number one or just a sad reflection of the way women’s tennis has evolved into a game of low-risk baseline slugging?

That is the question being asked after Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki was confirmed as the new world number one.

Is she worthy? Well, the WTA rankings system would suggest that she is — just as Jelena Jankovic and Dinara Safina were when they rose to the top without winning the game’s top prizes.

Over the course of the year the 20-year-old has proved the most consistent performer on Tour and the best-placed to benefit from the injury which has sidelined 13-times grand slam singles champion Serena Williams since she won Wimbledon.

Wozniacki claimed her fifth title of the year in Tokyo last week, the first player to achieve that feat since Justine Henin won 10 in 2007. Yet she did not even reach the final of a grand slam this year and has managed that just once, her run to last year’s U.S. Open final where she lost to Kim Clijsters.

There is no denying that Wozniacki is one of the toughest players on Tour and it would be churlish to deny her place at the top of the pile as on current form she is the best there is.

Just like Safina and Jankovic before her, she will not be given due praise for the number one ranking because of the glaring omissions on her CV.