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Such has been the domination of Serena Williams in recent times that the 34-year-old will have held the world No. 1 ranking for a staggering 172 consecutive weeks when the second week gets underway at Roland-Garros.

But the second-longest streak in WTA history could come to an end here with Agnieszka Radwanska and Angelique Kerber both in with a chance of overtaking the American if they were to embark on a deep run.

If reigning champion Williams loses before the final, it could leave the door open for second seed Radwanska, who is defending just 10 first-round points. A Williams loss before the semi-finals also gives Kerber – defending 130 third-round points – a chance, with there being three potential scenarios in which there can be a change at the top of the rankings.

If Radwanska were to win the title and Williams was knocked out in the semi-finals or earlier, the 27-year-old Pole would become world No. 1 for the first time in her career. An appearance in the final may also be good enough for her if Williams lost before the third round and Kerber did not win the title.

Radwanska arrives here at Roland Garros, though, with just two wins on the clay this year, both coming in Stuttgart when she reached the semi-finals. Her appearance in Madrid lasted just one match as she lost to Dominika Cibulkova in three sets and she did not compete in Rome.

It would take some effort to better her best performance here of a quarter-final in 2013. Radwanska opens against Serbian Bojana Jovanovski and could face home hope Caroline Garcia in the second round. Other potential opponents include Barbora Strycova in the third round, 2012 Roland Garros runner-up Sara Errani in the last 16 and 2014 runner-up Simona Halep in the last eight.

Kerber claimed one of the great upsets in January when she beat Williams to win her maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. Another championship victory here and a loss for Williams before the semi-finals would see the 28-year-old German reach the top spot.

Kerber comes here with a clay title under her belt this year after winning Stuttgart last month, although consecutive defeats to Strycova in Madrid and Eugenie Bouchard in Rome followed.

Like Radwanska, Kerber’s best run here was a quarter-final appearance in 2012. This year she plays the Netherlands’ Kiki Bertens in the first-round and could face a potentially tricky encounter with Italian Camila Giorgi in the second round. Russian rising star Daria Kasatkina and Rome finalist Madison Keys are other potential obstacles before even reaching the last eight.

If Williams does retain her No. 1 spot come the end of this fortnight, the 34-year-old will move another week closer to beating the record of the great Steffi Graf, who spent 186 consecutive weeks at No. 1 from August 1987 to March 1991. It would arguably be one of the greatest achievements in the history of the sport.

Player ranking points totals

(Depending on round reached at Roland-Garros)

R1 R2 R3 R4 QF SF F W

Williams 7040 7100 7160 7270 7460 7810 8330 9030

Radwanska 5850 5910 5970 6080 6270 6620 7140 7840

Kerber 5620 5680 5740 5850 6040 6390 6910 7610

Scenarios

> Radwanska becomes No. 1 if she wins the title and Williams loses before the final
> Radwanska becomes No. 1 if she reaches the final, Williams loses before the third-round and Kerber does not win the title
> Kerber becomes No. 1 if she wins the title and Serena loses before the semi-final

Is the week of April 24 shaping up to be the biggest yet on the WTA Tour this season?

All eyes will be on the German city of Stuttgart when Maria Sharapova makes her return after a 15-month suspension for testing positive to meldonium.

Tournament organisers have handed the former world No.1 a wildcard and announced they will hold her first round match until the Wednesday, the day her ban is lifted. It’s a move that has angered many top players, including Caroline Wozniacki and Barbora Strycova.

READ MORE: Strycova reacts to Sharapova’s return

Sharapova’s long-time rival Serena Williams won’t be there – but her presence will still be felt that week, with the American guaranteed to return to world No.1 for a 317th week. It will be her eighth stint in the top position.

With Angelique Kerber’s loss in the Monterrey final today, it means the German will relinquish her No.1 ranking on April 24 when she loses her Stuttgart title points from 2016. Williams, who has not played since winning a record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam at the Australian Open in January, will then surpass Kerber at the top of the WTA rankings.

READ MORE: Pavlyuchenkova upsets Kerber for Monterrey title

Yet Serena’s lead will be a mere 85 points, which means the world No.1 ranking will also be in play in Stuttgart – adding to what is already shaping up to be a very big tournament. Exciting times ahead!

- See more at: http://tennismash.com/2017/04/10/serena ... gtIgH.dpuf

With a run to the final of the China Open in Beijing, Romania's Simona Halep will become the new WTA World No.1 when the updated rankings are released on Monday, October 9.

The 26-year-old becomes the first player representing Romania to achieve this historic milestone since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975, and will be the 25th woman overall to hold the No.1 ranking.

Her rise to WTA World No.1 brings an end to the reign of Spain’s Garbiñe Muguruza, who spent four weeks in the position, and she is the fifth woman in 2017 to hold top spot, also following Angelique Kerber, Serena Williams and Karolina Pliskova.

Simona Halep made the final of the China Open on Saturday (Getty)
This triumph is the latest peak in a surging career for Romania's best player, and comes off the back of reaching her fifth WTA final of the season in Beijing.

In the last 52 weeks, Halep has won the Madrid Open for the third Premier Mandatory title of her career, and reached the final of the French Open, the Italian Open and the Cincinnati Open, and the quarterfinals of Wimbledon.

This season, she's scored five Top 10 victories and has made the last eight in 11 of her past 13 tournaments.

At the conclusion of the 2017 Wimbledon Championships, Halep became the active player with the longest streak of consecutive weeks ranked inside the world's Top 10.

Halep entered the Top 10 for the first time on January 27, 2014, and has been there ever since.



Halep will be presented with the WTA World No.1 Trophy, the focal point of which is a silver "star-map" tennis ball that represents the tennis universe. All World No.1s, past and present, are depicted by a diamond in the sky, which represents each champion’s mark on the sport.

Halep is one of seven women to have qualified in singles for the 2017 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global later this month – an event at which she made her debut in 2014, when she reached the final.