32-year-old American world no. 1 Serena Williams will pass Monica Seles for most weeks at no.1 in the rankings as she is assured of being no. 1 through the Indian Wells event.
In the latest WTA rankings released today, Serena stays at no. 1 for the 178th week and with no changes taking place next Monday, she will be no. 1 for atleast 179 weeks – taking sole possession of fifth spot in the all-time list. Serena’s next target will be Martina Hingis’ 209 weeks. The all-time leader is Steff Graf, who spent 377 weeks at no. 1 – a record Serena will not reach.
Speaking to the WTA Tour website, Serena commented, “I never dreamed of this. I remember when I passed her on the Grand Slams list it was really huge for me, because when you grow up watching someone and you’re thinking, ‘Oh my God, oh my God, they’re so awesome,’ to then be on their level is just pretty amazing. I never thought it would happen. I never even thought about it, really.”
“Monica was my favorite player – I think she was pretty much everyone’s favorite player. I wanted to be like her. I wanted to do everything like her. I even styled my grunt after hers – I kind of changed it and made it my own. But Monica always inspired me – I’ve always loved Monica.”