Pliskova becomes world number one after Halep defeat

Czech Karolina Pliskova rose to the top of the WTA rankings without striking a ball on Tuesday as results at Wimbledon saw her overhaul Germany’s Angelique Kerber.

By a quirk of the points-based ranking system the 25-year-old rose to the summit – the 23rd player to do so – thanks to Simona Halep’s quarter-final loss to Johanna Konta.

Romanian Halep would have become world number one had she beaten the Briton but went down 6-7(2), 7-6(5), 6-4.

Bizarrely Pliskova, seeded three at Wimbledon, lost in the second round to Magdalena Rybarikova but her consistent results this year, including reaching the French Open semi-finals, means she will be number one when the rankings are updated on Monday.

“Although right now I am not celebrating a victory on the court, I have become the world number one. And this really means a lot to me. Actually, I can’t even realize what I have achieved,” Pliskova wrote in a post on Instagram.

I will definitely remember today! Although right now I am not celebrating a victory on the court, I have become the world number one. And this really means a lot to me. Actually, I can’t even realize what I have achieved. I worked very hard, as did all the people around me. Thanks to everyone who believed in me, as well as to those who doubted. Being the world number one is also a big responsibility for me. I’m aware of that and I can promise I will do my best not to disappoint in this role. Hopefully I’ll succeed. Once again I’d like to thank my family, my team of the closest people around me. Without you I wouldn’t be where I am. ❤️🤗 Dnešní den si budu rozhodně pamatovat. Přestože zrovna nejásám po vyhraném zápase přímo na kurtu, stala jsem se světovou jedničkou. A to pro mě znamená strašně moc. Vlastně si ani pořádně nedokážu uvědomit, čeho jsem dosáhla. Pracovala jsem opravdu tvrdě, stejně jako všichni lidé kolem mě. Díky všem, kteří mi věřili a vlastně i těm, kteří o mně pochybovali. Být světovou jedničkou je pro mě zároveň velká zodpovědnost, to si uvědomuju a můžu slíbit, že udělám maximum abych v téhle roli nezklamala. Snad se to povede. Ještě jednou děkuji rodině, mému týmu a nejbližším kolem mě. Bez vás bych nebyla tam, kde jsem.

A post shared by Karolina Pliskova (@karolinapliskova) on Jul 11, 2017 at 12:59pm PDT