Wozniacki Was and Is a Champion

Tennis may be played on a rectangular court and with angled shots but in some ways the game is all about circles. There's the ball, for starters. Also, there's the way scoring is kept. You start at love, win a game and come back full circle to love again. And consider how players often play on the court, starting at the baseline center mark to serve, serving, getting the return then coming back full circle again and again to the baseline center mark, hopefully looking for an opportunity to finish off the point.

Now Caroline Wozniacki's career has come full circle. She's back at number one, this time with a Grand Slam championship--this year's Australian Open--to boot. It seems like Wozniacki has been on the tour forever but she's only 27--still plenty of time left for dancing those circles of footwork on the court in more tournaments and Grand Slams.

Much criticized for not winning a Grand Slam in her previous more than 60 weeks at number one from October 2010 through the end of January 2012, Wozniacki has been at number one the ninth most ever of any player on the WTA tour. She slumped some in the rankings during the middle of this decade and struggled with some injuries. But then she played well at the end of last year, culminating in her WTA Finals victory, an harbinger of even greater things to come.

Victories have a way of repeating themselves in tennis. Those who have won against others often find themselves winning against them again and again. It's about ability but also is partly psychological. Wozniacki will have a long time to enjoy this win and her return to number one before the next Grand Slam and Serena's imminent return will raise the bar for everyone in the women's game. But the win should give Wozniacki a confidence boost when the French Open rolls around.