Tennis: Barty reclaims women's No. 1 spot, Andreescu up to fifth but no change for men's top three

Australia's Ashleigh Barty returns a shot during the semifinals of the US Open tennis championships on Sept 5, 2019. PHOTO: AP

(REUTERS) - Australia's Ashleigh Barty has reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the WTA rankings less than a month after losing it, while US Open champion Bianca Andreescu moved up to a career-high fifth after her maiden Grand Slam win in New York.

Andreescu beat Serena Williams 6-3, 7-5 in Saturday's (Sept 7) final to maintain a 13-match unbeaten run, where she also won the Canadian Open, to break into the top 10 for the first time in her career.

"I don't want to take anything for granted. These are the moments you live for and I'm just beyond blessed," Andreescu, who moved up 10 places, told Reuters.

After taking the first set and leading 5-1 in the second, she was broken twice by 23-time Grand Slam singles winner Williams before eventually breaking back and winning the contest to become the first Canadian to win a major in the professional era.

"It definitely wasn't easy in the final against Serena Williams," the 19-year-old added. "I think I'm most proud of how I'm able to get into my zone and I was able to block out the crowd too because they were really, really loud.

"If I didn't do that, I'm sure Serena would have won that second set so I'm really glad with how I handled everything."

French Open champion Barty exited the tournament in the last 16 but regained the top position after last year's champion Naomi Osaka was also knocked out at the same stage.

The Japanese, who beat Williams in last year's final, slipped to fourth in the rankings with Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova and Ukraine's Elina Svitolina leapfrogging her to move up to second and third respectively.

Wimbledon champion Simona Halep, who lost in the second round in New York, fell two places down to sixth, while Williams fell one spot to ninth despite her run to the final.

In the ATP rankings, there was no change in the top three, with Novak Djokovic leading men's champion Rafa Nadal, who won his 19th Grand Slam on Sunday (Sept 8), and Roger Federer. But this year's runner-up Daniil Medvedev moved up to a career-high fourth.

The Russian has had a stellar record since a third-round exit at Wimbledon, reaching the finals of his last four tournaments, winning the Cincinnati Masters last month.

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