Ranking Watch: All Eyes on Li

The February 1, 2010 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Rankings were historic for China, as Li Na became the first player from the country to crack the Top 10. Her dramatic run to the semifinals at the Australian Open, which included victories over Caroline Wozniacki and Venus Williams and a narrow defeat to eventual champion Serena Williams, lifted her from No.17 to No.10.

Li, who finished 2009 at No.15 - her previous career-high - also shared some history with countrywoman Zheng Jie, as they are the first two Chinese women to make the final four of the same major. Zheng's showing vaulted her from No.35 all the way to No.20, her first venture into the Top 20 since June 2009 and five spots short of her career-high of No.15, which she achieved in May 2009 and which was the previous record for the highest ranking reached by a Chinese player (tied later in 2009 by Li).

A couple of other players also made noise on the new rankings with impressive performances in Melbourne. Wozniacki's quarterfinal appearance took her from No.4 to a career-high of No.3, as she traded places with Svetlana Kuznetsova. Samantha Stosur, who reached the round of 16, moved from No. 13 to a career-high of No.11, switching spots with Marion Bartoli. Among others establishing new career-highs were Aravane Rezai, who went from No.23 to No.21, and Yaroslava Shvedova, who went from No.52 to No.48.

Zheng's quarterfinal victim, Maria Kirilenko, did not approach her career-high of No.18, but did make a huge rankings improvement, going from No.58 all the way to No.37 after a fortnight that included wins over Maria Sharapova and Dinara Safina.