Wozniacki Heading Into 2017 With Unwavering Self-Belief

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Caroline Wozniacki

2016 Quick Hits
Week 1 Ranking: No.17
Year-End Ranking: No.19 (Lowest ranking No.74, Aug 29)
Season Highlights: Title at Tokyo, Hong Kong
Best Major Result: SF (US Open)

2017 Outlook

Caroline Wozniacki’s Year-End Ranking of No.19 – just two spots below her Week 1 Ranking – belies the rollercoaster season that the Dane experienced in 2016.

Maybe another stat can paint a better picture: Caroline Wozniacki held a 13-14 win-loss record this year before the US Open; from New York until end it was 21-3.

After an impressive run to the ASB Classic semifinal in Auckland in January, Wozniacki’s season was derailed by injuries and she was sidelined for the entire clay court season. Her ranking took a beating after suffering a disappointing string of first and second round defeats, plummeting to its lowest point at No.74 in August.

But whether her ranking was inside the Top 20 or outside the Top 70, one thing stayed the same: Wozniacki’s self-belief never wavered.

“I never doubted that I could come back and make it here, because I’ve worked too hard my whole life on my fitness to keep my body in shape,” Wozniacki said in Hong Kong. “I was like, ‘It’s going to be okay, where it’s going to be a month, two months, four months.’

“I knew eventually I would be back.”

Wozniacki, no stranger to setbacks and comebacks, recovered empathically and put together a stunning run to the US Open semifinals, then backing it up in Asia with titles at the Toray Pan Pacific Open and Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open.

Looking ahead to next season, the former World No.1 is right where she wants to be. Finally fit and healthy and with a paltry 488 points to defend between Week 1 and the US Open, Wozniacki can expect to continue her rise into 2017.

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