Kerber celebrates No.1, reaches US Open final

The German left-hander was assured of becoming number one when the new rankings come out on Monday after top-seeded American Serena Williams was defeated by Czech 10th seed Karolina Pliskova 6-2 7-6(5) in the earlier semi-final.

Kerber holds a narrow 4-3 career edge over Pliskova, but the big-serving Czech won its most recent encounter, in last month's Cincinnati final.

Reaching top of the world seemed to agree with Angelique Kerber, who celebrated her ascension to world number one with a 6-4 6-3 win over Caroline Wozniacki on Thursday to advance to the U.S. Open final.

The German left-hander was assured of becoming number one when the new rankings come out on Monday after top-seeded American Serena Williams was defeated by Czech 10th seed Karolina Pliskova 6-2 7-6(5) in the earlier semi-final.

Australian Open champion Kerber, who leads the WTA for most main draw match wins this season at 53-14, clinched victory with a backhand that actually landed just beyond the baseline but went unchallenged by former number one Wozniacki of Denmark.

“It's just incredible. It's a great day,” Kerber said on court. “To be here in the final for the first time that means a lot. To be number one in the world, it sounds amazing.” Kerber holds a narrow 4-3 career edge over Pliskova, but the big-serving Czech won its most recent encounter, in last month's Cincinnati final.