By Nick Georgandis
The inexorable slide of Caroline Wozniacki continues.
Wozniacki failed to win New Haven for a fifth straight time on Sunday, and it cost her in the standings.
The Dane who started 2012 ranked No. 1 dropped to No. 9 in the world, sliding behind No. 8 Li Na. She fell in the New Haven semifinals to Maria Kirlenko over the weekend, retiring because of a knee injury after winning the first set, 7-5.
The loss broke a 20-match win streak for Wozniacki at New Haven, but is scheduled to compete in the US Open, which started Monday.
This is Wozniacki's lowest spot in the rankings since June of 2009. She must pull her game together for a deep run at the US Open or risk falling out of the Top 10 altogether, with 900 points to defend after reaching the semifinals in 2011.
Kirilenko lost the final to Petra Kvitova, but still moved up to spots to a career-best No. 12 in the world. The 25-year-old Russian has moved up 16 spots since the beginning of 2012, surpassing Vera Zvonareva as the second-highest ranking Russian on tour behind Maria Sharapova.
Also moving up inside the Top 20 this week is Roberta Vinci, who defeated Jelena Jankovic to win Dallas and rack up 280 points. Now 34-23 on the year, the 29-year-old Vinci is seeking to finish the year inside the Top 20 for the first time in her career.
Jankovic herself seven spots in the rankings to No. 27 after dipping to 34th. Heading in the opposite direction was the Czech Republic's Petra Cetkovska, who tumbled 18 spots to 49th from 31st. Cetkovska reached the finals at New Haven in 2011, but lost all 340 of the points she won there a year ago because she missed the tournament while injured.
ATP
The men's tour was largely quiet in the week before the US Open, with only two moves in the Top 25 as Americans Andy Roddick (22nd) and Mardy Fish (25th) both lost a spot.
Ranked as high as eighth in the world this year before missing time with a heart condition, Fish fell one spot behidn Spain's Marcel Granollers. Fish, who will turn 31 shortly after the end of the US Open, reached the tournament's fourth round a year ago, meaning he has 180 points to defend as the event begins at Flushing Meadows.
Roddick fell a spot behind the resurgent Tommy Haas of Germany, who is 52 points shy of being ranked in the Top 20 for the first time since early May of 2010.