By Richard Pagliaro| @Tennis_Now | Thursday, January 11, 2024
Champions come and go, but legends last forever.
Former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki respects today's Top 10 players, but believes they would not beat the legend that is a prime Serena Williams.
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Meeting the media in Melbourne today ahead of her Australian Open return, the 2018 AO champion was asked to compare today's Top 10 players to the Top 10 cast in her last Melbourne Park appearance.
The 33-year-old Dane said Serena, who beat Wozniacki in the 2014 US Open final, nullifies those comparisons because when she's at her best, she's basically unbeatable.
"I mean, you can't really compare someone to Serena, in my opinion," Wozniacki told the media in Melbourne. "I think when Serena was on, when she was playing her best tennis, I don't think anyone here would be able to beat her.
"I'm saying that with having played basically anyone on tour. With that being said, I think we have very strong players, players that are performing at a very high level. I think we're pushing tennis in the right direction. I think there's a lot more players that are playing on a very high level. That's been a continuous thing for quite a while now."
Of course, there are some former world No. 1 champions in the the field, including four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and three-time major champion Angelique Kerber, who own Grand Slam final wins over Williams. Kerber defeated Williams 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in the 2016 AO final and stopped her again in the 2018 Wimbledon final.
Still, while Wozniacki respects today's Top 10, she regards 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena in a class by herself.
"Again, I think it's hard to compare apples with pears," Wozniacki said. "The old top 10 had the greatest of all time, if not of all tennis, but female and women's tennis. It's hard to be compared to her."
Mother of two Wozniacki travels to all tournaments with her husband, former NBA all star David Lee, and the couple's two children, daughter Olivia and son James.
Kerber and Wozniacki are good friends and the owner of 30 WTA titles has been a valued resource for new mom Kerber on navigating family life while on the global tour.
"We definitely had a lot of conversations. All of a sudden I became the experienced one because I had a child before," Wozniacki said of Kerber. "We talk about it. Again, every experience is so individual.
"Definitely when she had questions, she could ask me. In general, we just catch up on a regular basis, even when we weren't on tour, seeing how life kind of was going."
The old friends reunited as practice partners at the Australian Open today.
"It's nice to see her back. I got a nice practice in with her today," Wozniacki said. "It's great to still have our generation here. There's a lot of young players.
"Some players were probably born the year I turned pro. I don't know. We're probably not far off. I definitely feel young on the inside, but I realize I'm no longer in my 20s. In tennis, I'm in the older generation."
Photo credit: Madison Square Garden