Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic rose to fifth in the new WTA rankings published Sunday after winning the New Haven Open.
Kvitova defeated Russia’s Maria Kirilenko 7-6(9), 7-5 in a close-fought final Saturday to swap places with Angelique Kerber of Germany, who is now sixth in the table.
"I've played a lot of matches and I'm feeling more relaxed and confident on the court. I hope all of this will continue into the U.S. Open next week," Kvitova said on the WTA website.
Belarus' Victoria Azarenka remains the world No. 1, ahead of Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska and Russia's Maria Sharapova.
Reaching the final allowed Kirilenko leapfrog Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic and Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova and take 12th position, a career high.
Kirilenko blamed bad luck for losing to Kvitova.
“Even though I lost I still feel positive. I played really well this week. I played a good match today. Unfortunately, I was unlucky in the final today,” the Russian said on the WTA website, adding that she didn't expect her exertions at New Haven to hurt her chances at the U.S. Open.
Fifth seed Kvitova faces Polona Hercog in the first round, while Kirilenko, seeded 14th, will face Chanelle Scheepers of South Africa.
In the men’s ATP rankings, the only change in the top ten was Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro taking eighth position from Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia.
Switzerland's Roger Federer remains world No. 1, with Serbian player Novak Djokovic second and Spain's Rafael Nadal third.
The U.S. Open starts Monday on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows.
