Sweet Caroline's Bitter Struggles

Just when we convinced ourselves Caroline Wozniacki would verify her no.1 ranking during the US Open series, she baffles us with a jaw-dropping loss. The Danish all-star looked messy on court and could not find a rhythm as world no. 22, Robert Vinci, pushed hard for her first career top-10 win.

So far in 2011, Wozniacki has hushed critics with her terrifyingly consistent play outside of the slams, collecting five titles along the way. You can only nag a player so much for being a slamless no.1 when she leads the WTA tour for most titles won—her most impressive being Indian Wells—but her ugly falter in Toronto rekindles the fire of debate: does she really deserve her ranking?

Every player has his or her bad days (check the highlights to see just how bad...) and you can't belittle Vinci's efforts. The 28-year-old Italian did well to earn her "greatest victory ever" and whether she's crushed in the next round or not, she will look back on the 2011 Rogers Cup fondly. Here's a post-match interview with Vinci, courtesy of the WTA.

The draw for Toronto looked to be the ideal battleground for big names like Clijsters, Williams, and Wozniacki... but with Kim's injury retirement and Caroline's flop (let's just call it what it is), it looks like we'll have to wait a bit longer. In the meantime, Serena will be happy to pick up the slack.

-Kedzie Teller, ITB Senior Editor