WTA Rankings: Ashleigh Barty sitting pretty at the top, Heather Watson back in top 50

WTA Tour
Victory for Ashleigh Barty

Ashleigh Barty remains comfortably atop the WTA Rankings with the Australian enjoying a healthy lead over Simona Halep while Heather Watson returned to the top 50.

Reigning Roland Garros champion Barty, who started the year as the world No 1, added another 350 points to her tally to move to 8,717 after reaching the semi-finals of the Qatar Open.

That gives her a handy 2,641-point lead over second-placed two-time Grand Slam winner Halep who was not in action in Doha after withdrawing from the event.

Karolina Pliskova, a third-round casualty at the Qatar Open, injured US Open winner Bianca Andreescu and Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin complete the top five.

There is only one change in the top 10 with Belinda Bencic from Switzerland moving up one place to No 8 after her quarter-final run in Doha with Serena Williams dropping to ninth.

Qatar Open champion Aryna Sabalenka is up two places to No 11 while outside the top 20 Heather Watson jumps 20 places to No 49 after winning her first title in four years.

The 27-year-old won the Mexican Open to move back into the top 50 for the first time since June 2016.

WTA Rankings Top 20
1. Ashleigh Barty (Australia) 8,717 points
2. Simona Halep (Romania) 6,076
3. Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic) 5,205
4. Bianca Andreescu (Canada) 4,555
5. Sofia Kenin (United States) 4,365
6. Kiki Bertens (Netherlands) 4,335
7. Elina Svitolina (Ukraine) 4,301
8. Belinda Bencic (Switzerland) 4,010
9. Serena Williams (United States) 3,915
10. Naomi Osaka (Japan) 3,625
11. Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) 3,165
12. Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) 3,566
13. Madison Keys (United States) 2,962
14. Petra Martic (Croatia) 2,770
15. Garbine Muguruza (Spain) 2,711
16. Johanna Konta (Great Britain) 2,694
17. Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan) 2,471
18. Marketa Vondrousova (Czech Republic) 2,307
19. Alison Riske (United States) 2,256
20. Maria Sakkari (Greece) 2,130

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