Maria Sharapova Closes Gap On World Lead After Brisbane Triumph

Maria Sharapova's win at the 2015 Brisbane International closes that gap on Serena Williams in the battle for the World No. 1 rank. Top seed Sharapova defeated Serbian Ana Ivanovic in the finale, 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3, on Jan. 10 to take home the Brisbane title.

Sharapova, who has previously played down the importance of world rankings, is still not so keen on claiming the World No. 1 rank. Speaking after the final match via Tennis.com, Sharapova said she would have been more upbeat about the world rankings if she was younger who was trying to get to the top for the first time. Nonetheless, Sharapova was happy with how she played in Brisbane. After losing in an hour-long first set to second seed Ivanovic, Sharapova fought back and earned service breaks early in the second and third sets to seal her victory, which also marks her 34^th career title.

According to the Russian tennis star, her main goal remains the same and that is to win as many tournaments as she can. For Sharapova, there is no other shortcut way to get to the top of world rankings. The key is to win as many major or minor tournaments as she can. Sharapova said that a place in the world rankings is just the result of her performances in the tournaments that she competes with.

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"Looking back, now that I won a tournament maybe I have a better chance of going higher in the ranking," Sharapova said. "Right now, I am No. 2, the next spot is No. 1."

Still, Sharapova insisted that she is only focused on his matches. The 27-year-old couldn't be more proud that she was able to hold her ground and finish off the last season as the second-ranked female tennis player in the world.

In the latest world rankings released by Women's Tennis Association, or WTA, Sharapova is no 681 points behind Serena Williams. Depending on the results at the 2015 Australian Open, which begins on Jan. 19, Sharapova could take over Williams for the World No. 1 spot.

Latest World Rankings as of Jan. 12, 2015 in Women's Singles (Player/Points)

1. Serena Williams - 8016

2. Maria Sharapova - 7335

3. Simona Halep - 6571

4. Petra Kvitova - 5891

5. Ana Ivanovic - 4845

6. Agnieszka Radwanska - 4810

7. Eugenie Bouchard - 4715

8. Caroline Wozniacki - 4625

9. Angelique Kerber - 3275

10. Ekaterina Makarova - 2970

To reach the author of his article, email r.corpuz@IBTimes.com.au.