19 мая 2015, 18:12 4 мин.

Sharapova head of the class on clay

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Tandon Kamakshi

Serena Williams is the top-ranked player in the world, but she's hardly the best player on clay this season.

Only five of the top 10 women in the rankings are among the top 10 on clay, with No. 1 Serena down at No. 11. But she has completed only one event, falling to Petra Kvitova in the semifinals of Madrid and then withdrawing in the third round of Rome. That's enough for her to be one of the favorites at the French Open.

She'll be joined by Maria Sharapova, who leads in clay points following her victory in Rome and semifinals appearance in Madrid. Sharapova came into the clay season off an injury, but has gotten herself back into what is now her usual stellar clay-court level.

Though Angelique Kerber is third, she has done it by winning two events in quite different conditions than at the French Open -- indoors at Stuttgart and on green clay at Charleston. She has been less successful at the traditional clay-court warm-ups, so her French Open standing might not be quite as high.

But Kvitova is one who has done well at those tournaments, winning Madrid and reaching the quarterfinals of Rome, which puts her in French Open contention, even though the Czech is known for being inconsistent.

Next up are some clay-court specialists. By reaching the Rome final, Carla Suarez Navarro is not only having her best season, but she is also raising her level right before the French Open.

Another player who is effective on clay, Svetlana Kuznetsova, is in fifth place, largely a result of reaching the Madrid final, but the Russian produces good performances only every so often.

Sara Errani hasn't been playing well recently, but she did well at some of the South American clay events toward the beginning of the season.

Both Simona Halep and Caroline Wozniacki are lower than their tour rankings; Halep should be seen as underperforming, while Wozniacki has done better than usual on clay. But at least both have a couple of solid runs going into the French Open. The experienced Lucie Safarova is in a similar position.

A few younger players are also in the top 16, with Karolina Pliskova winning her home title in Prague, while Daria Gavrilova reached the semifinals in Rome.

American Madison Keys has accumulated points largely because of her performance in Charleston, having played little since. And Victoria Azarenka, a former No. 1, has produced some good performances as she comes back from injury. She could be higher -- a lot higher -- if not for some tough draws.