My bet is on Kvitova come next season

The Dane, who has firmly occupied the No 1 throne for a second successive year, has been unable silence her critics, who have questioned the credibility of her No 1 status without a Grand Slam title.

Wozniacki leads Czech Petra Kvitova by 115 points, a margin I personally consider too small to make the world No 1 stand out from the No 2. Both won six titles each this year but it was the Czech rising star who stepped up in the more challenging events – Madrid, the season-ending WTA Championships and in particular Wimbledon.

Wozniacki, on the other hand, dominated two big events in Dubai and Indian Wells. Two semi-finals in Melbourne and New York were her best Grand Slam results this year, while the final in the 2009 US Open remains her best attempt in a Major. But when statistics are taken into consideration, Wozniacki’s 63-17 win-loss record from 22 events, compared to 58-13 from 19 events for Kvitova, shows that the Dane is unquestionably more active and that has decided her year-end No 1 ranking.

Nevertheless, I’m quite positive this scenario won’t reoccur next November, judging by the on-court performances of Wozniacki and Kvitova.

A solid baseline game is Wozniacki’s signature, and what makes her stand out from the crowd. She is capable of returning every ball, eventually wearing down her opponents or luring them into losing patience and making errors.

But consistency alone is not adequate to help a player rule modern tennis, which relies heavily on a power game and huge serves. Take the case of Martina Hingis, for example. The Swiss, at her prime, could return all shots from across the net but almost didn’t stand a chance against the powerful Serena Williams. Likewise, Wozniacki would always get into trouble whenever she plays big-guns, including Kvitova. Moderate serves, too much defensive backhand and most of all a fragile mental condition are some of the things she has to work on if she wants to record her name in the Grand Slam champions’ book.

Wimbledon champion Kvitova, on the other hand, is far fiercer competitor on court. She is a big girl, 182 cm in height, which gives her the ability to unleash rocket serves (she fired a total of 36 aces at Wimbledon this year, the third-most by any woman at the All England Club). The towering Czech can also generate razor-sharp groundstrokes on both sides and feels comfortable charging at the net at any time.

Also, the fact that she is a lefty gives her a bit of an edge on the right-hand dominated WTA circuit, the same advantage that, more or less, Rafael Nadal has on the ATP tour.

Regarding the psychological angle, Kvitova has proven she can handle it quite well, looking calm and concentrated despite playing in her first Slam final at Wimbledon (Although she can surprise one with her shrieking and grunts after winning tough points from time to time).

However, being a big figure and a heavy hitter can make a player prone to injury, which was the case immediately after Kvitova’s Wimbledon success. On any given day, a game replete with risks may not work for big-hitters. That’s why she should have a plan B just in case, and also work more on her fitness to maintain the level of her game – or go even further.

But I believe she will be a better player for the 2012 season and most of all the strongest contender for the No 1 throne. We can expect more from this Czech prodigy, who has set a new pace for the WTA circuit.