Fight is on for world No.1

With change, there’s always opportunity. And in a common theme for women’s tennis lately, both could feature at Wimbledon as three women target the world No.1 ranking at the conclusion of the 2017 Championships.

Angelique Kerber, who made significant progress to her eventual world No.1 milestone as runner-up to Serena Williams in 2016, can’t help but feel the pressure. Entering Wimbledon with just 115 rankings points more than No.2 Simona Halep, the German is also struggling to find form this season.

Kerber has managed a win over just one top-30 opponent (Carla Suarez Navarro in Monterrey) in 2017, with confidence almost certainly eroded by a first-round loss to Ekaterina Makarova at the French Open, and a quarterfinal exit to Johanna Konta at Eastbourne.

And fate hasn’t exactly been kind. Should she progress past Irina Falconi and either Kristen Flipkens or Misaki Doi in the opening two rounds, Kerber would likely face former Grand Slam finalists in Lucie Safarova and Garbine Muguruza before the quarterfinals. Agnieszka Radwanska and Svetlana Kuznetsova potentially loom in the final four.

Not that Halep can afford to be comfortable in second position. While runner-up at the recent French Open, the Romanian won just two matches on grass in Eastbourne before falling in the quarterfinals to Caroline Wozniacki.

Defending quarterfinal points at the All England, Halep would need to at least replicate that performance to ascend the rankings: following a first round against Marina Erakovic, Carla Suarez Navarro, Eugenie Bouchard and Victoria Azarenka are among opponents that could stand in Halep’s way.

Karolina Pliskova, riding momentum from her 10^th career title, can reasonably prepare to scale the mountain.

With victory in Eastbourne, the Czech earned enough rankings points to eliminate Elina Svitolina and Wozniacki from the No.1 equation. Defending just 70 points from her second round exit at Wimbledon 2016, Pliskova has also been dealt a favourable draw.

Should the seeds hold, Pliksova’s first true tests would be against either Wozniacki (whom she defeated in the Eastbourne final) or Kristina Mladenovic in the quarterfinals.

For top-seeded Kerber, the No.1 ranking has proved an honourable yet undeniably tenuous place to be.

“I will try, of course, to keep it,” she told reporters at Wimbledon.“But at the end, I am here to play round by round and focus only on my matches, not [on] the numbers or the rankings or the points I have to defend.”

Even so, change inevitably beckons. Whether that’s Kerber rediscovering form to retain top spot or Halep and Pliskova moving in, there are exciting opportunities ahead.