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Serena eyeing rankings surge

Serena Williams still has the hunger to be the one to beat © PA Photos

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Serena Williams has warned her rivals she is finding her form at just the right time, the 13-time grand slam champion insisting she is ready to fight her way up the world rankings.

Williams has moved up a place in the standings to ninth after winning a 40th WTA title at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston on Sunday.

The fifth seed blew Lucie Safarova away in only 58 minutes, hammering 27 winners in a 6-0 6-1 rout, to clinch a first title of 2012.

And Williams, who was equally impressive in a 6-1 6-1 destruction of second seed Sam Stosur in the semi-finals, says she has her sights set on climbing further up the rankings over the grasscourt season.

"I do have nothing to defend," she said. "Wimbledon I didn't do anything and Eastbourne I won one match, so that doesn't count. I did pretty well in the summer, but then I dropped off again until this tournament. So I really am like a floating bird.

"It's motivating for me to go home and work harder, because I know Lucie and Sam and everyone else is going to work hard, too. Now they know what to expect even more when they play me. So this is just a battle, and I want to continue to win."

After getting back to her best in her last two matches, Williams admits she does not want her run to end any time soon. The 30-year-old added on the WTA website: "I hope I can make it three and four and five and six and more and more and more."

Men's rankings: 1. Novak Djokovic (SRB), 2. Rafael Nadal (SPA), 3. Roger Federer (SWI), 4. Andy Murray (GBR), 5. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA), 6. David Ferrer (SPA), 7. Tomas Berdych (CZE), 8. Janko Tipsarevic (SRB), 9. Mardy Fish (USA), 10. John Isner (USA)

Women's rankings: 1. Victoria Azarenka (BLR), 2. Maria Sharapova (RUS), 3. Petra Kvitova (CZE), 4. Agnieszka Radwanska (POL), 5. Sam Stosur (AUS), 6. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN), 7. Marion Bartoli (FRA), 8. Li Na (CHN), 9. Serena Williams (USA), 10. Vera Zvonareva (RUS)

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