BELGRADE, Serbia - Her tournament may not have ended the way she wanted it to, but by virtue of the result, Jelena Jankovic has risen back to No.2 on the new Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Rankings, her highest in over 17 months.
Jankovic broke into the Top 2 for the first time on June 16, 2008, and between then and February 1, 2009, spent a total of 31 weeks in that Top 2 - including 18 weeks at No.1. But on February 2, 2009, following a fourth round exit at the Aussie Open (she had been a semifinalist the year before), she fell to No.3 and never got back into the Top 2 elite - that is, until this week.
After a 17-month period in which she fell as low as No.9 in the world, Jankovic's fourth round showing at Wimbledon has pushed her back to No.2 in the world, trailing only Serena Williams, and the Serb is working to recover from the back injury that forced her to retire in that round of 16 match at the All-England Club.
"I've been doing treatment and I'll continue to do that," Jankovic commented. "I'm still recovering, but I'm trying to get back on court as soon as possible. I have two weeks now until my next tournament in Portoroz, Slovenia."
It is worth noting Jankovic is even in her head-to-head against Williams. The pair has split eight career meetings, Jankovic winning their most recent.
Since travelling to California for Indian Wells - where she won her first title of the year - Jankovic has won 27 of her 34 matches, which has pushed her back up.
Check out photos of Jelena from Indian Wells in the gallery!
"I've worked very hard on my game and have had pretty good results in the last couple of months. Winning Indian Wells and beating both Williams sisters in Rome are results I'm really proud of, and they have helped me go higher in the rankings. Playing the semifinals at the French Open was also important.
"My goal is to continue to be healthy so I can go out on the court and do my job the best possible way. I am thankful for all of the support from my fans and everyone and I hope to show them some good tennis the rest of the year."
And the summer hardcourt season, where she was one of the hottest players last year - and, two years ago, made her first Grand Slam final at the US Open?
"I have great memories from the US Open two years ago. I love hardcourts. Clay and hard are my favorite surfaces and I look forward to the summertime."
