Kerber to rest knee after missing out on top ranking

DUBAI: Angelique Kerber said she needed to nurse her injured knee after a semi-final defeat at the Dubai Tennis Championships on Friday ended her chances of reclaiming the world number one ranking.

The German went down 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) to Elina Svitolina, but later revealed she had been struggling with the troublesome knee during the match.

“I’m not thinking about this. I know how it feels to be number one, I reached it once, and for sure I will try to get back there,” said the 29-year-old.

“For me it’s really important to be healthy, and if I play consistently the next weeks or months, then we will see what happens then. I’m not looking at the number before my name, actually.”