Sharapova dethrones Henin, Serena leaps 67 places

MELBOURNE, Jan 29 (Reuters) Serena Williams reaped the benefits of her astounding run to the Australian Open title at the weekend when she rocketed up 67 spots in the WTA rankings to 14th today.

Maria Sharapova drew some consolation from her Melbourne Park final defeat by Williams by replacing Justine Henin at the top of the rankings.

Belgian Henin skipped the season's opening grand slam event for 'personal reasons' following the break-up of her marriage.

Williams's ranking had nosedived over the past year after injury curtailed her schedule to just four tournaments in 2006 and she arrived in Melbourne ranked 81st.

After beating all the odds and six seeds, including Sharapova, to clinch her third Melbourne Park title, Williams reclaimed the accolade of being the top American woman.

Lindsay Davenport, who was still the top American two weeks ago despite effectively retiring from the sport after announcing her pregnancy, slipped to 35th on Monday.

REUTERS SAM KP1953