Singapore has a special place in Wozniacki's heart

When Caroline Wozniacki reminisces about her long-awaited first Grand Slam win, Singapore will get an honourable mention.

The 28-year-old Dane, who has spent 71 weeks at the summit of the WTA rankings since 2010, made her Grand Slam breakthrough only at the Australian Open in January.

Before that, her failure to win one of tennis' big prizes was regularly used as a stick to beat her with, such that she said after her win: "I've gotten this question 100,000 times... It's really nice not to have to answer the 'no Grand Slam' question ever again."

Three months before Wozniacki beat Simona Halep at Rod Laver Arena, she won her first WTA Finals crown in Singapore, after recording her maiden win over Venus Williams at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

That win a year ago imbued her with the confidence she needed to end her Grand Slam drought, after twice falling at the final hurdle at the 2009 and 2014 US Opens.

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Speaking after inking a deal with Singaporean company Global Crypto Offering Exchange (GCOX) to launch her own crypto token yesterday, Wozniacki said: "It's the last year (the WTA Finals will be held) in Singapore and I'm sad that it is moving, but at the same time it has been an amazing five years...

"I definitely think that winning here last year helped me gain the confidence that I could win in Australia."

The world No. 2 will defend her WTA Finals crown from Sunday as the top seed after world No. 1 Halep withdrew from the event due to a back injury.

Also missing this year are regular fixtures Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams, who failed to qualify after comebacks from a doping ban and childbirth respectively.

Not that Wozniacki thinks there will be any shortage of competition for her in Singapore.

No woman has won more than one Slam in a year for the past three years.

When The New Paper asked Wozniacki if this is the most competitive the women's circuit has been since she made her WTA Tour debut in 2005, the Dane said: "I think so, I think the level keeps going up...

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"I think we'll keep seeing improvements year after year, young players coming up and new technology in tennis - new ways to be better.

"Every one per cent is making a difference, it's definitely very competitive.

"Everyone knows how to hit a forehand, backhand and serve, but you need an edge somewhere."

For Wozniacki, that edge comes from her mental game and a settled personal life.

She said: "It makes a huge difference when you're playing key points to be strong mentally."

After a much publicised split from golf star Rory McIlroy - after wedding invitations had been sent out - in 2014, Wozniacki is set to tie the knot with fiance David Lee, a former NBA champion with the Golden State Warriors in 2014/15.

She admitted that happiness on the home front has been good for her game.

"It's definitely helped," said Wozniacki.

"David has been a professional athlete himself, playing 12 years in the NBA and he knows what it's like to compete at the highest level.

"He's definitely helped me with my tennis and has given me some input. He's very positive and happy and brings good energy.

"And like I said, sometimes it's the small percentages that can make a difference, and I definitely think this has helped me."

And it helps that Lee is not as competitive as Wozniacki and her father-cum-coach Piotr.

She said: "I'm very competitive and sometimes it causes slight frictions in the family when we play games.

"We play a lot of pool, cards, backgammon and other games.

"My dad and I are very competitive, my fiance is also competitive, but he can let things go, whereas my dad and I can't.

"So whoever wins, sometimes it takes 24 hours... before we start talking to each other again...

"We have suspicions that my dad sometimes likes to cheat, but we've never caught him, so it's still an unresolved issue."