Serena again No 1 with Beijing win

American tennis superstar Serena Williams reclaimed the World No 1 ranking on Tuesday with an easy 6-3, 6-2 second round win over Russia's Ekaterina Makarova at the China Open.

The path to the top spot was cleared for the 28-year-old Williams, who last held the top ranking in April, when current No 1 Dinara Safina crashed out of the tournament on Monday, losing to Chinese wild card Zhang Shuai.

By besting Safina's performance, Williams - the current World No 2- is now mathematically assured of moving up to the top of the WTA rankings when the new list is issued on Monday.

The American started out slowly against Makarova, dropping her serve on a double fault to fall behind to the left-handed Russian, 2-3, but she quickly rallied with two breaks to close out the first set.

She then took the early lead in the second with a service break over the 21-year-old, who is ranked 55th in the world, and never looked back, moving Makarova around the court with her thunderous ground strokes.

Williams served out the match, failing to convert her first three points but finally sealing the win on her fourth chance with a blistering serve.

She pumped her fists and waved to the crowd, clearly pleased with the win, and even signed a few autographs on her way off court.

Williams first held the No 1 ranking in July 2002, staying at the top for more than a year until August 2003.

The 11-time Grand Slam winner again rose to the top in September last year for four weeks, and again earlier this year for 11 weeks from early February until mid-April.

Williams, the reigning Australian Open and Wimbledon champion, won the China Open in 2004. She also won Olympic doubles gold with sister Venus here last year.