Karolina Pliskova denies Angelique Kerber number one ranking at Cincinnati

Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova beat Angelique Kerber in straight sets to take the title at the Cincinnati Open and deny the German the world number one ranking.

Pliskova upset Kerber 6-3, 6-1 on Sunday to win the tournament and claim her seventh career title. 

Before the match, Olympic silver medallist Kerber was one win away from becoming the women's world No 1, a position occupied by the United States' Serena Williams since February 2013.

The result means Williams, who withdrew from Cincinnati with a shoulder injury, is just three weeks away from equalling the 186-week record set by Steffi Graf.

Wimbledon runner-up Kerber, who had said all week she was keeping the number one possibility out of her mind, got off to slow starts in both sets.

She went down an immediate pair of breaks in the first set and lost her first service game in the second on the slippery slope to defeat.

The momentum mounted fast for Pliskova on a sunny day after a week of poor weather and rain.

The Czech clinched the opening set in 32 minutes and needed just 62 minutes in total to see off the German.

Kerber fell into a 5-1 deficit in the second set after a double-fault to allow Pliskova to serve out the biggest win of her career a game later on a second match point.