The last 64 of those weeks have been consecutive, even though the Swiss star has not won a title since late February, her third of the year. She has not won a Grand Slam event since the 1999 Australian Open.

Hingis, who took over the No. 1 spot from Lindsay Davenport, is able to stay on top by playing a lot of tournaments and avoiding early exits.

Steffi Graf holds the women's mark for most weeks at No. 1 -- 377. She is followed by Martina Navratilova (331) and Chris Evert (262).

In her most recent match, Hingis lost to Monica Seles in the semifinals of the Acura Classic on Saturday.

In the new WTA rankings, Jennifer Capriati was No. 2 and Venus Williams dropped to No. 4 a day after she won the Acura Classic and two days after beating the player who replaced her at No. 3, Davenport.

Williams, a two-time Wimbledon champion, improved to 35-5 this year. But because she won the same tournament a year ago, she failed to pick up ranking points, while Davenport -- a second-round loser at the Acura a year ago -- made a considerable gain.

``It's all confusing for the spectator and even sometimes for the player,'' Williams said. ``As long as I can play well, win a few Grand Slams, if I'm ranked No. 10, that's OK.''

Williams has played just 10 tournaments this year and will play only one more before the U.S. Open begins Aug. 27.

``Sure, I want to be No. 1, but I want to win Grand Slams first. That's a top priority,'' Williams said.