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|
 Spears at the 2009 US Open | |
| Country (sports) |  United States |
|---|---|
| Residence | Colorado Springs, Colorado |
| Born | (1981-07-12)July 12, 1981 (age 43) San Diego, California |
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Turned pro | October 2000 |
| Retired | 2021 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Larry Willens |
| Prize money | $2,994,112 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 285–262 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 66 (June 6, 2005) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | 3R (2005) |
| French Open | 1R (2005) |
| Wimbledon | 1R (2005) |
| US Open | 1R (2004,2005) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 555–411 |
| Career titles | 21 |
| Highest ranking | No. 10 (March 2, 2015) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | SF (2014) |
| French Open | 3R (2004) |
| Wimbledon | SF (2015,2016,2018) |
| US Open | QF (2008) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Career titles | 1 |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (2017) |
| French Open | QF (2018) |
| Wimbledon | QF (2018) |
| US Open | F (2013,2014) |
| Last updated on: February 3, 2020. | |
Abigail Michal Spears (born July 12, 1981)[1] is a former professionaltennis player from the United States. She started playing in 1988 when she was 7 years old. She was number 10 in the world fordoubles. Outside of tennis she enjoys watching movies and going to the beach to surf or play beach volleyball. Her idols areSteffi Graf andMonica Seles.[2]
She was suspended for doping offences from 7 November 2019 until 7 September 2021.[3] She retired on 16 September 2021.[4]
July 12, 1981 Abigail Spears was born in San Diego, California.
Spears turned professional in 2000.[2] She reached the third round at the2005 Australian Open[5] and the first round at the2005 French Open,2005 Wimbledon tournament (where she also reached the third round in the doubles tournament withLisa McShea), and the2005 US Open.[6][7] She reached the third round at the2008 Wimbledon doubles tournament withRaquel Kops-Jones, and the duo bettered that result by reaching the quarterfinals at the2008 US Open.
Spears also qualified in singles for theUS Open twice.[8] She achieved a singles ranking of world No. 66 on June 6, 2005. Her highest doubles ranking was world No. 11 on June 24, 2013. Spears has not won aWTA singles title, but as of the end of December 2018 she has won 21 WTA doubles titles.[2] She participated in the US Open doubles draw eleven times between 1998 and 2010.[8]
Spears and compatriot Raquel Kops-Jones were one of the most successful doubles team of the2012 season, winning four titles atCarlsbad,Seoul,Tokyo andOsaka. The pair also reached two other finals as well as the quarterfinals ofWimbledon.
2017 was expected to be Spears' farewell year on tour.[9] At theAustralian Open, she partnered withJuan Sebastián Cabal to win the mixed-doubles tournament. In the final, they defeated the second-seeded team ofSania Mirza andIvan Dodig 6–2, 6–4. The American-Colombian duo recovered from a 1–4 deficit in the second set to reel off five straight games to clinch the title. It was a revenge match for Spears, having lost to Mirza the last time she made it to a Grand Slam final losing 9–11 in the super tiebreak to Mirza andBruno Soares at the2014 US Open.
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 2013 | US Open | Hard |  Santiago González |  Andrea Hlaváčková Max Mirnyi | 6–7(5–7), 3–6 |
| Runner-up | 2014 | US Open | Hard | Santiago González |  Sania Mirza Bruno Soares | 1–6, 6–2, [9–11] |
| Winner | 2017 | Australian Open | Hard |  Juan Sebastián Cabal | Sania Mirza Ivan Dodig | 6–2, 6–4 |
| Outcome | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 2012 | Doha | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Liezel HuberLisa Raymond | 3–6, 1–6 |
| Winner | 2012 | Tokyo | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones |  Anna-Lena GrönefeldKvěta Peschke | 6–1, 6–4 |
| Winner | 2014 | Cincinnati | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones |  Tímea Babos Kristina Mladenovic | 6–1, 2–0 ret. |
| Winner — Legend |
|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments (0–0) |
| Tour Championships (0–0) |
| Tier I / Premier Mandatory & Premier 5 (0–0) |
| Tier II / Premier (0–0) |
| Tier III, IV & V / International (0–1) |
| Result | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1. | November 7, 2004 | Bell Challenge, Quebec City, Canada | Hard |  Martina Suchá | 5–7, 6–3, 2–6 |
| Winner — Legend |
|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments (0–0) |
| Tour Championships (0–0) |
| Tier I / Premier Mandatory & Premier 5 (2–1) |
| Tier II / Premier (8–5) |
| Tier III, IV & V / International (11–4) |
| Result | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1. | January 5, 2003 | Auckland Open, New Zealand | Hard | Teryn Ashley |  Cara Black Elena Likhovtseva | 6–2, 2–6, 6–0 |
| Win | 2. | August 15, 2004 | Odlum Brown Vancouver Open, Canada | Hard | Bethanie Mattek |  Els CallensAnna-Lena Grönefeld | 6–3, 6–3 |
| Loss | 1. | February 19, 2005 | Cellular South Cup, United States | Hard | Laura Granville |  Yuka YoshidaMiho Saeki | 3–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 3. | July 24, 2005 | Western & Southern Women's Open, United States | Hard | Laura Granville | Květa Peschke María Emilia Salerni | 3–6, 6–2, 6–4 |
| Win | 4. | May 10, 2009 | Estoril Open, Portugal | Clay | Raquel Kops-Jones |  Sharon FichmanKatalin Marosi | 2–6, 6–3, [10–5] |
| Loss | 2. | June 14, 2009 | Aegon Classic, Birmingham, Great Britain | Grass | Raquel Kops-Jones | Cara BlackLiezel Huber | 1–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 5. | September 27, 2009 | Hansol Korea Open, Seoul, South Korea | Hard |  Chan Yung-jan | Carly Gullickson Nicole Kriz | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Loss | 3. | October 18, 2009 | HP Open, Osaka, Japan | Hard |  Chanelle Scheepers | Lisa RaymondChuang Chia-jung | 2–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 4. | August 7, 2011 | Mercury Insurance Open, San Diego, United States | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Květa Peschke Katarina Srebotnik | 0–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 6. | September 18, 2011 | Bell Challenge, Quebec City | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Jamie Hampton Anna Tatishvili | 6–0, 3–6, [10–6] |
| Loss | 5. | January 7, 2012 | Brisbane International, Australia | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones |  Nuria Llagostera VivesArantxa Parra Santonja | 6–7(2–7), 6–7(2–7) |
| Loss | 6. | February 19, 2012 | Qatar Ladies Open, Doha | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Liezel Huber Lisa Raymond | 3–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 7. | July 23, 2012 | Mercury Insurance Open, Carlsbad, United States | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Vania KingNadia Petrova | 6–2, 6–4 |
| Win | 8. | September 23, 2012 | Hansol Korea Open, Seoul | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones |  Akgul Amanmuradova Vania King | 2–6, 6–2, [10–8] |
| Win | 9. | September 29, 2012 | Toray Pan Pacific Open, Tokyo, Japan | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Anna-Lena Grönefeld Květa Peschke | 6–1, 6–4 |
| Win | 10. | October 14, 2012 | HP Open, Osaka | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Kimiko Date-Krumm Heather Watson | 6–1, 6–4 |
| Win | 11. | July 29, 2013 | Bank of the West Classic, Stanford, United States | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Julia GörgesDarija Jurak | 6–2, 7–6(7–4) |
| Win | 12. | August 5, 2013 | Southern California Open, Carlsbad, United States | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Chan Hao-chingJanette Husárová | 6–4, 6–1 |
| Loss | 7. | September 22, 2013 | KDB Korea Open, Seoul | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Chan Chin-wei Xu Yifan | 5–7, 3–6 |
| Loss | 8. | February 22, 2014 | Dubai Tennis Championships, United Arab Emirates | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Alla KudryavtsevaAnastasia Rodionova | 2–6, 7–5, [8–10] |
| Win | 13. | June 15, 2014 | Aegon Classic, Birmingham | Grass | Raquel Kops-Jones | Ashleigh BartyCasey Dellacqua | 7–6(7–1), 6–1 |
| Win | 14. | August 18, 2014 | Cincinnati Masters, United States | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Tímea BabosKristina Mladenovic | 6–1, 2–0 ret. |
| Loss | 9. | January 16, 2015 | Apia International Sydney, Australia | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Bethanie Mattek-SandsSania Mirza | 3–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 15. | February 28, 2015 | Qatar Total Open, Doha | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Hsieh Su-wei Sania Mirza | 6–4, 6–4 |
| Win | 16. | June 14, 2015 | Aegon Nottingham Open, Great Britain | Grass | Raquel Kops-Jones | Jocelyn RaeAnna Smith | 3–6, 6–3, [11–9] |
| Win | 17. | October 18, 2015 | Generali Ladies Linz, Austria | Hard | Raquel Kops-Jones | Andrea HlaváčkováLucie Hradecká | 6–3, 7–5 |
| Win | 18. | July 23, 2016 | Bank of the West Classic, Stanford | Hard | Raquel Atawo | Darija JurakAnastasia Rodionova | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Win | 19. | February 18, 2017 | Qatar Total Open, Doha | Hard | Katarina Srebotnik |  Olga Savchuk Yaroslava Shvedova | 6–3, 7–6(9–7) |
| Loss | 10. | April 30, 2017 | Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, Stuttgart, Germany | Clay (i) | Katarina Srebotnik | Raquel Atawo Jeļena Ostapenko | 4–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 20. | August 6, 2017 | Bank of the West Classic, Stanford | Hard | CoCo Vandeweghe | Alizé Cornet Alicja Rosolska | 6–2, 6–3 |
| Win | 21. | June 17, 2018 | Nottingham Open, Great Britain | Grass | Alicja Rosolska |  Mihaela Buzărnescu Heather Watson | 6–3, 7–6(7–5) |
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 2004 | 2005 | SR | W–L | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | 3R | 0 / 1 | 2–1 | |||||||||||
| French Open | A | 1R | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | |||||||||||
| Wimbledon | A | 1R | 0 / 1 | 0–1 | |||||||||||
| US Open | 1R | 1R | 0 / 2 | 0–2 | |||||||||||
| Win–loss | 0–1 | 2–4 | 0 / 5 | 2–5 | |||||||||||
| Tournament | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | SR | W–L | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | A | 2R | 1R | 3R | 1R | 2R | SF | QF | 2R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 0 / 16 | 15–16 | |||||
| French Open | A | A | A | A | 1R | 2R | 3R | A | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | 2R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 3R | 0 / 14 | 9–14 | |||||
| Wimbledon | A | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 1R | A | 3R | 1R | 1R | 2R | QF | 3R | 3R | SF | SF | 1R | SF | 3R | 0 / 17 | 26–17 | |||||
| US Open | 1R | 1R | A | 1R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | 1R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 2R | 1R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 0 / 21 | 11–21 | |||||
| Win–loss | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 2–3 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 5–2 | 1–4 | 0–4 | 3–4 | 6–4 | 4–4 | 7–4 | 9–4 | 6–4 | 1–4 | 5–4 | 6–4 | 0 / 68 | 61–68 | |||||
| WTA Premier Mandatory tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indian Wells | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 2R | A | A | A | 2R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | QF | 1R | 1R | 2R | 0 / 14 | 8–14 | |||||
| Miami | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | Q2 | A | A | A | QF | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | SF | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | 0 / 11 | 8–11 | |||||
| Madrid | Not Held | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | QF | 2R | 1R | 1R | QF | 1R | 0 / 11 | 7–11 | |||||||||||||||
| Beijing | Not Held | Not Tier I | A | A | QF | QF | QF | QF | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | 1R | 0 / 9 | 10–9 | ||||||||||||||
Spears was striving to win her first Grand Slam title in her farewell year. She plans to retire at the end of this season after a career in which she was twice runner-up in mixed doubles finals with Mexican Santiago González at the U.S. Open in 2013 and 2014.
