_-_Tournament_-_Svetlana_Kuznetsova_(15085701785)_(cropped).jpg) Kuznetsova at the 2014 US Open | |
| Country (sports) |  Russia |
|---|---|
| Residence | Moscow, Russia[1] |
| Born | (1985-06-27)27 June 1985 (age 40) Leningrad, Soviet Union |
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Turned pro | 2000 |
| Retired | 2021 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach | Gustavo Marcaccio |
| Prize money | $25,816,890[2] |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 670–348 |
| Career titles | 18 |
| Highest ranking | No. 2 (10 September 2007) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | QF (2005,2009,2013) |
| French Open | W (2009) |
| Wimbledon | QF (2003,2005,2007,2017) |
| US Open | W (2004) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | SF (2016) |
| Olympic Games | QF (2004) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 259–135 |
| Career titles | 16 |
| Highest ranking | No. 3 (7 June 2004) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | W (2005,2012) |
| French Open | F (2004) |
| Wimbledon | F (2005) |
| US Open | F (2003,2004) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | SF (2003,2004) |
| Olympic Games | QF (2008,2016) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Career record | 4–4 |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 1R (2003,2014) |
| French Open | 2R (2003) |
| Wimbledon | QF (2003) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | W (2004,2007,2008); record 27–13 |
Svetlana Aleksandrovna Kuznetsova[note 1] (born 27 June 1985) is a Russian former professionaltennis player. She was ranked as high as world No. 2 in singles and No. 3 in doubles by theWTA. During her career, Kuznetsova won 18 singles and 16 doubles titles, including two singlesmajors at the2004 US Open and2009 French Open, and two doubles majors at the2005 and2012 Australian Opens.
Kuznetsova first took part in aWTA Tour event in 2001. Her first major title came at the 2004 US Open over compatriotElena Dementieva, making her the third Russian woman to win a major. Kuznetsova's second major singles title was the 2009 French Open, defeating compatriotDinara Safina in the final. At the2006 French Open and the2007 US Open singles tournaments she was the runner-up, both times toJustine Henin, raising her to a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2. After 2010, Kuznetsova's results declined, but slowly recovered through 2016, when she re-entered the top ten and reached the semifinals of theWTA Finals. She retired from the sport in 2021.
Kuznetsova was also successful in doubles. She won her first five career doubles titles withArantxa Sánchez Vicario. PartneringElena Likhovtseva, she climbed to No. 3 in doubles in 2004. She won the Australian Open twice in doubles, in 2005 alongsideAlicia Molik and in 2012 partneringVera Zvonareva.
Kuznetsova was born inLeningrad. Her father, Aleksandr Kuznetsov, coached five Olympic and world cycling champions. Kuznetsova's mother,Galina Tsareva, is a six-time world champion and holder of 20 world records in cycling, and her brother,Nikolay Kuznetsov, was a silver medalist at the1996 Summer Olympics inAtlanta and coach of the Russian cycling team Lokomotiv. Kuznetsova never showed interest in cycling, but rather tennis. She liked watching tennis from an early age, preferring men's over women's tennis. "I had posters in my room of MaliVai Washington, Marcelo Ríos, and (Yevgeny) Kafelnikov. It's very weird but this is who I liked. Later I was a big fan of (Marat) Safin.", she said. Kuznetsova began to play tennis at the age of seven, and moved to Spain six years later to receive better training and coaching. While there, she became fluent in Spanish.[3]
Kuznetsova debuted in her firstITF Circuit tournament in Mallorca on 31 January. In the first round, she defeated Katia Altilia from Italy in straight sets, 6–0, 6–4. However, she lost in the quarterfinal toOana Elena Golimbioschi.[4] Her next appearance was inTalence in April. She defeated Aurore Desertin in the first round, but lost in the second round to Berengere Karpenschif, both from France. InMinsk, Belarus, in a tournament using theshort sets scoring system, she reached the quarterfinal, after defeating the unrankedVera Zvonareva in the first round in four sets, and Daria Panova in three sets in the second round. In the quarterfinal, she lost to 574th ranked Elena Voropaeva in four sets, after losing twotie breaks in the two earlier sets. However, Kuznetsova was ranked in the top 900, receiving her first ranking of 889 during the week ending 20 November 2000. She moved to Mallorca again and lost in the first round to Dinara Safina after winning the first set. Her last tournament of the year was again in Mallorca, but now played in a minimum of four sets. In the round of 32, she defeatedSilvia Disderi. However, she fell to eighth seededMihaela Moldovan in the last round. She ended the season ranked 889.[citation needed]
Kuznetsova began playing in tournaments on the ITF Circuit in 2000, winning her first title on the circuit in April 2001. Her first appearances in the main draws of tournaments on the mainWTA Tour were at theMadrid Open in May of that year and at theWaikoloa Championships in September, losing in the second round on both occasions. She finished the year 2001 ranked 259.[citation needed]
Kuznetsova made her major main-draw debut at the2002 Australian Open, where, as a qualifier, she reached the second round, before losing to 16th seedIroda Tulyaganova.[5] However, she previously lost in the qualifying rounds of both the2001 French Open and2001 Wimbledon.[citation needed]
As a qualifier at the clay-courtNordic Light Open in Helsinki, Finland in August, Kuznetsova won her first WTA singles title, defeating world No. 24Patty Schnyder in the quarterfinals for her first win over a top 40 player, before defeatingDenisa Chládková in the final.[6] Kuznetsova entered the top 100 for the first time as a result of that victory. Kuznetsova qualified for theUS Open, defeating 19th seedAnne Kremer in the first round for her first win over a top 20 player, before losing in the third round to 13th seedSilvia Farina Elia.[7] In September, Kuznetsova won her second title at the hardcourtBali Tennis Classic in Indonesia, defeating former major championsArantxa Sánchez Vicario andConchita Martínez.[8] Also during 2002, she teamed up with Sánchez Vicario to win the first WTA Tour doubles titles of her career, in Sopot, Poland, Helsinki and Kyōtō, Japan. Kuznetsova finished the 2002 season as world No. 43 in singles.[citation needed]
Kuznetsova began her season at theBrisbane International. She received awildcard, but fell in the first round in the singles toElena Bovina. In the doubles competition, she paired withMartina Navratilova, with whom she would play throughout the year (except on the Indian Wells Open, partnering withJanette Husárová), and won againstNathalie Dechy andÉmilie Loit in straight sets.[9] In theAustralian Open, she lost to second seedVenus Williams in the first round. With Navratilova, they lost against ninth seedDaniela Hantuchová andChanda Rubin in the third round. She paired with AustralianJeff Coetzee but lost toMark Knowles andElena Likhovtseva in two tight sets in the first round.[10] In the singles event of theDubai Tennis Championships, Kuznetsova won the first round against sixth seededFrancesca Schiavone, but was beaten by Dinara Safina in the second round. In the doubles event she and Navratilova were beaten by eventual runners-upMaría Vento-Kabchi andAngelique Widjaja.[11] She did not reach the quarterfinals of any tournament during the first half of the year. Her win over world No. 11, Anastasia Myskina, in the second round of theIndian Wells Open in California was her highest up to that date.[12]
In the first round of theFrench Open, Kuznetsova lost toMeghann Shaughnessy. She was also unsuccessful withJared Palmer in the mixed doubles, losing toNadia Petrova andPaul Haarhuis in the round of 16. Kuznetsova paired with Navratilova in the doubles match, but lost toKim Clijsters andAi Sugiyama in three sets in the quarterfinal.[13] Kuznetsova participated atWimbledon, where in the fourth round, she defeated wildcardMaria Sharapova to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, losing to third seedJustine Henin. At the doubles, they were again defeated by Clijsters and Sugiyama. Kuznetsova paired with AustralianTodd Woodbridge in the mixed doubles, but lost againstLeoš Friedl andLiezel Huber in the quarterfinal.[14] She then made her first semifinal appearance of the year inSan Diego, before losing to Henin.[15] At theUS Open singles tournament, Kuznetsova lost in the third round to top seed Kim Clijsters. However, in the doubles competition, she again partnered with Navratilova and reached the first Grand Slam final of her career but were beaten byPaola Suárez andVirginia Ruano Pascual in two straight sets.[16] She entered theSparkassen Cup in Leipzig, losing to fifth seeded Daniela Hantuchová in the first round. Kuznetsova and Navratilova won the doubles title against Elena Likhovtseva and Nadia Petrova.[17] In the doubles competition at theKremlin Cup, they reached the semifinals before losing to Russian couple and runners-up Anastasia Myskina and Vera Zvonareva.[18] Her last appearance of the year was at theWTA Championships doubles competition in Los Angeles. In her first Tour Championships participation she and Navratilova lost in the first round to eventual champions Virginia Ruano Pascual and Paola Suárez.[19] She finished the 2003 season as world No. 36.
Kuznetsova reached the third round of the singles competition at theAustralian Open, before losing to top seed Justine Henin. She reached her second major doubles final with new partner Elena Likhovtseva before losing to Virginia Ruano Pascual and Paola Suárez.[20] Several weeks later, playing singles atDubai, Kuznetsova defeated former world No. 1, Venus Williams, in the quarterfinals before defeating world No. 8,Ai Sugiyama, in the semifinals for her first win over a top-10 player. Kuznetsova lost the final to world No. 1 Henin.[21] The following week, Kuznetsova defeated Henin for the first time in the semifinals ofDoha, before losing in the final to compatriot Myskina in three sets,[22] pushing her into the top 20 for the first time. In April, Kuznetsova reached her third singles final of the year at the start of the clay-court season at theJ&S Cup in Warsaw, losing to Venus Williams in the final.[23] Kuznetsova climbed to No. 11 by the time of theFrench Open. There, she reached the fourth round before losing to eventual champion Myskina, after holding a match point in the third set. In doubles Kuznetsova and Likhovtseva reached the final, losing to Suarez and Ruano Pascual.[24] Following the French Open, Kuznetsova climbed to career-highs of world No. 9 in the singles rankings, her first time in the top ten, and on 7 June 2004, world No. 3 in the doubles rankings. Kuznetsova won her third title at theEastbourne International, defeating Hantuchová in the final in three sets.[25] At Wimbledon, Kuznetsova suffered a first-round loss to 118th–rankedVirginie Razzano.[26] She fell to No. 4 in the doubles on 26 July, losing in theLA Women's Tennis Championships to 113th rankedGisela Dulko andPatricia Tarabini.
Representing Russia at theOlympics, Kuznetsova reached the quarterfinals before losing to silver-medallistAmélie Mauresmo.[27] She went into theUS Open seeded ninth. There, she defeated 14th seed Petrova in the quarterfinals, and in her first Grand Slam tournament semifinal, defeated fifth seed and former champion Davenport, ending the American's 22-match winning streak.[28] In the final, Kuznetsova defeated sixth seed Dementieva.[29] Kuznetsova was the first female Russian to win the US Open and the third to win a Grand Slam singles title, following the successes of Myskina and Maria Sharapova earlier in the year. Meanwhile, Kuznetsova teamed with Likhovtseva to reach the final of the doubles tournament before losing there to Suarez and Ruano Pascual, marking Kuznetsova's fourth consecutive defeat by the pair in Grand Slams. Kuznetsova, however, climbed again to No. 3 on 13 September, after her loss in Los Angeles in early July.[30]Kuznetsova continued her success by winning theWismilak International in Bali, Indonesia defeatingMarlene Weingärtner in the final.[31] In the doubles she reached with Arantxa-Sánchez Vicario the final, losing to Anastasia Myskina and Ai Sugiyama. This improved her singles ranking to a new high of world No. 5, but worsen her doubles ranking to No. 4 on 20 September. The following week, at theChina Open in Beijing, Kuznetsova defeated Wimbledon champion Sharapova in the semifinals to extend her winning streak to 14 matches. However, she lost in the final to Serena Williams.[32] Making her debut at the season-ending WTA Championships in Los Angeles, Kuznetsova lost two of three matches in the preliminary round-robin stage and exited before the semifinals.[33] Kuznetsova finished the season as world No. 5.
Kuznetsova began the year by reaching the quarterfinals of theAustralian Open, losing to fourth seed Sharapova in three sets. Kuznetsova teamed with AustralianAlicia Molik to win her first Grand Slam doubles title, defeating Davenport andCorina Morariu.[34] In the first round she received a bye at thePan Pacific Open and was defeated by runner-up Lindsay Davenport in the semifinal.[35] Kuznetsova did not reach any finals during the spring hard-court season, with defeats including one to No. 97Sania Mirza in the first round atDubai.[36] She received a first-round bye at theIndian Wells Open and reached the quarterfinal before losing to Elena Dementieva.[37] She joined the next event, theNASDAQ-100 Open in Miami, and progressed to the fourth round after receiving a bye in the first round. There she was defeated by Ana Ivanovic.[38]
She made her first final of the year at theJ&S Cup in Warsaw, defeating former world No. 1 Clijsters in the semifinals. In the final, Kuznetsova lost to Henin.[39] At theFrench Open, Kuznetsova lost again to eventual champion Henin in a tightly contested fourth round match, having wasted a match point in the third set.[40] At Wimbledon, Kuznetsova reached the quarterfinals for the second time before losing to top seed Davenport. She teamed up with Mauresmo to reach her sixth Grand Slam doubles final but suffered a heavy defeat byCara Black andLiezel Huber.[41]
At theUS Open, she lost to No. 97Ekaterina Bychkova in the first round, becoming the first female defending US Open champion to lose in the first round.[42] This defeat dropped her out of the top ten. She defeated Zvonareva in the quarterfinal of theKremlin Cup but was beaten byFrancesca Schiavone in the semifinal.[43] At theZurich Open, Kuznetsova lost in the first round to the unseededNathalie Dechy.[44] She finished the year ranked world No. 18.
Kuznetsova started her season at theAustralian Open and reached the fourth round before losing there to top seed Davenport.[45] Several weeks later, Kuznetsova rebounded atDubai, defeating world No. 2 Mauresmo in the quarterfinals for her first win over a top ten player since 2004. She lost to Henin in the semifinals.[46] In March, Kuznetsova defeated former world No. 1,Martina Hingis, in the third round of theMiami Open, before going on to defeat world No. 1 Mauresmo in the semifinals. In the final, she defeated Sharapova to win the first Tier I title of her career and her first singles title in 18 months.[47] This win returned her to the top ten.
Kuznetsova reached her second final of the year at the clay-courtJ&S Cup in Warsaw, defeating Venus Williams en route. In the final, she lost to world No. 2, Clijsters,[48] marking third consecutive runner-up finish at that event. At theFrench Open, Kuznetsova reached the quarterfinals for the first time, where she defeated 14th seed Dinara Safina. In the semifinals, she defeated 17-year-old CzechNicole Vaidišová after saving a match point. In her second Grand Slam final, Kuznetsova lost to Henin.[49] Kuznetsova reached only the third round atWimbledon, losing to 27th seedLi Na.[50]
At theUS Open, Kuznetsova lost in the fourth round to 19th seed Jelena Janković.[51] In September, she won her second title of the year at the $225,000 Commonwealth Bank Tennis Classic in Bali as the top seeded – for the first time in her career –[52] defeating Davenport in the semifinals andMarion Bartoli in the final.[53] The following week, she won theChina Open in Beijing, after defeating world No. 1 Mauresmo in the final.[54]
Competing at the season-endingTour Championships, played in Madrid, for the second time Kuznetsova again failed to advance past the preliminary round-robin stage, winning just one of her three matches.[55] She finished the season as world No. 4.
Kuznetsova began the year by losing in the fourth round of theAustralian Open to 16th seed IsraeliShahar Pe'er.[56] She rebounded to reach her first final of the year in February at the Qatar Open in Doha, losing to world No. 1 Henin in two sets.[57] She was seed first and made the final of the Tier IIndian Wells Open but lost to Hantuchová, in straight sets.[58] Reaching the final improved her ranking to third during the week ending 18 March, a career high.
Kuznetsova continued on form during the clay-court season. At theJ&S Cup in Warsaw, she defeated Venus Williams for the first time in her career in the quarterfinals before losing toAlona Bondarenko in the semifinals.[59] She made the final of another Tier I tournament, at theGerman Open in Berlin, after defeating world No. 1 Henin for only the second time in the semifinals. In the final, the 1st seeded Kuznetsova lost to 12th seededAna Ivanovic.[60] The following week, Kuznetsova reached the final of the Tier IItalian Open in Rome, losing to third seed Janković.[61] As the third seed at theFrench Open, Kuznetsova advanced to the quarterfinals without dropping a set but lost there to runner-up Ivanovic.[62] Kuznetsova reached the quarterfinals ofWimbledon for the third time in which she lost to eventual champion Venus Williams.[63]
In August, the top-seeded Kuznetsova won her first title of the year atNew Haven, after three of her opponents retired due to injury or illness, including her finals opponentÁgnes Szávay.[64] At theUS Open, Kuznetsova defeated sixth seedAnna Chakvetadze in the semifinals to advance to her third Grand Slam final. She lost to Henin in straight sets.[65] As a result of this run, Kuznetsova reached world No. 2 during the week ending 9 September.
At thePorsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany, Kuznetsova recorded her first career win over Serena Williams, before losing in the semifinals toTatiana Golovin.[66] The following week she was seeded first in theKremlin Cup in Moscow, but lost to Serena Williams in the semifinals.[67] Kuznetsova completed the year by competing at theYear-ending championships in Madrid, but once again failed to progress beyond the preliminary round-robin stage, losing all three matches.[68] She finished the season as world No. 2, and as the highest-ranked Russian player for the first time.
Kuznetsova began the season by reaching the final at theSydney International, losing to world No. 1 Henin in the final set.[69] At theAustralian Open, Kuznetsova was seeded second, but fell in the third round to 29th seedAgnieszka Radwańska.[70] After her defeat at theQatar Ladies Open to 15th seededSybille Bammer, she fell after 15 weeks to No. 3 on 25 February.[71] Kuznetsova made her second final of the season inDubai, defeating former world No. 1, Mauresmo, in the quarterfinals and world No. 4, Janković, in the semifinals. In the final Kuznetsova lost toElena Dementieva.[72] At the Tier IIndian Wells Open, Kuznetsova defeated Radwańska in the quarterfinals, before defeating Australian Open champion Sharapova. In the final, Kuznetsova lost to top-seeded Ivanović.[73] This marked her eighth defeat in her nine most recent final appearances. At the Tier IMiami Open the next fortnight, Kuznetsova defeated Venus Williams in the quarterfinals but then lost to her sister Serena in the semifinals.[74]
Kuznetsova's form dipped following the conclusion of the spring hardcourt season, as she won just three of five matches on clay leading up to theFrench Open. She advanced to the semifinals without dropping a set, but then lost to Safina.[75] AtWimbledon, Kuznetsova lost in the fourth round to Agnieszka Radwańska, after leading by a break in the third and final set.[76]
In the summer, she competed at theBeijing Olympics, losing to local favorite Li Na in the first round. Seeded third in theUS Open, she fell toKatarina Srebotnik in the third round in three sets.[77] After the latter loss, she dropped out of the top five in the world rankings for the first time in two years. The following week, Kuznetsova made her first final since March at the Tier IPan Pacific Open in Tokyo, defeating world No. 2 Janković in the quarterfinals, before losing to Safina in the final.[78] The following week, Kuznetsova reached the final at theChina Open in Beijing, but lost to Janković.[79] This marked Kuznetsova's 10th defeat in her last eleven finals.
She mirrored her earlier performance at the season-endingWTA Championships in Doha, losing all three of her matches.[80] Kuznetsova finished the year ranked No. 8, the only woman in the top ten not to have won a title that year.
At theAustralian Open, Kuznetsova reached the quarterfinals for the second time in her career, but lost to eventual champion Serena Williams, after being within two points of winning the match in the second set.[81] After that, Kuznetsova did not win another match for nearly two months. She broke her losing streak inMiami reaching the semifinals, losing to Victoria Azarenka.[82]
At thePorsche Grand Prix, Kuznetsova defeated world No. 3 Dementieva in the semifinals to reach her first final that year. She defeated world No. 1 Safina[83] to win her first singles title since August 2007. The following week, Kuznetsova also reached the final at the Premier 5Internazionali d'Italia in Rome, having defeated No. 4 Janković en route. She lost the championship to Safina.[84] In the quarterfinals of theFrench Open, she defeated Serena Williams in three sets, before defeatingSamantha Stosur to reach her fourth major final. There she beat top seed Safina to win her second Grand Slam title.[85][86] AtWimbledon, Kuznetsova fell in the third round to unseeded GermanSabine Lisicki.[87]
She pulled out of theLA Women's Tennis Championships, citing a foot injury.[88] Her next event was theCincinnati Open, where she fell to Clijsters in the third round.[89] She then played in theRogers Cup and lost to Samantha Stosur in the second round.[90] She received a wildcard entrance to thePilot Pen Tennis tournament in New Haven, but lost in the quarterfinals to Mauresmo. This became her last tournament as first seeded. At theUS Open she won in straight set wins over Görges, Sevastova, and Peer, but lost againstCaroline Wozniacki in the fourth round.[91] At thePan Pacific Open in Tokyo, seeded fifth, she lost toAndrea Petkovic.[92]
A week later, she played atChina Open as the sixth seed. She advanced to the final beating Petrova in the semifinal and won against Agnieszka Radwańska in the final.[93] Soon after, she played at theTour Championships in Doha. She entered the Maroon group along with Dementieva, Serena and Venus Williams, and lost both her matches against the Williams sisters. She defeated Dementieva, breaking her eight–match losing streak at the Championships.[94] Kuznetsova ended the year ranked No. 3.
Kuznetsova began the year at theSydney International. She defeatedAlisa Kleybanova in the first round before falling toDominika Cibulková in the second.[95] Kuznetsova was seeded third for theAustralian Open. She advanced to the fourth round, losing to 19th seeded Petrova.[96] Following the tournament, Kuznetsova's ranking dropped to world No. 4. Kuznetsova was seeded second for theDubai Championships but fell in a third round upset to qualifier and No. 99 rankedRegina Kulikova.[97] At theBillie Jean King Cup exhibition, Kuznetsova lost her match to Williams.[98] For the first as the top seed, due to Serena Williams and Safina's withdrawal atIndian Wells, she was upset byCarla Suárez Navarro in the second round after receiving a first round bye.[99] Kuznetsova was seeded, for the sixth and last time to date, top at theMiami Open and after receiving a bye in the first round, managed to prevent another upset by defeatingPeng Shuai in the second round. She then defeated 27th seedÁgnes Szávay to book a fourth round encounter with Marion Bartoli, losing to the French No. 1 in the quarterfinal.[100]
Kuznetsova was the defending champion at thePorsche Grand Prix, but fell to Li Na in the second round, after defeating Srebotnik.[101] At theItalian Open, where she had reached the final the year before, she lost in the second round toMaria Kirilenko, after receiving a first round bye.[102] As the defending champion at theFrench Open, Kuznetsova was the sixth seed. She defeatedSorana Cîrstea and Andrea Petkovic in the early rounds. In the third round she lost to 30th seeded Kirilenko.[103] Kuznetsova advanced to the quarterfinals of theEastbourne International, losing toEkaterina Makarova.[104] Kuznetsova was seeded 19th at theWimbledon. She defeatedAkgul Amanmuradova in the first round, before falling toAnastasia Rodionova in the second round.[105]
Kuznetsova rallied by winning theSan Diego Open. She defeatedYanina Wickmayer,Sara Errani,CoCo Vandeweghe, andFlavia Pennetta en route to the final which she won in three sets against Agnieszka Radwańska.[106] She then played at theCincinnati Open suffering an early exit to Sharapova in the first round.[107] At theRogers Cup, Kuznetsova made it to the semifinals before falling to Caroline Wozniacki in two sets.[108] Kuznetsova was seeded 11th at theUS Open. She defeatedKimiko Date-Krumm,Anastasija Sevastova, and 23rd seed Kirilenko before falling in the fourth round to unseeded Cibulková.[109] Kuznetsova was the 10th seed at thePan Pacific Open, but lost to Petkovic in the second round.[110]
As the defending champion, Kuznetsova exited in the first round of theChina Open toRoberta Vinci.[111] She finished the year ranked world No. 27, her lowest since 2003.
Kuznetsova's first tournament of 2011 was theAuckland Open in New Zealand where she was the third seed. She fell to Peng Shuai in the second round, although initially up a set.[112] She then headed toSydney where she lost in the quarterfinals to eight-seeded Li.[113] Kuznetsova was seeded 23rd at theAustralian Open where she lost in the fourth round to Francesca Schiavone, squandering six match points in the final set.[114] The match was thelongest recorded women's Grand Slam match in the Open Era, with a final scoreline of 6–4, 1–6, 16–14, and the second-longest women's match in the Open Era.[115] Her next tournament was theDubai Tennis Championships. The 16th seed set up a date in the final with Caroline Wozniacki by beating Flavia Pennetta in the semifinal. Kuznetsova was defeated by the top-seed. In doubles, she teamed up with Vera Zvonareva, but pulled out before the semifinal against Liezel Huber and María José Martínez Sánchez due to a right elbow injury of Zvonareva.[116] She lost in theQatar Ladies Open tournament againstShahar Pe'er in the first round.[117] Kuznetsova received a bye in the first round at theIndian Wells Open, but was defeated by wildcardChristina McHale in two tie-breaks in the second round. At thedoubles event, Kuznetsova teamed up with Vera Zvonareva. They received a wildcard in the first round, but were defeated by fourth seed Vania King and Shvedova.[118] In the singles tournament ofMiami, Kuznetsova was 11th-seeded and lost in the third round to Peng Shuai in straight sets. In the doubles tournament, again with Zvonareva and receiving a wildcard entry, they exited in the second round against María José Martínez Sánchez and Anabel Medina Garrigues.[119]
Kuznetsova was seeded second at theAndalucia Tennis Experience, after receiving a wildcard. She succeeded to move to the semifinal where she lost against qualifierIrina-Camelia Begu.[120] She failed to reach the second round in both theMadrid Open andItalian Open, losing to Dominika Cibulková and Gréta Arn, respectively. In Madrid, she partnered with Zvonareva and received a wildcard. They moved into the second round, but lost against King and Shvedova.[121] Kuznetsova was seeded 13th at theFrench Open singles event where she lost against Marion Bartoli in the quarterfinal, her first in a Grand Slam tournament since 2009. At thedoubles event she paired with Zvonareva and defeated unseededKlaudia Jans andAlicja Rosolska from Poland. They lost against third seeds King and Shvedova.[122] She lost against Dominika Cibulková in the quarterfinal of theRosmalen Open.[123] AtWimbledon, she defeatedZhang Shuai andAlexandra Dulgheru but lost against Yanina Wickmayer.[124]
Kuznetsova was the defending champion at theSan Diego Open but withdrew due to agroin strain.[125] She recovered quickly from the injury and entered theRogers Cup, but lost to Simona Halep in the first round.[126] As 14th-seed, she made it to the third round of theWestern & Southern Open and was beaten by eventual champion Maria Sharapova.[127] Kuznetsova reached the fourth round of theUS Open in which she lost to top-seeded Wozniacki.[128]
Kuznetsova began her season atAuckland where she reached the semifinal, losing in three sets to ChineseZheng Jie.[129] At theAustralian Open, she was defeated in the third round of the singles event bySabine Lisicki. In contrast, she partnered with Vera Zvonareva as in the previous season and won her second Grand Slam doubles title against the Italian duo Errani and Vinci, defeating them in a three sets final.[130] It was her best doubles result since 2009. It was the first time since 2008 that an unseeded pair won the Australian Open doubles title.[131]
Kuznetsova was seeded 26th at theFrench Open. She upset world No. 3, Agnieszka Radwańska, in the third round but subsequently lost in the fourth to eventual runner-up, Sara Errani.[132]
Kuznetsova then suffered a first-round loss atWimbledon, falling to Yanina Wickmayer in straight sets. It was the first time she lost in the first round of any Grand Slam since the 2005 US Open where she was the defending champion. She withdrew from theUS Open, ending a streak of 40 consecutive Grand Slam appearances dating back to 2002.[133]
Kuznetsova began her comeback atSydney, where she had to qualify to enter the main draw. In the second round, she upset former world No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki, in three sets for her first win in a main draw of any tournament since the previous year's French Open.[134]
Kuznetsova entered theAustralian Open unseeded, but she was able to reach the quarterfinals for the third time, after defeating Wozniacki for the second time this year, in the fourth round.[135] She subsequently lost in the quarterfinals to world No. 1, defending and eventual champion, Victoria Azarenka, in two sets. She next played at the Qatar Ladies Open and defeated ninth seed Marion Bartoli in the second round, before losing in the third to Sam Stosur.
Kuznetsova then enteredIndian Wells as an unseeded player. She matched her 2012 performance by reaching the third round, defeating former champion Janković in the second round, before losing to Marion Bartoli in the third. AtMiami, Kuznetsova was again unseeded, but she managed to reach the third round, losing to Ana Ivanovic in straight sets.
At theFrench Open, Kuznetsova reached her second consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal, where she lost to world No. 1 and eventual champion, Serena Williams, in three sets.[136] The second set which Kuznetsova won was the only one dropped by Williams during the tournament. She had defeated 22nd-seed and compatriot Ekaterina Makarova and sixth seedAngelique Kerber en route.
Kuznetsova began the year with a loss toVarvara Lepchenko in the first round atSydney. At the first round of thePattaya Open, Kuznetsova defeated Zhang Shuai to record her 500th career victory.[137] This immediately followed a first round loss toElina Svitolina at theAustralian Open.Kuznetsova lost toPetra Kvitová in three sets in the third round at theIndian Wells Open.AtMiami, Kuznetsova was upset in her first match by 17-year-old CroatDonna Vekić in straight sets, after receiving a first-round bye.[138]
Kuznetsova reached the quarterfinals at theStuttgart Grand Prix, before she was defeated by eventual finalist Ivanović. In the following competition, the seventh-seed Russian was finalist at thePortugal Open, losing to Carla Suárez Navarro in tough three sets. This was her first single final in more than three years.[139]
InRoland Garros, Kuznetsova repeated her success in the previous year, climbing to the quarterfinals, before that defeating fifth-seeded Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitová in the third round. The injured Kuznetsova was helpless against finalistSimona Halep, who defeated her in straight sets.[140]
Kuznetsova was upset in the first round of theWimbledon Championships byMichelle Larcher de Brito in three sets.
Winning her first WTA Tour title in almost four years, Kuznetsova outlastedKurumi Nara to claim theWashington Open. Seeded sixth in the tournament, the Russian broke unseeded Nara in the final game to win her fourteenth career title.[141]
Kuznetsova failed to win a match inAuckland andSydney, losing to qualifierLucie Hradecká andMadison Keys in the first rounds, respectively. She lost her opening match again atMelbourne, losing toCaroline Garcia.
Kuznetsova scored her first win of the year at the Fed Cup, where she defeated world No. 8, Agnieszka Radwańska. However, Kuznetsova's hardcourt season was disappointing, with her biggest win against 15th-ranked Angelique Kerber inMiami.
She started the clay-court season at the WTA International tournamentPrague Open, where she lost to 98th-ranked Zhang Shuai, but renewed herself at theMadrid Open, where she reached her 35th final. Kuznetsova had wins over Ekaterina Makarova,Garbiñe Muguruza, Sam Stosur andLucie Šafářová, and then defeated Maria Sharapova in two sets. She lost to Petra Kvitová in the final in straight sets. Kuznetsova reached the second round ofRoland Garros, losing there to long-time rival Francesca Schiavone in three tricky sets, 7–6, 5–7, 8–10. It was the third-longest women's match in the history of the French Open, lasting 3 hours and 50 minutes.[142] This loss resulted to her exit from the top 20, losing ten ranking positions.
Kuznetsova played a steady grass season, with a win–loss of 6–3, the second-best result judged by wins in her career on grass. She reached the second round of Wimbledon for the first time since 2011. Kuznetsova withdrew from most of the North America tournaments, including the Rogers Cup and Cincinnati, due to a left leg injury. At the US Open, she lost in the first round toKristina Mladenovic. Kuznetsova renewed herself inGuangzhou, reaching the quarterfinals. She eventually received her first trophy this season at theKremlin Cup with a straight sets victory overAnastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the final, becoming the 15th title in her career.
Svetlana repeated her season start. InAuckland, she reached the second round where she was knocked out byTamira Paszek. She then triumphed inSydney, defeating top-seeded Halep in the semifinals in three tight sets, and qualifierMonica Puig from Puerto Rico in the finals in two sets.
At theAustralian Open, seeded No. 23, she reached the second round, where she lost surprisingly to returningKateryna Bondarenko from Ukraine.
Seeded 8th at theDubai Tennis Championships, Kuznetsova suffered a shocking demolition byJulia Görges in the first round. Kuznetsova then traveled to Doha for theQatar Ladies Open. She was seeded 12th and was drawn to face Julia Görges in the first round for consecutive tournaments. However, this time Svetlana won in straight sets but lost out toJeļena Ostapenko in the second round.
AtIndian Wells, Svetlana was seeded 16th and received a bye into the second round. However, she suffered a loss to CoCo Vandeweghe. Kuznetsova then reached her secondMiami Open final of her career. There she beatCarina Witthöft, Caroline Garcia, Serena Williams, Ekaterina Makarova[143] andTimea Bacsinszky, all, except Bacsinszky,[144] in three tight sets. The last time Kuznetsova defeated a world No. 1 player was at the 2009 Roland Garros final. She also stopped the American's 20-match winning streak.[145] However, Kuznetsova missed her chance to return to the Top 10 for the first time since 2009 when she lost to Victoria Azarenka in the final.
Kuznetsova reached the quarterfinals of theItalian Open, where she suffered a clear loss by Serena Williams. As a result, she jumped four ranking positions, to No. 15. On 15 April, Kuznetsova replaced Sharapova from the top position among Russian players, the first time since 2011.[146]
The Russian reached the fourth round in singles at theFrench Open, losing to eventual champion Garbiñe Muguruza. In doubles, she partnered withMargarita Gasparyan to reach the semifinals. This became her best Grand Slam doubles result since 2012 Australian Open, and her best French Open doubles result since 2004. By reaching the fourth round of theWimbledon, where she lost to Serena Williams, she ensured herself a place in the top ten for the first time since 2010.[147] Then at theRogers Cup, the Russian reached the quarterfinal where she was beaten by Halep.
Kuznetsova qualified to the2016 Summer Olympics in singles and doubles. In doubles she should have partnered with Gasparyan, but the young tennis player cited her injury; she was replaced byDaria Kasatkina.[148] Kuznetsova reached the third round in singles and the quarterfinal in doubles. She again reached the quarterfinal in a Premier 5 tournament, doing so inCincinnati. At theUS Open, Kuznetsova suffered a disappointing loss against resurgent Caroline Wozniacki despite leading 4–0 in the first set.
Kuznetsova rebounded at theWuhan Open, reaching the semifinals which boosted her hopes to qualify for the WTA Finals for the first time since 2009. This run included defeating defending champion Venus Williams and Agnieszka Radwańska, after saving match point.[149] She then lost to fellow Singapore contender Dominika Cibulková in a tight three set match. At theChina Open, Kuznetsova received a bye into the second round due to her impressive performance at Wuhan. She defeatedMisaki Doi but lost to yet another Singapore Contender Madison Keys in the third round. Being the favourite for the title inTianjin after top seed Agnieszka Radwańska withdrew from her quarterfinal match, Kuznetsova disappointingly lost toAlison Riske in the semifinals. This would have kept her out of Singapore, until Serena Williams withdrew from Singapore and that left a spot up to grabs.
As the defending champion, Kuznetsova took a wildcard into theKremlin Cup, knowing that she had to win the title to qualify for Singapore. Kuznetsova handled the pressure well; defeatingAlizé Cornet,Tímea Babos, Elina Svitolina andDaria Gavrilova in the final to win the title. This win automatically took the place in the last spot atWTA Finals for the first time since 2009 and also meant that Kuznetsova managed to successfully defend a title for the first time in her career, she replacedJohanna Konta as the potential last qualifier spot. In theWTA Finals she defeated Radwańska and Pliskova in 3 sets before losing to Garbiñe Muguruza to top her group. She then lost to eventual champion Dominika Cibulková
Kuznetsova as fifth seeded started well at theBrisbane International, reaching the quarterfinals but losing there to Muguruza. She lost in the second round of theSydney Open to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in two straight sets. At theAustralian Open she got into the fourth round, her best result there since 2013, but lost again to Pavlyuchenkova in two straight sets.
Her disappointing season continued at theSt. Petersburg Ladies' Trophy as she crashed out in her first quarterfinal of the year againstYulia Putintseva, the eventual finalist. Kuznetsova then skipped both theDubai and theQatar Ladies Open due to an injury.
Her first tournament back from the injury, she won her opening round match at theIndian Wells Open againstJohanna Larsson, before following it up with impressive victories over Roberta Vinci, Caroline Garcia, taking revenge for her two losses this year against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and then earned an excellent victory over the in-formKarolína Plíšková to reach her first final at Indian Wells since 2008 – she ultimately ended up losing to compatriot Elena Vesnina in three sets. She then lost to Venus Williams in the fourth round at the Miami event.
Kuznetsova's first clay court event of the year came at thePorsche Tennis Grand Prix where she was the eighth seed and the title favourite. However, she failed to capitalize on her chances as she fell to eventual champion local wildcardLaura Siegemund, who eventually went on to unexpectedly clinch the title. She then reached the semifinals of theMadrid Open, losing to Mladenovic. As a result, she climbed to the eighth world ranking position. However, after a disappointing performance inRome, Kuznetsova returned to the ninth position. At theFrench Open, Kuznetsova defended her points as she went to the fourth round, losing there to Wozniacki.
The results from the grass court season were one of the best in Kuznetsova's career, producing a win–loss record of 6–2, repeating the 2005 record. She reached the quarterfinals ofEastbourne, losing to Pliskova in three sets. She then improved her performance atWimbledon, defeatingOns Jabeur, Ekaterina Makarova,Polona Hercog and No. 10 Agnieszka Radwańska on her way to reach the quarterfinals, where she fell to eventual champion Garbiñe Muguruza. She was once again beaten by Muguruza inCincinnati, but now in three tight sets.
By the end of the season, Kuznetsova showed low results due to her hand injury, twice losing in the second round in a total of three tournaments, after receiving a bye. She withdrew from theKremlin Cup, where she was the two-times defending champion.[150] On 23 October, she fell out of the top-10 and dropped to the 11th position,[151] ending her 65 weeks streak in the top 10.
Kuznetsova continued her poor performance on court. She reached a quarterfinal only once in an International event in Istanbul. Even at Roland Garros, where she has been traditionally playing well, Kuznetsova lost in the first round to world No. 3 Garbiñe Muguruza. After her first-round loss inWimbledon, Kuznetsova pulled out of the top 100. However, she rebounded herself winning theWashington Open defeatingDonna Vekić in three sets.[152] By that, she extended her tournament's record to 11–0. Furthermore, she returned to the top 100 after this success;[153] however, after her loss atCincinnati, she dropped just outside the top 100. She finished the season ranked 107, her worst ranking since 2001.[citation needed]
After half a year off battling injury, Kuznetsova made a comeback at theLadies Open Lugano, reaching the quarterfinals.[154] One of her best results in the European swing a win over world No. 10,Aryna Sabalenka, at theMadrid Open.[citation needed]
Kuznetsova could not defend her title at theWashington Open, after she was granted a visa too late, although she applied in February.[155] This led to her losing 90 ranking positions, from 108 to 198. In the U.S. swing, Kuznetsova reached the third round of theRogers Cup, losing to Simona Halep in straight sets. Ranked 153 and earning a wild card, Kuznetsova reached the final at the followingWestern & Southern Open, defeating 11th seededAnastasija Sevastova,Dayana Yastremska, eighth seededSloane Stephens, third seededKarolína Plíšková[156] and top-seededAshleigh Barty.[157] She was defeated byMadison Keys. As a result, Kuznetsova went from No. 153 to No. 62 in the world ranking.[citation needed]
At theUS Open, she was stunned in the first round byKristie Ahn.[158] She successfully qualified atWuhan, defeating wildcardZheng Qinwen andBethanie Mattek-Sands, and defeated Yulia Putintseva andHsieh Su-wei, before falling in the third round to Elina Svitolina.[159] AtBeijing, Kuznetsova was defeated byChristina McHale in the first round in three sets. Kuznetsova's final event of the year was atMoscow, where she was defeated in the first round by eventual semifinalistKarolína Muchová.[160] She ended the year ranked No. 54.[citation needed]
AtHobart, Kuznetsova lost in two sets toMagda Linette in the first round.[161] She then participated in theAustralian Open for the first time in three years, where she defeatedMarkéta Vondroušová in the first round, before falling to Camila Giorgi. AtSt. Petersburg, she defeatedJennifer Brady before losing toBelinda Bencic. AtDoha, she defeatedÇağla Büyükakçay andIga Świątek, received a walkover fromAmanda Anisimova and then avenged her St. Petersburg defeat against Bencic in straight sets to reach the semifinals for her first top-ten victory of the year.[162] She lost to eventual championAryna Sabalenka in the semifinals.[163] Despite the loss, her ranking rose to No. 32 in the world, and she was due to be seeded for the first time in years atIndian Wells, before the tournament was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[citation needed]
Upon the resumption of the tour, Kuznetsova opted to skip the US Open Series due to pandemic concerns.[164] She made her return at theİstanbul Cup as the top seed, but was stunned byEugenie Bouchard in her first match.[165] Her first wins came at theItalian Open, including an upset over 14th seedAnett Kontaveit.[166] She lost to Elina Svitolina in the third round.[167] Her last tournament of the year was theFrench Open where she lost to compatriot Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the first round.[168]
Kuznetsova began her season at theGrampians Trophy after going through a 14-day hard quarantine.[169] She lost toJennifer Brady in the first round despite leading by an early break.[170] After defeatingBarbora Strýcová in the first round of theAustralian Open, Kuznetsova lost to Belinda Bencic in a tight match, after leading by a break in the deciding set.[171]
During the Middle East swing, Kuznetsova lost in the first round of theQatar Ladies Open to Victoria Azarenka[172] but managed to reach the third round ofDubai with three-set wins overWang Qiang[173] and world No. 5,Elina Svitolina, for her first top-ten win of the year.[174]
She then reached her first semifinal of the year at her home tournament, theSt. Petersburg Ladies' Trophy. She survived a scare against teenage rising starWang Xinyu in her opener[175] before producing a comeback againstJaqueline Cristian in the quarterfinals.[176] However, she lost toDaria Kasatkina in the semifinals, after leading by a set.[177]
It was the start of a five-match losing streak as Kuznetsova lost in the first round of theMiami Open to Alizé Cornet, and her only clay-court tournament was at theFrench Open where she lost to Azarenka.[178] She then lost in the first round of theWimbledon Championships to qualifierLesley Pattinama Kerkhove.[179]
Due to injury concerns, Kuznetsova gave up her spot from the Olympics for another compatriot.[180] She ended her season prematurely due to lingering injuries, with her comeback date not disclosed.[181] She fell out of the top 100 in September 2021 after being inactive.[182]
Belgian tennis legendJustine Henin was one of Kuznetsova's leading rivals during the middle portion of her career. Of the 19 matches that they played, Kuznetsova earned three victories, including their final one.[183] Henin won their first meeting in the2003 Wimbledon Quarterfinal when Kuznetsova, just 17, lost in straight sets. Kuznetsova earned her first win over the Belgian at the semifinals of the 2004 Total Qatar Open, where she went on to lose in the final toAnastasia Myskina. This result projected the Russian into the world's top 20 players for the first time. Arguably their finest match followed in the fourth round of the2005 French Open, where Henin saved two match points en route to a three set victory.[184] Henin went on to win the tournament, defending her title a year later by beating Kuznetsova in the2006 final. Henin additionally defeated Kuznetsova in the finals of the2007 US Open grand slam tournament in straight sets. Kuznetsova beat Henin for the second time in the semifinals of the2007 Qatar Telecom German Open tournament in Berlin in three sets, becoming the second-to-last person to do so in 2007. The Belgian went on a seven-month, 32-match winning streak afterWimbledon, having lifted the French Open directly beforehand.[185] Heninunexpectedly retired in 2008, but returned to the tour briefly in 2010, only to suffer an elbow tear at Wimbledon. Justine Henin made one final comeback following her injury at the2011 Australian Open, where Kuznetsova defeated her in a dramatic match in the third round. Due to the recurring nature of her elbow injury, Henin retired immediately following her match with Kuznetsova, making the Russian the final person to play against and defeat her.[186]
Kuznetsova andAgnieszka Radwańska played each other eighteen times between 2007 and 2017, with Kuznetsova leading the head-to-head 14–4.[187] Their first meeting was atWimbledon in 2007 with Kuznetsova winning in straight sets. Kuznetsova won their first three meetings, but in the four meetings that eventuated in 2008, Kuznetsova lost three of them, including in the third round of theAustralian Open[188] and in the fourth round ofWimbledon.[189] Additionally, she also lost against her at theyear-end championships later in the year, after Radwańska replaced an injuredAna Ivanovic. Kuznetsova subsequently dominated Radwańska in future meetings, winning six meetings between the pair between 2009 and 2012, including an upset victory at the2012 French Open,[190] until Radwańska stopped the rot at the2014 Mutua Madrid Open, saving a match point in the process.[191] Prior to 2014, Kuznetsova's two most recent titles came by defeating Radwańska in the championship match, first atBeijing in 2009[192] and then atSan Diego in 2010.[193]In 2015, Kuznetsova defeated Radwańska again in the opening match of Fed Cup tie between Russia and Poland.[194] At the2016 Wuhan Open, Kuznetsova saved a match point in the second set en route to winning a three-set, quarterfinal thriller,[195] and also saved a match point when they met at theWTA Finals in Singapore later that year.[196] Their most recent and final meeting, at the2017 Wimbledon Championships, saw Kuznetsova win in straight sets, a decade on from their first meeting.[197]
Kuznetsova andAna Ivanovic played each other fourteen times between 2005 and 2015 inclusive.[198] Kuznetsova struggled for most of the rivalry, losing eight of the eleven meetings between the pair. Kuznetsova's only victory in the main tour came in the quarterfinals of the 2006 Sydney International; her other two wins over Ivanovic came in the 2010 and 2012 Fed Cups. They met in two finals, with Kuznetsova losing both: first inBerlin in 2007[199] and atIndian Wells in 2008, the latter of which they contested as the top two seeds.[200] Additionally, at the2007 WTA Tour Championships, Kuznetsova lost to Ivanovic in three sets on the Serb's 20th birthday.[201] Their last meeting was in the third round of the2015 China Open with Kuznetsova losing in three sets.
Kuznetsova joined teamRussia in2004 in the doubles and singles competition. Her teammates were Myskina and Zvonareva in singles and Likhovtseva in doubles. They competed againstAustralia in the first round in theLuzhniki Stadium in an indoorcarpet court. Kuznetsova defeated Molik and Molik/Rennae Stubbs. The result was 4–1 for Russia; Myskina lost to Molik.[202]In the quarterfinal they facedArgentina in Buenos Aires. Kuznetsova lost toGisela Dulko. In the doubles she defeated Dulko and partnerPatricia Tarabini. The final score was the same as in the first round, 4–1.[203]In the semifinal they facedAustria. Again in Moscow, Kuznetsova defeatedYvonne Meusburger, Daniela Kix and Meusburger andPatricia Wartusch all in straight sets. The final score was a straight 5–0.[204] In the final they facedFrance only three days after the semifinal. Kuznetsova beat Dechy, but lost toTatiana Golovin.[205] Russia won the final 3–2 for its first Fed Cup victory.[206]
Kuznetsova did not participate in the next two years. She rejoined in2007 and defeatedSpain'sLourdes Domínguez Lino andAnabel Medina Garrigues in the quarterfinal.[207] She was elected in the final that year. There, she won againstMara Santangelo and Schiavone fromItaly. Russia again won that year's Cup.[208]
Thenext year she again participated. Playing against theUnited States she defeated 282nd-rankedAhsha Rolle in the semifinal. In contrast, Kuznetsova lost the doubles competition with partnerElena Vesnina, beaten byLiezel Huber andVania King. In the end, Russia defeated the US 3–2.[209] In the final, Russia defeated Spain as it had the prior year. Kuznetsova won againstCarla Suárez Navarro and Garrigues. Team Russia won the 2008 Fed Cup with 4–0.[210]
In2009 Kuznetsova joined the group again. She played againstChina in the quarterfinal and won in the singles over opponentYan Zi, and in the doubles, together with Dementieva, overSun Tiantian and Yan Zi, after losing the first set. Russia won against China in a straight 5–0 final scoreline.[211] Russia lost to Italy in the semifinal. Kuznetsova was the only winner, defeating Pennetta.[212]
At the2010 Fed Cup, Russia defeatedSerbia in the quarterfinal 3–2.[213] There, Kuznetsova won two of three matches, beating Ivanović, and Ivanović and Janković in doubles, with partner Kleybanova. She lost to Janković.
Kuznetsova joined the Russian team in2011. In the first round they faced France on 5 and 6 February. In the first round, Kuznetsova was defeated byAlizé Cornet, but defeatedVirginie Razzano a day later. She teamed up with Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and defeated Cornet/Julie Coin in the doubles.[214] Russia became just the fourth nation to come back from 0–2 down in a Fed Cup tie since the best-of-five-match format was introduced to the World Group in 1995.[215] Russia defeated Italy in the semifinal in 5–0. There, Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated Roberta Vinci.[216] Russia succeeded, the first time since 2008, in a final in the Fed Cup. Russia, however, lost againstCzech Republic in 3–2.[217]
The first round of the2012 Fed Cup saw three wins in the single competition, two of which were made by Kuznetsova, the first againstSílvia Soler Espinosa, the second against Carla Suárez Navarro. The pair Kuznetsova/Petrova retired in their last match due to Kuznetsova'sfatigue, but Russia still won in 3–2.[218][219] Team Russia lost against the Serbian team in the semifinal, 2–3. Although winning the first match against Ana Ivanovic in three sets, Kuznetsova was later defeated by Jelena Janković in two straight sets.[220]
After a two-years break in the Fed Cup, Kuznetsova participated at the2015 Fed Cup, where team Russia played against Poland in the Round Robin. With her win over Agnieszka Radwańska in three sets, Kuznetsova beat a top-10 player in the Fed Cup for the first time. In the semifinals againstGermany she played two rubbers, one was won againstJulia Görges, another againstAndrea Petkovic. With her win over Görges, Kuznetsova became the second-best Russian Fed Cup player by total wins, with 27 won rubbers; the absolute leader isLarisa Savchenko, with 40 won rubbers. Kuznetsova was not called in the final.
Kuznetsova at the2016 Fed Cup lost in four hours againstRichèl Hogenkamp in the first day, becoming the longest Fed Cup singles match in the history.[221]
Kuznetsova received training at the Sanchez-Casal Academy in Barcelona, Spain from the age of 14 and was coached under direction of club presidentEmilio Sánchez andSergio Casal.[222] Her major coaching relationship was with Stefan Ortega who was a regular guest in her player's box and helped advance her game.[223]
After a series of poor finals' results Kuznetsova ended her relationship with the Sanchez-Casal academy in 2009 and moved to Moscow on the advice ofRoger Federer to start training with experienced Russian coachOlga Morozova.[224] They ended their relationship after theBNP Paribas Open in March 2009, after which Kuznetsova was without a coach.[225] As of May 2009 her coach was former Russian tennis player and Fed Cup coachLarisa Neiland.[226] She was coached for a short period by Loïc Courteau after trying unsuccessfully to convinceMauresmo to coach her.[227] Her next coach was for a short time the former Spanish tennis playerCarlos Cuadrado, until he was replaced with her former coach Neiland.[228] After the loss in the Italian Open, Kuznetsova has switched to Morozova, then toAmos Mansdorf[citation needed] and finally in May 2012 to ArgentineHernán Gumy, former coach ofMarat Safin. She said in an interview, that she likes working with him and understands with him well. With his help she won three matches in straight sets at the 2012 French Open, including claiming the scalp of then-world No. 3Agnieszka Radwańska.[229]
After a poor late 2012 season, Kuznetsova has switched between Gumy and Carlos Martínez; sometimes both serve as coaches.[230][231] She was also coached by Javier Piles.[232]
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Svetlana Kuznetsova plays right-handed and has a two-handed backhand. She is an all-round player.[233] She has been described as technically the most complete player on tour. She is noted for her great speed on court and her strongforehand with muchtopspin.[234] She is capable of producing effective volley winners providing an agile touch. According to Richard Pagliaro ofESPN, "Kuznetsova can alter the spin, speed and height of her shots and owns the variety that plays well on clay" but since her recent failures, "consistency has eluded her, and she's prone to flakiness and frustration under pressure."[235] Jeff Cooper ofabout.com meant her greatest strengths were the "outstandingly powerful and accurate forehand. Strong topspin on forehand and backhand. Solid serve. Great speed" and outlined her basic style as "power baseliner" with "no major weakness".[236] She is known for her unpredictability and inconsistency.[237][238]
Kuznetsova extended her long standing endorsement agreements with the sport brandFila on 13 January 2012. She debuted with the new apparel at the 2012 Australian Open alongside fellow Fila player Kim Clijsters. According to chairman Gene Yoon, "Both players are longtime members of the Fila family and have played an important role in Fila's rich history in tennis."[239] However that contract was not extended beyond 2012. Subsequently, shortly before the start of the 2013 Australian Open, Kuznetsova signed a new apparel endorsement deal with Chinese sports apparel brandQiaodan.[240]Svetlana Kuznetsova appeared in video gamesTop Spin 2,Top Spin 3,[241]Virtua Tennis 2009[242] andVirtua Tennis 4 as a playable character.[243]
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | P# | DNQ | A | Z# | PO | G | S | B | NMS | NTI | P | NH |
Current after the2021 Wimbledon.
| Tournament | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | SR | W–L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | 2R | 1R | 3R | QF | 4R | 4R | 3R | QF | 4R | 4R | 3R | QF | 1R | 1R | 2R | 4R | A | A | 2R | 2R | 0 / 18 | 37–18 |
| French Open | Q2 | 1R | 4R | 4R | F | QF | SF | W | 3R | QF | 4R | QF | QF | 2R | 4R | 4R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1 / 19 | 52–18 |
| Wimbledon | Q2 | QF | 1R | QF | 3R | QF | 4R | 3R | 2R | 3R | 1R | A | 1R | 2R | 4R | QF | 1R | 1R | NH | 1R | 0 / 17 | 30–17 |
| US Open | 3R | 3R | W | 1R | 4R | F | 3R | 4R | 4R | 4R | A | 3R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 1R | A | A | 1 / 17 | 35–16 |
| Win–loss | 3–2 | 6–4 | 12–3 | 11–4 | 14–4 | 17–4 | 12–4 | 16–3 | 9–4 | 12–4 | 5–3 | 10–3 | 4–4 | 2–4 | 8–4 | 11–4 | 0–3 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 2 / 71 | 154–69 |
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 2004 | US Open | Hard | Elena Dementieva | 6–3, 7–5 |
| Loss | 2006 | French Open | Clay |  Justine Henin | 4–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 2007 | US Open | Hard | Justine Henin | 1–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 2009 | French Open | Clay | Dinara Safina | 6–4, 6–2 |
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 2003 | US Open | Hard |  Martina Navratilova | 2–6, 3–6 | |
| Loss | 2004 | Australian Open | Hard | Elena Likhovtseva |  Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez | 4–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 2004 | French Open | Clay | Elena Likhovtseva | Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez | 0–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 2004 | US Open | Hard | Elena Likhovtseva | Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez | 4–6, 5–7 |
| Win | 2005 | Australian Open | Hard |  Alicia Molik | 6–3, 6–4 | |
| Loss | 2005 | Wimbledon | Grass |  Amélie Mauresmo | 2–6, 1–6 | |
| Win | 2012 | Australian Open | Hard | Vera Zvonareva | 5–7, 6–4, 6–3 |
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| Tournament | Year | Record accomplished | Players matched |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | 2011 | ||
| Longest women's match in a Grand Slam in the Open Era by time played (4 hours, 44 minutes)[257] | Francesca Schiavone | ||
| Second-longest women's match in the Open Era[258] | Francesca Schiavone | ||
| Fed Cup | 2016 | Longest Fed Cup women's singles match by time played (4 hours)[221] | Richèl Hogenkamp |
| WTA Finals | 2016 | Second Most three-set matches won in the 21st century (22 matches won in one season)[259] | Petra Kvitová (2013; 25) Anastasia Myskina (2002) Ai Sugiyama (2003; both 22) |
General
Specific
But first Henin must take on Svetlana Kuznetsova, herself a two-time Slam winner. They're slated to meet in the third round and even though Henin owns a dominating 16–2 advantage in their rivalry, the match could be an entertaining one if the talented, yet unpredictable and streaky Kuznetsova is on top of her game.
Svetlana Kuznetsova, a complicated young lady who never met a match she couldn't choke away
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | ITF Junior World Champion 2001 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | WTA Newcomer of the Year 2002 | Succeeded by |
Articles and topics related to Svetlana Kuznetsova | |||||||
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