_(48199186357).jpg) Konta at the2019 French Open | |
| Country (sports) |  Great Britain (2012–2021) Australia (2008–12) |
|---|---|
| Residence | Eastbourne, England, UK |
| Born | (1991-05-17)17 May 1991 (age 34) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Turned pro | 2008 |
| Retired | 1 December 2021 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Coach |
|
| Prize money | US$ 10,008,175 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 395–243 |
| Career titles | 4 |
| Highest ranking | No. 4 (17 July 2017) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | SF (2016) |
| French Open | SF (2019) |
| Wimbledon | SF (2017) |
| US Open | QF (2019) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | QF (2016) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 80–80 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 88 (1 August 2016) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 2R (2016) |
| French Open | 1R (2016,2018) |
| Wimbledon | 3R (2016) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | 2R (2016) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| French Open | 2R (2018) |
| Wimbledon | 2R (2013,2014,2015) |
| Other mixed doubles tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | 1R (2016) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | 20–10 |
Johanna Konta (born 17 May 1991) is a British-Australian former professionaltennis player. Konta won four singles titles on theWTA Tour, along with eleven titles in singles and four in doubles on theITF Women's Circuit. She was British No. 1 and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 4 on 17 July 2017. She reached the semifinals of theAustralian Open,Wimbledon and theFrench Open.
Born toHungarian parents in Sydney, Australia, Konta moved to England when she was 14. She has Hungarian, Australian and British citizenship. She switched her sporting allegiance from Australia to Great Britain after she became aBritish citizen in May 2012.[6]
Konta achieved a steep rise in her ranking by theWTA from the spring of 2015 to late 2016, climbing from 150th to inside the world's top 10,[7] becoming the first Briton to be ranked amongst the WTA's top ten sinceJo Durie was ranked fifth over 30 years prior.[8] This period included her bestmajor result up to that time, the semifinals of the2016 Australian Open,[9] a quarterfinal appearance at theRio Summer Olympics[10] and her maiden WTA Tour title inStanford.[11] In 2017, she won theMiami Open[12] and reached the semifinals atWimbledon.[13] Konta had another successful season in 2019, reaching the semifinals at theFrench Open and the quarterfinals atWimbledon and theUS Open. Konta retired on 1 December 2021, after struggling with a chronic injury to her right knee, which led to her ranking dropping outside the top 100.[14]
Johanna Konta was born inSydney, Australia, toHungarian parents: Gábor, a hotel manager, and Gabriella, a dentist.[15] Her parents had emigrated separately from Hungary and met in Australia.[15] One of Konta's grandfathers,Tamás Kertész (1929–1989), playedfootball forFerencvárosi TC; he won two internationalcaps forHungary in the 1950s and later coached theGhana national team.[16] Konta has a half sister, Eva Mumford, from her father's previous marriage. Her sister is married to formerAustralian rules football playerShane Mumford.[16]
Konta's childhood was spent inCollaroy on Sydney'sNorthern Beaches,[15] where she was introduced totennis at an after-school programme at the age of eight.[17] When she was 14, she attended the Sánchez-Casal Tennis Academy inBarcelona for 15 months, during which time her parents settled inEastbourne, England.[18][19]
Konta became a British citizen in May 2012 and concurrently switched her sporting allegiance from Australia to Great Britain.[6] When her nationality became the subject of debate at the2016 Australian Open after she was labelled aPlastic Brit, Konta said it was "a compliment for you guys to be interested in my Australian roots", but that she was "very pleased to be representing Great Britain ... where I grew up essentially".[20] Konta has three passports – British, Australian and Hungarian.[21]
Konta lives inEast Sussex, where her applications to build a home in the protectedAshdown Forest have proved controversial.[22]
Two weeks after her retirement from professional tennis, Konta announced on Twitter that she had married her long-term boyfriend Jackson Wade. The wedding took place on 11 December 2021,[23] and on 12 September 2022, she announced the birth of her daughter on her social accounts.[24]
Konta won her first ITF singles title at a $10k tournament inMostar,Bosnia and Herzegovina shortly before her 17th birthday in May 2008.[citation needed]
Konta achieved a significant breakthrough at a 25k tournament in Sutton, England, in February 2009. Entering as a wildcard, she defeated the top seed,Corinna Dentoni, who was ranked 153 at the time, and two other top 250 players to reach the final where she lost in three sets toKatie O'Brien. Konta backed this performance up by winning the 25k Waterloo Challenger in Ontario in June, overHeidi El Tabakh.[25]
Konta then went through a difficult time in the second half of the year, losing her first match in eight of the nine tournaments entered, six of these losses going to three sets. However, with the help of the earlier results, she rose from 668 to 360 in theWTA rankings during the year.
Konta regained some form at the start of 2010. In May, she reached the quarterfinal of the 50k tournament at Indian Harbour Beach, Florida. The following week, she took the title on the green clay courts ofRaleigh, North Carolina, another 50k tournament, where, the day before her 19th birthday, she defeatedLindsay Lee-Waters in the final.[26]
Highlights later in the year included another 50k quarterfinal appearance, two semifinal appearances in 25k tournaments and her second ITF Circuit singles title of the year at a 10k event in Westende, Belgium, where, in the final, she defeated Nicky Van Dyck for the loss of just one game.[27] Konta also played her firstWTA Tour event when she entered the qualifying forCopenhagen winning a match, before exiting the event.[28]
In April 2011, she lost in three sets in the qualifying draw ofCharleston toSania Mirza. She also fell in qualifying atFes andStrasbourg. She reached the main draw of a WTA Tour event for the first time when she qualified atCopenhagen in June, falling in the first round to fourth seedLucie Šafářová, who was ranked 38 at the time, in a match that lasted over two and a half hours.[29]
Konta won her fifth ITF singles title at the GB Pro-Series event in Woking in July. In the final againstLaura Robson, Konta was a set up when her opponent retired.[30]
After a patchy couple of months interrupted by injury, Konta got back to her winning ways in Madrid, beating Lucy Brown in the final.[31] However, her year ended during a second meeting with Robson in the first round atBarnstaple in October, with Konta having to retire this time. She slipped from 248 to 305 in the world rankings over the course of the season, and showed an improvement of only 55 places over the previous two years.[17]
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Konta achieved some welcome results in the first half of 2012, including a 25k title at Rancho Mirage in February. She then qualified for the WTA Tour event inCopenhagen for the second successive year, recording her first-match win in a full tour main draw over seventh seedKsenia Pervak (then ranked 38) in the opening round, before losing toPetra Martić at the next stage. By the end of April, Konta had risen nearly 100 places to No. 211 in the rankings.
Having been granted British citizenship in May, Konta received a main-draw wildcard toWimbledon; she faced 28th seedChristina McHale in the opening round, being beaten 10–8 in the deciding set.[32]
A $50k final appearance at Lexington in July helped to maintain momentum, and the following month Konta qualified for theUS Open, bridging a gap of almost 150 places in the rankings to upset world No. 59,Tímea Babos, in the first round,[33] saving ten set points in the second set as she recorded her first career win atmajor-level. In the second round, Konta let a 5–2 final set lead slip againstOlga Govortsova and lost.[34] This run propelled her into the world's top 150 for the first time in her career, slipping a few places to end the year with a ranking of 153.[35]
At theAustralian Open, Konta failed to build on her form from the US Open, losing in the second qualifying round toZhou Yimiao of China, in three sets.
In February, Konta made herFed Cup debut forGreat Britain inEurope/Africa Zone Group 1 Pool B. Konta and Laura Robson won their doubles match as Britain opened with a whitewash againstBosnia and Herzegovina.[36] Konta was then rested as Britain beatPortugal, before teaming up again with Robson in a losing doubles effort againstHungary, though Britain ultimately won this tie 2–1.[37]
In April, Konta played in theFed Cup World Group II play-off against Argentina. Konta was initially nominated to represent Britain in two of the singles rubbers.[38] However, after losing her opening match againstPaula Ormaechea, Great Britain captainJudy Murray decided thatElena Baltacha would replace Konta in the Sunday reverse singles.[39]
Konta's next tournament was thePortugal Open in Oeiras, where she beat top-100 playerYulia Putintseva in the first qualifying round but was then forced to retire in the second qualifying round againstStéphanie Foretz Gacon. Konta also reached the second qualifying round at theFrench Open, losing toGalina Voskoboeva in three sets.
In June, Konta entered theNottingham Trophy, a 75k tournament, reaching the semifinals after victories overAn-Sophie Mestach, fifth seedMisaki Doi andAlison Riske. In the semifinals, Konta lost a tough battle against third seedKarolína Plíšková, going down in three sets. Following the event, she was handed a wildcard for the Birmingham Classic. In the first round, Konta defeated qualifierKurumi Nara to set up a meeting with French playerKristina Mladenovic, the 12th seed at the tournament, who beat her in straight sets.
Konta also received a wildcard forWimbledon, where she was drawn against 16th seedJelena Janković in the first round. She lost in straight sets against the Serbian former world-number-one.[40]
Following Wimbledon, Konta started her build-up to the US Open by winning a 25k event in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where she defeated fellow British playerSamantha Murray in the final. She then kept up her form by winning the 100kVancouver Open where she defeatedSharon Fichman in the final, after eliminating top seed and world No. 41,Hsieh Su-wei, along the way. This propelled Konta to a then career-high ranking of 115.
At theGuangzhou International Open, Konta won two rounds of qualifying to reach the main draw. In the first round, she beat fellow qualifierRichèl Hogenkamp in straight sets,[41] before upsetting fourth seed and world No. 38,Peng Shuai, equaling her best career-win in terms of ranking to this point. However, her run was stopped in the quarterfinals, losing to wildcard entrant Zhang Shuai in straight sets.[42] A week later, at theNingbo International Open, Konta made the quarterfinals again, but was forced to retire in her match againstJohanna Larsson, suffering from an abdominal strain.[43]
She officially became the British No. 2 behind Laura Robson, after Heather Watson failed to defend her title in Osaka and ended the year ranked 112.[44]
Konta began 2014 at theShenzhen Open, losing to 15-year-old wildcardXu Shilin in the first qualifying round.[45] Together with her Austrian partnerPatricia Mayr-Achleitner, she reached the semifinals in doubles, losing to the Ukrainian sistersLyudmyla andNadiia Kichenok, in straight sets.[46] The following week, seeded third inAustralian Open qualifying, Konta won her first match againstGrace Min,[47] but lost for the second year in succession in the second qualifying round, in straight sets to UkrainianOlga Savchuk.[48]
After retiring in her first-round match at a 25k event in Sunderland and losing in qualifying for theOpen GdF Suez in Paris, Konta helped Great Britain to a 2–1 win overLatvia in their first round-robin match at theFed Cup as she battled to victory overDiāna Marcinkēviča.[49] However, she later lost singles rubbers to Romania's world No. 10,Simona Halep,[50] and Hungary's Tímea Babos as Britain were eliminated at the pool stage.[51]
In May, Konta reached thefinal qualifying round ofRoland Garros for the first time, defeatingSachia Vickery,[52] andPaula Kania,[53] before losing toYuliya Beygelzimer.[54]
Konta then moved into the grass-court season by playing at theBirmingham Classic as a wildcard player. She beat 14th seedKurumi Nara in straight sets,[55] before losing toAleksandra Wozniak in the second round.[56]
Konta was awarded another wildcard to compete at theEastbourne International, where she defeated2013 Wimbledon junior championBelinda Bencic, in straight sets.[57] This set up a meeting with world No. 42,Camila Giorgi, who had stunned fourth seedVictoria Azarenka in the first round.[57] Despite holding a match point at 5–4 up in the final set, Konta lost to the Italian.[58] Nevertheless, her first-round success was enough to propel Konta into the top 100 as she reached a career-high of 89 in July, before falling back as she failed to replenish the ranking points won from her successes in the second half of the previous year.
Konta gained direct entry into theWimbledon main draw, losing a tight three-set match to Peng Shuai in the first round.[59]
Konta's next tournament was theİstanbul Cup, where she won through qualifying as the top seed. She was again drawn with Kurumi Nara in the first round, losing to the sixth-seeded Japanese in straight sets.[60] She then moved across to North America to play theConnecticut Open; she also encountered a recent opponent here as she faced top seed Peng Shuai in the second qualifying round and was eliminated.
Her ranking gave her a second consecutive direct entry to a major main draw as she played theUS Open, but she suffered a 'wasted opportunity' as she was beaten in the opening round byShahar Pe'er.[61]
Konta then suffered opening-round defeats atQuebec City, and in the qualifying inLuxembourg. She also played on the ITF Circuit, reaching the semifinals atAlbuquerque and the second round atNantes. She ended the year ranked 150.[62]
Konta began the year by entering the qualifying of theWTA Tour events atShenzhen andSydney, but did not manage to progress to either of the main draws. She was also eliminated in qualifying at theAustralian Open. Konta returned to Europe to join up with the British team for theFed Cup Euro/Africa Zone Group I.[63] She went 2–2 in singles play as Britain topped their round-robin pool,[64] before losing a play-off toBelarus.[65] In the play-off, Konta suffered a heavy defeat against Olga Govortsova, a match that team captainJudy Murray said 'was a catalyst for change' for Konta's success in the later part of the season.[66]
Her sole WTA Tour event between the Australian and French Opens was atIndian Wells, where she again entered the qualifying competition, winning her opening match against tenth seed Misaki Doi, but being beaten in the final round of qualifying byKateryna Kozlova. During this period she focused instead on the ITF Circuit, winning her first-round match in each tournament she entered,[67] reaching three quarterfinals, one semifinal and the final of the event in Jackson, Mississippi (lost toAnhelina Kalinina).[68]
Konta made her debut in the main draw at theFrench Open againstDenisa Allertová[69] after she won her way throughqualifying without losing a set. Konta narrowly lost to Allertová.[70] Konta then returned to the UK, where she was granted wildcards to the WTA Tour grass-court events inNottingham,Birmingham andEastbourne. At Nottingham, Konta recorded her first top 100 win of 2015[71] in the opening round as she beat world No. 59 and seventh seed for the event,Magdaléna Rybáriková. Konta would also beatMonica Puig before exiting in the quarterfinals to eventual tournament runner-up Monica Niculescu.[72][73] Konta then played theWTA Premier event in Birmingham. She beatJarmila Gajdošová in the first round before running into sixth seed Karolína Plíšková; Konta took the opening set off Plíšková, then ranked 13 in the world, but would eventually lose in three sets in a match played over two days.[74] Konta's conqueror ended the tournament as the runner-up for the second week in a row.[75]
Konta's next event was in her hometown of Eastbourne.[76] In the opening round, she upsetZarina Diyas,[77] before claiming a 'major scalp' by beating world No. 8 and recent Grand Slam semifinalist, Ekaterina Makarova, who was the fourth seed for the event, in the second round.[78] Konta continued her run by beating 14th seedGarbiñe Muguruza,[79] before losing to Belinda Bencic in a three-set quarterfinal.[80] Bencic became the third consecutive player to beat Konta en route to the final of an event, as the rising Swiss star won the Eastbourne title.[81]
The draw forWimbledon paired Konta, who entered with a wildcard, with former championMaria Sharapova.[82] The match was scheduled forCentre Court,[83] with Sharapova winning efficiently.[84] After Wimbledon, Konta returned to action at the ITF event inGranby, Quebec; she entered as the top seed, and took the title without dropping a set.[85] Konta's next event saw her reclaim theVancouver singles crown, beatingKirsten Flipkens in the final, and also secure thedoubles title withMaria Sanchez.[86]
The Vancouver singles victory moved Konta back into the world top-100 players ahead of theUS Open,[87] which she entered at the qualifying stage as the third seed. She progressed to themain draw with wins againstRéka Luca Jani,[88]Naomi Osaka[89] andTamira Paszek.[90] Prior to this, Konta had won just one major main-draw match in her career, but now added victories overLouisa Chirico,[91] ninth seed Muguruza, and 18th seedAndrea Petkovic, extending her winning streak to 16 matches and setting up a last-16 meeting with two-time Wimbledon championPetra Kvitová.[92] The match against Muguruza lasted 3 hours and 23 minutes, the longest women's match at the US Open since the tie-break was introduced in 1970.[93] It was also Konta's second top-ten win, and increased her head-to-head record against the Spaniard to 2–0. Czech fifth seed Kvitová ended Konta's run, winning in two tight sets.[94] The points accrued during the North American swing lifted Konta to a new career-high singles ranking of world No. 58.[95]
Konta's first event after the US Open was theWuhan Open, aPremier-5 event, the second highest level on the WTA Tour. Having won through qualifying,[96] Konta was drawn against Andrea Petkovic in the opening round, a rematch of their New York meeting. She won once again[97] to advance to a second-round encounter with major champion and former world No. 1, Victoria Azarenka, who retired, after losing the first set.[98] In the third round, Konta faced top seed and world No. 2, Simona Halep, who came into the match leading the WTA list in hardcourt victories.[99] Halep established a 5–1 lead in the deciding set, only for Konta to take six consecutive games as she came back to win.[100] She exited in the quarterfinals after a three-set battle with Venus Williams,[101] who would go on to win the tournament.[102] Konta's run in Wuhan saw her break into the top 50 for the first time, as her ranking reached another new career high at world No. 49. She also took over from Heather Watson as the British number one.[103]
Konta's final event of the season was theLinz Open. She entered in qualifying, where she was the top seed, but lost toKlára Koukalová in the final round, her first defeat against a lower-ranked player since May.[104] However, Konta received an entry to the main draw despite the loss, as she was awarded alucky loser spot, afterAnna Karolína Schmiedlová withdrew due to illness.[105] She eased pastAnnika Beck in the opening round, but went out at the next stage toMadison Brengle.[106] Her year-end ranking was 47.[107] Konta's successful year was recognized by being nominated at the annualWTA Awards. She was a finalist in theMost Improved Player category,[108] but missed out on the award to French Open semifinalistTimea Bacsinszky.[109]
Konta had a slow start to 2016 as she was eliminated in the first round atShenzhen, where she was the fifth seed (her first seeding at WTA Tour-level) and also atHobart.
Konta's next event saw her make her main-draw debut at theAustralian Open. In the opening round she facedVenus Williams, who was seeded eighth. The match was played onRod Laver Arena, with Konta winning in straight sets.[110] Konta backed up her win by beatingZheng Saisai[111] andDenisa Allertová,[112] setting up a fourth-round clash with 21st seedEkaterina Makarova. Konta recovered from a set behind to defeat the Russian and reach her first major quarterfinal.[113] Konta defeated qualifierZhang Shuai in the last-eight[114] before her run ultimately came to an end in the semifinals, where she lost to eventual champion Angelique Kerber, in straight sets.[9] Nonetheless, she became the first British female player to reach a major singles semifinal in 32 years.[115] Konta also teamed up with fellow Brit Heather Watson to play thedoubles. They beat a seeded pair in the opening round, before exiting at the next stage. Konta was at new career highs in the post-tournament rankings, moving up to world No. 28 for singles[116] and breaking into the top 100 for the first time in doubles, at world No. 95. She also passed the $1 million mark for career earnings.[117]
Konta took a brief break due to illness following the Australian Open,[118] returning to action for the spring North American hardcourt swing. She was the fourth seed for theMexican Open in Acapulco, where she exited in the second round, and also for theMonterrey Open, where she reached the quarterfinals and lost to Kirsten Flipkens. Konta then moved to the United States to participate in thePremier Mandatory events, the highest level on the WTA Tour, atIndian Wells andMiami. She was seeded 25th at Indian Wells, which gave her a bye into the second round where she defeated Madison Brengle. Konta then beat Denisa Allertová, before exiting in the fourth round to 18th seed Karolína Plíšková.[119] Konta moved on to Miami, where she was seeded 24th, which again saw her benefit from a bye to the second round. Wins overDanka Kovinić andElena Vesnina took Konta to the last 16, where she beat 32nd seedMonica Niculescu.[120] She lost in the quarterfinals to Victoria Azarenka,[121] who was en-route to completing the Indian Wells/Miami double.[122] Konta's form in North America saw her rise to a new career-high ranking of 21.[123]
The WTA Tour then made its spring switch toclay. Konta had a disappointing start on the surface as she lost her opening match inStuttgart, before retiring with illness during the first round inMadrid.[124] Her form improved inRome as she beat Johanna Larsson and then upset world No. 7, Roberta Vinci,[125] before exiting in the third round to Misaki Doi. Konta moved on to Paris for theFrench Open. She was 20th seed, the first time she had been seeded at a Grand Slam tournament, but was eliminated in the opening round byJulia Görges.[126]
Konta entered thegrass-court season as world No. 18 as her ranking climbed to a new high despite her opening-round loss at Roland Garros.[127] After early losses at theNottingham Open and theBirmingham Classic, Konta reached the semifinal inEastbourne, the site of her breakout performance in 2015. Her run included a victory over two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitová in the third round,[128] but was ended in the last four by Karolína Plíšková.[129]
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Konta was the first home player to be seeded in the ladies singles atWimbledon in over 30 years as she took the No. 16 spot.[130] She recorded her first ever win at the venue by beating Monica Puig in a rain-affected opening round match,[131] but went out at the next stage to former finalistEugenie Bouchard.[132] Following Wimbledon, Konta changed surface tohardcourts to play theStanford Classic. In the semifinals she beat Dominika Cibulková,[133] who had led the WTA in match wins at the time.[134] Konta then defeated two-time former champion Venus Williams in the final to claim her first WTA Tour title.[11] The following week, she reached the quarterfinals of theCanadian Open,[135] the women's portion of which was held inMontreal. She was within one victory of breaking into the top ten, but missed out on the landmark, after suffering a surprise defeat toKristina Kučová.[136]
TheRio Olympics was Konta's next event, as she representedBritain in singles, women's doubles and mixed doubles. She was seeded tenth in singles, easing pastStephanie Vogt (Liechtenstein) andCaroline Garcia (France) in the first and second round, respectively. Konta reached the quarterfinals, after beatingSvetlana Kuznetsova (Russia) in the third round,[137] but was knocked out in the last eight by Angelique Kerber (Germany).[10] Konta partnered Heather Watson in doubles, reaching the second round, before exiting toChinese Taipei (Chan Hao-ching andChan Yung-jan).[138] She teamed up withJamie Murray in the mixed, losing in the opening round to the eventual gold medalists (theUnited States pairing ofBethanie Mattek-Sands andJack Sock).[139]
After Rio, the WTA Tour resumed with theCincinnati Open. Konta reached the third round, before going out to Agnieszka Radwańska.[140] She moved on to theUS Open recording victories in the opening two rounds over Bethanie Mattek-Sands[141] andTsvetana Pironkova. The win over Pironkova came despite a health scare towards the end of the second set, Konta collapsing on court and requiring medical attention before she could continue.[142] Konta took just 52 minutes to beat 24th seed Belinda Bencic in the third-round,[143] matching her run to the last 16 from the previous year. She was eliminated at that stage byAnastasija Sevastova.[144]
The final weeks of the season saw Konta with the opportunity of breaking into the top ten and qualifying for theWTA Finals for the first time.[145] Her first event on the Far Eastern leg of the WTA Tour was theWuhan Open. A repeat of her Australian Open quarterfinal victory over Zhang Shuai[146] took Konta to the third round. There she defeatedCarla Suárez Navarro[147] to record her fifth top ten win of 2016 and set up a last-eight meeting with Petra Kvitová,[148] where she was knocked out of the competition.[149] The following week saw Konta in Beijing for theChina Open. She was drawn to face Sevastova in the opening round in a re-match of their US Open meeting of a few weeks prior, Konta gaining revenge for the defeat in New York.[150] Victory over Tímea Babos at the next stage set up a third-round clash with Karolína Plíšková,[151] which Konta won,[152] reversing a previous 0–5 head-to-head record against the Czech.[153] Konta progressed to the semifinal by beating Chinese number one, Zhang Shuai, for the second successive week.[154] She defeatedMadison Keys in the last four to reach her first Premier Mandatory final. Victory over Keys saw Konta enter the top ten for the first time in her career, making her the first British woman sinceJo Durie in 1984 to be ranked amongst the elite of the WTA. It also lifted her into a qualifying place for theWTA Finals.[8] Konta was beaten in the final byAgnieszka Radwańska.[155]
Konta attempted to consolidate her Tour Finals place inHong Kong, but an abdominal strain forced her to pull out of her second-round match.[156] She slipped outside the qualifying spots when Dominika Cibulková won the tournament inLinz, which secured the last place for the Slovak.[157] However, the subsequent withdrawal of Serena Williams gave Konta another chance.[158] She had already travelled to Singapore to practice,[159] only to be pipped for the final place less than 24 hours before the start of the event when Svetlana Kuznetsova won the title inMoscow.[160] Konta remained at the venue as an alternate,[161] but was unused. If Konta was to have qualified in the Tour Finals, she would become the first British woman since Jo Durie in the1984 Virginia Slims Championships. Following her eventual absence from the WTA Finals' lineup, Konta entered theWTA Elite Trophy a week later in Zhuhai, China. She was placed in the Azalea Group alongside Sam Stosur and Caroline Garcia. Konta opened with a win over Stosur that guaranteed she would finish the season ranked inside the WTA's top ten, the first Briton to achieve this since 1983.[162] She then beat Garcia to top the group and progress to a semifinal againstElina Svitolina,[163] which Svitolina won to end Konta's season.[164]
Konta led the2016 WTA Tour in points won behind second serve, and sat third for top-ten wins, hardcourt-match wins and tie-breaks won. She also featured in the top ten of a number of other statistical categories.[165] Konta was nominated as one of the WTA'sMost Improved Players for the second successive year,[166] winning the award comfortably on this occasion with over 80% of the vote.[167] Her end-of-season ranking was No. 10.[168]
After the conclusion of the season, Konta announced that she was parting company with her coaching team ofEsteban Carril and Jose-Manuel Garcia, despite her 'stellar year'.[169]
Konta started working with Belgian coachWim Fissette during pre-season training.[170] Their professional relationship began with Konta's reaching the semifinals of her first event of the new campaign inShenzhen, before being beaten in the last four by eventual champion,Kateřina Siniaková.[171] The following week inSydney, she claimed her second WTA Tour title, avenging her Beijing loss to world No. 3, Agnieszka Radwańska, in the final. Konta did not lose a set in the entire tournament.[172]
Ahead of theAustralian Open Konta was widely regarded as a contender for the title.[173][174][175][176] She recorded victories over Kirsten Flipkens,[177] Naomi Osaka,[178] former world No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki,[179] where she hit 31 winners to six and did not face a single break point on serve,[180] and 30th seed Ekaterina Makarova to reach the quarterfinals without dropping a set.[181] Konta was then beaten in the last eight by the eventual champion, Serena Williams.[182]
Her next action was in theFed Cup Euro/Africa Zone Group I. Konta won her three singles matches in the round-robin pool asBritain reached a promotion play-off againstCroatia. In the play-off Konta suffered a surprise singles defeat againstAna Konjuh, but then teamed up with Heather Watson to beat Konjuh andDarija Jurak in the decisive doubles and send Britain forward to aWorld Group II play-off later in the year.[183]
Watson went from teammate to opponent as Konta won an all-British clash in the second round atIndian Wells,[184] before exiting at the next stage against Caroline Garcia.[185] The WTA Tour then traversed the United States toMiami, where Konta progressed to a quarterfinal meeting with third seed Simona Halep. Halep was twice two points from victory, when serving for the match at 5–4 in the second set and again in the subsequent tie-break, but both times Konta recovered and eventually won in three sets.[186] She then defeated Venus Williams in the semifinal to progress through to her second Premier Mandatory final.[187] There, she defeated Wozniacki to win the biggest title of her career to date, ensuring her re-entry into the WTA's top ten at a new career-high ranking of No. 7.[12] With Premier Mandatory events second only to Grand Slams in terms prestige, some commentators rated Konta's Miami triumph as the most notable title for a British women sinceVirginia Wade had wonWimbledon 40 years previously.[188]
Following her Miami triumph, Konta returned to Europe and joined back-up with theBritish Fed Cup team as they travelled to faceRomania in theWorld Group II play-offs.[189] The tie was marked by a number of incidents involving Romanian captainIlie Năstase,[190][191][192] culminating in him being first removed from the court and then having his accreditation revoked, effectively excluding him from the venue for the remainder of the tie, after he verbally abused Konta and British team skipperAnne Keothavong during the former's opening day singles rubber against Sorana Cîrstea.[193] Konta broke down in tears over the abuse following Nastase's ejection, with play being suspended to allow her time to compose herself. Konta had been trailing in the second set prior to the interruption, but on resumption won five successive games to overturn the deficit and win the match, which levelled the tie at one rubber each.[193] Konta subsequently lost to Simona Halep as Romania won by three rubbers to two.[194] Năstase was later fined and banned for his behavior.[195]
In the wake of the controversial Fed Cup tie Konta returned to WTA play for the clay-court season. Her first event on the surface was atStuttgart, where she was eliminated in the second round by Anastasija Sevastova. She also lost in the opening round inMadrid toLaura Siegemund, and the third round inRome to Venus Williams. Konta was seeded seventh in theFrench Open, but was upset by Hsieh Su-wei the first round. She remained yet to win a main draw match inParis.[196]
Konta began the grass-court swing inNottingham, where she was the top seed. She reached the final, her first at WTA Tour-level on home soil and on grass, but was upset byDonna Vekić in the title match.[197] The following week saw Konta eliminated in the second round inBirmingham. She then competed at theEastbourne International. Following a bye into the second round, Konta beatSorana Cîrstea,[198]French Open champion Jeļena Ostapenko and world No. 1, Angelique Kerber, to reach the semifinals.[199] She pulled out of the tournament on the morning of her semifinal because of a back injury she sustained in her quarterfinal match against Kerber, raising questions over her fitness forWimbledon the following week.[200]
Konta showed no ill-effects of the injury as she faced Hsieh Su-wei in the opening round of a Grand Slam championship for the second time in a row, defeating her in straight sets.[201] In the second round, she recorded a three-set victory over Donna Vekić in a rematch of the Nottingham final.[202] Wins againstMaria Sakkari and Caroline Garcia saw Konta reach the quarterfinals, where she defeated second seed Simona Halep, denying Halep the world No. 1 ranking and becoming the first British woman to reach the Wimbledon singles semifinals sinceVirginia Wade in 1978.[13] She was beaten in the last four by Venus Williams.[203] Konta's ranking reached a new career-high of world No. 4.[204]
Having opted to skip the defence of herStanford title, Konta began her North American hard court swing inToronto. Her opening match was against Ekaterina Makarova, which she lost despite holding match points in the second set.[205] The following week inCincinnati, she reached the quarterfinals with wins overKiki Bertens and Dominika Cibulková, before losing to Simona Halep in the quarterfinal.[206]
Konta then lost her first match in her next four tournaments. She lost toAleksandra Krunić at theUS Open,[207] toBarbora Strýcová inTokyo,[208] toAshleigh Barty inWuhan[209] and to Monica Niculescu inBeijing.[210] As a result, on 9 October her ranking had fallen to No. 10. After withdrawing from the Kremlin Cup in Moscow as a result of a foot injury, she narrowly missed out on qualification for the WTA Finals for the second year running, with Caroline Garcia claiming the final spot at the year-end championships. On 18 October, Konta revealed that she and coachWim Fissette would be parting and she would be ending her season, passing up being a reserve for the Finals or playing in the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai. She confirmed the rest of her team would remain the same and she would be looking for a new coach "as soon as possible", and thanked Fissette for his "patience, hard work and expertise".[211] Konta's end-of-season ranking was No. 9.[212]
For being the first woman since 1978 to reach the Wimbledon semifinal and the first to win aPremier Mandatory title, Konta was nominated for the2017 BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award, placing 11th of the 12 nominees on the public's vote.[213]
Konta hired Michael Joyce as her new coach during the off-season.[214] In her first tournament of the year inBrisbane, Konta reached her first quarterfinal since August 2017 before retiring with a hip injury.[215] She was unable to defend her title atSydney the following week, losing in the first round. At theAustralian Open, Konta was knocked out in the second round by world No. 123, lucky loserBernarda Pera.[216]
Following the Australian Open, Konta played forBritain in theFed CupEurope/Africa Group 1. Following a straightforward win overMaria João Koehler, Konta 'survived a scare' to beat Anett Kontaveit as Britain beat hostsEstonia to set up a play-off againstHungary.[217] Konta beatFanny Stollár as Britain progressed to theWorld Group II play-offs. Britain were hoping to be drawn at home for the first time since 1993, but instead were handed a tie away toJapan.[218]
On resuming WTA play, Konta was eliminated prior to the quarterfinals of her next three tournaments,[219][220][221] before failing to defend her title inMiami, losing in the fourth round to Venus Williams.[222] She also exited early in the clay-court event atCharleston.
Konta next played in Britain's Fed Cup tie with Japan. She won both her singles rubbers, beating Kurumi Nara and recently crownedIndian Wells champion Naomi Osaka. However Britain were beaten in the other two singles rubbers to send the tie to a deciding doubles. Konta and Heather Watson were brought in as late replacements to play this, and though they won the opening set against the Japanese pairing ofMiyu Kato andMakoto Ninomiya, the hosts fought back to win the rubber and claim overall victory.[223]
After the Fed Cup Konta returned to clay court action. Her struggles on the surface continued as she suffered an early defeat inMadrid. Her form picked up inRome,[224] where she reached the third round, before exiting to Jeļena Ostapenko.[225] Konta lost in the first round of theFrench Open to No. 93, Yulia Putintseva, in straight sets. At the time, she had never won a main-draw match at the French Open and in her post-match press conference she launched a scathing attack on the media.[226]
Grass brought an upturn as Konta reached her first final of the year inNottingham, after defeating defending champion Donna Vekić in the semifinals in a rerun of the 2017 final of the same event.[227] She was looking to become the first British player to win a WTA Tour level title on home soil sinceSue Barker in 1981, but was beaten in the final by Ashleigh Barty.[228] However the resurgence in form was temporary as following this Konta suffered a first round loss inBirmingham, a second-round loss inEastbourne, and a second-round loss atWimbledon. Post-Wimbledon, her ranking dropped to 50 – her lowest since September 2015.[229]
Konta's first tournament after Wimbledon was inSan Jose. She was paired her with multipleGrand Slam champion Serena Williams in the first round and handed Williams the heaviest defeat of her career, the Briton winning 6–1, 6–0.[230] She then beatSofia Kenin, before losing to fourth seed Elise Mertens in the quarterfinals.[231] She followed this by reaching the third round inCanadian Open, before losing to Elina Svitolina and then losing in the first round ofCincinnati toAryna Sabalenka. Konta's struggles had seen ranking had slip outside the top 32, leading to her being drawn against sixth seed Caroline Garcia in the opening round of theUS Open; she lost to continue a poor run of form in major matches since her Wimbledon semifinal run of the previous year.[232]
Post the US Open Konta entered thePan Pacific Open in Japan where she lost in the second round to Donna Vekić in two tight sets. She lost to Ashleigh Barty in the first round of theWuhan. She also lost to Julia Görges in the opening round of theBeijing. Following these defeats Konta split with coach Michael Joyce[233] and agreed a trial with Dimitri Zavialoff for the final event of the regular WTA season inMoscow.[234] This provided an upbeat ending for Konta as she defeated Elise Mertens, Daria Gavrilova andAliaksandra Sasnovich to reach her second semifinal of the year.[235] She lost to Daria Kasatkina in the last four,[236] who went on to win the tournament. This run moved Konta's end-of-year ranking up to 39 in the world.[237] Following the successful trial at the Kremlin Cup, Konta hired Zavialoff as her coach on a permanent basis.[238]
Konta started the year at the Brisbane International by defeating third seed Sloane Stephens, before losing toAjla Tomljanović in the second round. She received a lucky loser berth from qualifying for the Sydney International but withdrew with a neck injury. At theAustralian Open she defeated Tomljanovic in a rematch of their Brisbane meeting, before losing in the second round to Muguruza in a marathon three set match that had the latest start in Australian Open history and ended after 3am local time.[239]
Konta's next played theFed Cup. Britain's ties inEurope/Africa Group 1 took place inBath after theLTA were awarded co-hosting rights. This was the first time that theBritish Fed Cup team had played on home soil in 26 years.[240] Konta recorded wins overDalila Jakupović, Maria Sakkari andAnna Bondár as Britain topped their opening round pool with a 100% record to set up a promotional play-off withSerbia.[241] Following a victory for teammateKatie Boulter in the opening rubber, Konta beat Aleksandra Krunić in a dramatic match to seal Britain's progress to aWorld Group play-off despite collapsing off-court after the end of the second set and requiring a medical timeout.[242] Konta won a Fed Cup Heart Award for her efforts.[243]
Konta opted not to play in either Doha or Dubai, instead returning to WTA action for the North American spring hardcourt swing. Her first event was inAcapulco where she defeated Laura Siegemund in the first round, followed by victory overVarvara Flink before losing in the quarterfinals to Donna Vekić. At Indian Wells, she defeated Pauline Parmentier and 27th seed Hsieh Su-wei, but went out to Kiki Bertens in the third round. In Miami, she lost in the second round toWang Qiang of China.
Konta returned to Europe to rejoin Britain's Fed Cup team for their World Group II play-off againstKazakhstan. This was played at theCopper Box Arena in London. It was the first time the venue had hosted international team Tennis.[244] In the play-off Konta twice recovered from a set down to beatZarina Diyas and Yulia Putintseva. Konta's two victories took her winning run in Fed Cup singles play up to 11 matches.[245] Teammate Boulter completed Britain's victory by three rubbers to one as she beat Diyas. Britain were therefore promoted to World Group II for 2020.[246]
After returning from Fed Cup duties Konta entered theMorocco Open as the seventh seed. She saved three match points during her first-round match againstWang Yafan, before rallying to outlast the Chinese player in three sets and progress to a second round encounter with Ana Bogdan.[247] She beat Bogdan and followed that by ousting Hsieh, the tournament's second seed, to reach the semifinals. There she defeated Tomljanović[248] to reach her first ever clay-court final; Konta lost in the final to Maria Sakkari despite being a set and a break up.[249]
At theMadrid Open, she defeated American Alison Riske to advance to a second-round match against third seed Simona Halep, which she lost in straight sets. The following week inRome, Konta once again defeated Riske in the first round, moving on to face seventh seed Sloane Stephens. She lost the first set, however came back to win in three. Her third round match came later the same day due to a rain delay. She defeated Venus Williams to move into her firstPremier level clay court quarterfinal.[250] Konta defeated Czech teenagerMarkéta Vondroušová to reach the semifinals. She advanced to the final, after defeating Madrid Open champion Bertens; in the final, she was beaten by Karolína Plíšková, in straight sets.[251] Following her Italian Open run, Konta's ranking improved to 26 in the world, securing her a seeding at the upcomingFrench Open.[252]
Konta came to theFrench Open, having not won a main-draw match at the venue in four previous attempts. She finally broke her 'curse' by beatingAntonia Lottner in the first round,[253] and went on to advance to the semifinals. Her run included victory over Vekić in the fourth round[254] and a third win of the year against Stephens in the quarterfinals. By reaching the semifinals, Konta became the first British female player to reach that stage of the French Open sinceJo Durie in 1983.[255] Konta was defeated in the semifinal by the unseeded Vondroušová in two tight sets.[256] She returned to the top 20 in the WTA rankings after this run.[257]
Konta started her grass-court campaign with a win over Anett Kontaveit in the first round of the Birmingham Classic. She lost to Jeļena Ostapenko in the second round. At Eastbourne, Konta reached the third round before losing to Ons Jabeur. She was seeded 19th atWimbledon and went on to reach the quarterfinals, picking up her fourth win of the season against Stephens[258] and defeating two-time former champion Petra Kvitová en-route.[259] Konta was upset in the last eight by Barbora Strýcová.[260]
Despite losing in the first round of both herUS Open warm-up events,[261] once at theUS Open, Konta went on the best run of her career to date at thevenue, beating former top ten playerDaria Kasatkina[262] and third seed Karolína Plíšková[263] en route to the quarterfinals, where she lost to Elina Svitolina. She did not play in another tournament following the US Open, and finished the year as No. 12.
Starting her season at theBrisbane International, Konta lost in the first round to Barbora Strýcová. She then participated at theAustralian Open, where she suffered a shock first-round exit to Ons Jabeur. Her next tournament was atSt. Petersburg, where, in receipt of a first round bye, she lost to qualifierOcéane Dodin in the second round. Her next tournament was atMonterrey, where she reached the semifinals, defeatingKim Clijsters,Tatjana Maria, andAnastasia Potapova, before falling to eventual runner-up Marie Bouzková. She was scheduled to play at Indian Wells, but the tour was suspended due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.
Her first event upon the tour's resumption was atLexington, where she lost in the first round to Bouzková in straight sets for the second consecutive meeting. She reached the semifinals at theWestern & Southern Open, which was held in New York due to the pandemic. She defeated Kirsten Flipkens, Vera Zvonareva, and Maria Sakkari, before falling to the eventual champion, Victoria Azarenka. At theUS Open she beat her compatriot Heather Watson in the first round before losing to Sorana Cîrstea in the second round. Her next tournament was atRome, where she defeatedIrina-Camelia Begu, before falling to Garbiñe Muguruza in the third round. She then participated at theFrench Open, where she lost in the first round toCoco Gauff. She ended the year ranked No. 14 in the world.
At theGippsland Trophy in Melbourne, Konta won her first match of the year against Bernarda Pera, before losing to Irina-Camelia Begu.Australian Open, Konta retired from her first-round match againstKaja Juvan with an abdominal injury. She lost in the first round toShelby Rogers inAdelaide, second round to Petra Kvitová inMiami, second round to Anastasija Sevastova inMadrid, and first round to Jeļena Ostapenko inRome. Konta lost in the first round of theFrench Open to Sorana Cîrstea.
She won her first title in four years at theNottingham Open on grass beatingLesley Pattinama Kerkhove, Kateryna Kozlova,Alison Van Uytvanck, and Nina Stojanović to reach the final in which she beat Zhang Shuai in under an hour.
Konta had to withdraw fromWimbledon because one of her team tested positive forCOVID-19, forcing her to endure a quarantine.[264]
At theCanadian Open in Montreal, Konta defeated Zhang Shuai in the first round, following her retirement in the second set. She then played third seed Elina Svitolina, and Konta claimed her first win against Svitolina after losing their first five matches. In the third round, Konta was forced to withdraw against Coco Gauff.
Next, she played inCincinnati but lost in the first round to Karolína Muchová, in three sets. She withdrew from theUS Open, and she did not play another match for the rest of the season. Her ranking had dropped to No. 82 in October 2021, and, after residual points from the 2019 season were dropped, her ranking fell to No. 113 in the world by 29 November 2021, her lowest ranking since August 2015.
On 1 December 2021, Konta announced her retirement from professional tennis, suffering from a long-term right knee injury.[265][266]
Konta was anaggressive baseliner, with her game centered around her flat, quick, and powerful groundstrokes. Konta was known for creating sharp angles, being able to hit winners from any position on the court. According to WTA match stats in 2016, she was fourth in ace counts, won 62% of her service points, 74.8% of service games and won most of the second serve points at 52.7%.[267] She preferred to attack from the baseline, rather than to come to the net to volley. Konta was often criticized by commentators for a lack of mental toughness and a lack of variety or a "plan B" in tough match situations,[268][269] but after hiring Dimitri Zavialoff as her coach, she utilised more drop shots and tried to come in more often although she retained an uncomfortable relationship with the net and never looked truly comfortable there. Grass was her favourite surface, but the majority of her success came on hard courts.[270]
Konta's clothing sponsor wasAsics until 2019, when she switched toEllesse.[citation needed] Her racquet sponsor wasBabolat. She endorsed the Babolat Pure Aero range of racquets.[271] In 2017, she became the first UK ambassador of Nature Valley cereal bars as part of their British Tennis partnership. In 2019 British accessories brand Radley named Konta as its second celebrity brand ambassador, as the face of its Radley Spirit campaign. In addition to fronting the Radley Spirit campaign ahead of Wimbledon, Konta also curated a collection of her favourite pieces from the spring/summer 2019 collection, the Johanna Konta collection.
Konta initially trained at the Sánchez-Casal Academy inBarcelona, before her parents decided to settle in Great Britain in 2005,[272] and at the Roddick Lavalle Academy inTexas.[273] She trained at the National Tennis Academy in Roehampton with LTA-supplied coaches Louis Cayer and, from mid-2012, Julien Picot.[274][275] In December 2012, theLawn Tennis Association announced that Konta was one of 21 players set to receive the LTA's funding next season, which is supported through TeamAegon.[276]
At the start of 2014, she split from Picot for personal reasons.[277] In August 2014, when the LTA decided to close the National Tennis Centre as a base for elite players, Konta began working with Spanish coach Esteban Carril.[277] At the end of 2014, Konta began receiving help from mental coach Juan Coto, a friend of Carril's based in London.[278][279] A dramatic cut in her LTA funding for 2015 encouraged Konta to move her training base toGijón in northern Spain, where Esteban Carril and José Manuel García oversaw an increasingly rapid rise up the rankings. Supporters of the LTA's austerity drive argued this was a benefit of their tough love policy,[280][281] though Konta disagreed that that was the case.[282] After her mental coach Coto died suddenly in November 2016,[283] Konta maintained that she would continue to benefit from his influence: "He's still very much a part of everything that I do, everything that I will continue to do in this sport and this career. He has gifted me with an incredible amount of tools and habits".[284]
Konta split with Carril and Garcia in December 2016.[169] Prior to the 2017 season, Konta recruited BelgianWim Fissette to be her main coach.[1] Konta and Fissette mutually ended this partnership in October 2017 after a poor run in the Asian tournaments. Konta retained the rest of her team and said she would spend the off-season looking for a new coach.[211] On 6 December 2017, Konta announced she was hiring Michael Joyce for the 2018 season.[214] On 10 October 2018, Konta announced that she had split with Joyce.[233] She immediately commenced a trial period with Dimitri Zavialoff, a former coach ofStanislas Wawrinka, hiring him on a permanent basis three weeks later.[234][238]
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
| Tournament | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | SR | W–L | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | Q2 | Q2 | Q1 | SF | QF | 2R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 0 / 6 | 11–6 | 65% |
| French Open | A | Q2 | Q3 | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | SF | 1R | 1R | 0 / 7 | 5–7 | 42% |
| Wimbledon | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | SF | 2R | QF | NH | A | 0 / 8 | 11–8 | 58% |
| US Open | 2R | Q1 | 1R | 4R | 4R | 1R | 1R | QF | 2R | A | 0 / 8 | 12–8 | 60% |
| Win–loss | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 9–4 | 9–4 | 2–4 | 14–4 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 0 / 29 | 39–29 | 57% |
| Tournament | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | W–L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | A | A | A | 2R | A | A | 1–1 |
| French Open | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | 1R | 0–2 |
| Wimbledon | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 3R | A | A | 3–5 |
| US Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0–0 |
| Win–loss | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 4–8 |
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
| Preceded by | British Tennis number one 5 October 2015 – 12 September 2021 | Succeeded by |
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | WTA Most Improved Player 2016 | Succeeded by |
