2012 WTA Tour Championships

2012 WTA Tour Championships 23–28 October 42nd (singles) / 37th (doubles) 8S / 4D Hard (indoor) Istanbul, Turkey Sinan Erdem Dome USA Serena Williams RUS Maria Kirilenko / RUS Nadia Petrova WTA Finals thumb| The 2012 WTA Tour Championships was a tennis tournament played at Istanbul, Turkey from October 23 to October 28, 2012. It was the 42nd edition of the singles event and the 37th edition of the doubles competition. The tournament was held at the Sinan Erdem Dome and was contested by eight singles players and four doubles teams. It was the larger of two season ending championships on the 2012 WTA Tour. The tournament featured the top eight singles players and the top four doubles teams in the race to Istanbul. Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Agnieszka Radwańska, Angelique Kerber, Petra Kvitová, Sara Errani and Li Na qualified for the singles competition. Kvitová withdrew from the championships after one match and was replaced by Sam Stosur. Radwańska and Errani's round robin match set the record for the longest match in WTA Tour Championships history within the best-of-three system.http://www.wtatennis.com/news/20121026/radwanska-survives-moves-into-semifinals_2256076_2961435 Women's Tennis Association – Official Website Azarenka, Sharapova, Williams and Radwańska qualified from the red and white groups for the semifinals. This was the first time since 1989 that the world's top four ranked women's players all made it to the semifinals of the tournament and the first time since 2003 that the top four seeds made the same stage.http://www.wtatennis.com/news/20121027/stats-to-chew-on-playing-like-its-1989_2256076_2961701 Women's Tennis Association – Official Website Williams went on to win her third season ending championship. In the doubles Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci, Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká, Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond and Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova made up the teams. The competition started in the semifinals and it was the all-Russian pairing of Kirilenko and Petrova who claimed the title. Finals Singles 2012 WTA Tour Championships – Singles USA Serena Williams defeated RUS Maria Sharapova, 6–4, 6–3. It was Williams' seventh title of the season and the 46th of her career. It was her third WTA Championships title, having also won in 2001 and 2009. Doubles 2012 WTA Tour Championships – Doubles RUS Maria Kirilenko / RUS Nadia Petrova defeated CZE Andrea Hlaváčková / CZE Lucie Hradecká, 6–1, 6–4. Tournament 200px|thumb|right|Sinan Erdem Dome hosted the WTA Championships for the second time in 2012. The 2012 WTA Championships took place at the Sinan Erdem Dome 23–28 October 2012. It was the 41st edition of the event. The tournament was run by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and was part of the 2012 WTA Tour. It was the larger of the two season ending championships on the 2012 WTA Tour, the smaller being the latter was only for players who did not qualify for the WTA Championships. Format The singles event featured eight players and began as a round robin event, split into two groups of four. Over the first four days of competition, each player met the other three players in their group, with the top two in each group advancing to the semifinals. The first-placed player in one group met the second-placed player in the other group, and vice versa. The winners of each semifinal met in the championship match. Round robin tie-breaking methods The final standings of each group shall be determined by the first of the following methods that apply: Greatest number of wins Greatest number of matches played; or Head-to-head results if only two players are tied, or if three players are tied then: a If three players each have the same number of wins, a player having played less than all three matches is automatically eliminated and the player advancing to the single elimination competition is the winner of the match-up of the two remaining tied players; or b Highest percentage of sets won; or c Highest percentage of games won The doubles competition has four teams playing in a straight knockout format from the semifinal stage.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/TournamentFacts/0,,12910,00.html Tournament Facts Wtachampionships.com Prize money and points The total prize money for the 2012 WTA Championships was 4.9 million United States dollars.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/TournamentFacts/0,,12910,00.html Ranking points and prize money breakdown 2011-10-30 StageSinglesDoublesPoints 1Champion RR2 + $1,295,000 $375,000 RR2 + 810Runner-up RR2 + $435,000 $187,500 RR2 + 360Semifinalist RR2 + $30,000 $93,750 RR2Round robin (3 wins) $455,000 –690Round robin (2 wins) $340,000 –530Round robin (1 win) $225,000 –370Round robin (0 wins) $110,000 –210Alternates $50,000 – 1 for every match played in the round robin a player got 70 points automatically, and for each round robin win they got 160 additional points 2 RR means Prize money or Points won in the round robin Round. RR for doubles was 690 Qualified players Singles #PlayersPointsTournDate Qualified1Victoria Azarenka BLR10,19015(14)6 Sep2Maria Sharapova RUS9,11515(12)6 Sep3Serena Williams USA7,90013(12)10 Sep4Agnieszka Radwańska POL7,0952024 Sep5Angelique Kerber GER5,470194 Oct6Petra Kvitová CZE5,21518(16)4 Oct7Sara Errani ITA4,855214 Oct8Li Na CHN4,72617(16)5 Oct thumb|140px|left|Victoria Azarenka started the season with a 26-match winning-streak, including her first major. On September 6, Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova became the first two players to qualify for the championships.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2912057,00.html Istanbul Gets First Four Qualifiers For 2012 Wtachampionships.com 2012-09-06 2012-09-07 Victoria Azarenka started the year strongly, winning the Apia International Sydney over Li Na, 6–2, 1–6, 6–3.https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tennis-women-sydney-idUSTRE80C14S20120113 Azarenka wins Sydney title while Li seeks silence Reuters 2012-01-13 She then followed this up by winning her maiden grand slam at the Australian Open, defeating Maria Sharapova, 6–3, 6–0. With the win, she claimed the no. 1 ranking for the first time.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/jan/28/victoria-azarenka-wins-australian-open Victoria Azarenka crushes Maria Sharapova to win Australian Open title Guardian 2012-01-13 Her winning streak continued in the Qatar Total Open. She won the title without dropping a set, beating Samantha Stosur, 6–1, 6–2 in the final.https://www.usatoday.com/sports/tennis/story/2012-02-19/victoria-azarenka-wins-qatar-open/53151168/1 Azarenka overcomes injury, Stosur to win in Qatar USA Today Associated Press 2012-02-21 2017-08-23 2012-04-18 https://web.archive.org/web/20120418120612/http://www.usatoday.com/sports/tennis/story/2012-02-19/victoria-azarenka-wins-qatar-open/53151168/1 dead She then won her fourth title of the year at the BNP Paribas Open, once again defeating Sharapova, 6–2, 6–3.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/17423782 Victoria Azarenka beats Maria Sharapova to win Indian Wells title BBC 2012-03-18 Her streak ended when she was defeated by Marion Bartoli in the quarterfinals of Sony Ericsson Open.https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-xpm-2012-mar-28-la-sp-newswire-20120329-story.html Victoria Azarenka loses match for first time this year Wirereports 2012-03-28 During the clay season, she reached back-to-back finals, in Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, losing to Sharapova, 1–6, 4–6,https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/17889188 Maria Sharapova beats Victoria Azarenka to win on Stuttgart clay BBC 2012-04-29 and the Mutua Madrid Open, losing to Serena Williams, 1–6, 3–6.Serena Williams beats Victoria Azarenka to win Madrid Open https://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/18051201 BBC Sport 2012-05-13 At the French Open, she lost in the fourth round to Dominika Cibulková, 2–6, 6–7(4–7).https://news.yahoo.com/top-seeded-azarenka-loses-french-open-131157795--spt.html Top-seeded Azarenka loses at French Open Associated Press 2012-06-03 Seeded second at Wimbledon, she reached the semifinals, where she was defeated by Serena, 3–6, 6–7(6–8).http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/904334-serena-williams-defeats-victoria-azarenka-to-reach-seventh-wimbledon-final Serena Williams defeats Victoria Azarenka to reach 7th Wimbledon final Metro 2012-07-05 At the Summer Olympics, she reached the semifinals, where she once again lost to Serena, 1–6, 2–6.http://www.interaksyon.com/interaktv/olympic-tennis-serena-routs-azarenka-sets-up-finals-duel-with-sharapova Olympic Tennis: Serena routs Azarenka, sets up finals duel with Sharapova Reuters 2012-08-04 2012-09-24 https://web.archive.org/web/20120804223532/http://www.interaksyon.com/interaktv/olympic-tennis-serena-routs-azarenka-sets-up-finals-duel-with-sharapova 2012-08-04 dead However, she won the bronze medal match against Maria Kirilenko, earning Belarus their first tennis medal in history.https://sports.yahoo.com/news/victoria-azarenka-belarus-wins-olympic-131626975--oly.html https://archive.today/20130105121831/http://sports.yahoo.com/news/victoria-azarenka-belarus-wins-olympic-131626975--oly.html dead January 5, 2013 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus wins Olympic bronze Associated Press 2012-08-04 She teamed up with Max Mirnyi for the mixed-doubles event, where she won the gold medal after defeating Laura Robson and Andy Murray in the gold-medal match.http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/london-olympics-2012/news/London-Olympics-Mirnyi-Azarenka-win-mixed-doubles-gold/articleshow/15367203.cms London Olympics: Mirnyi, Azarenka win mixed doubles gold AFP 2012-08-05 Seeded first at the US Open, Azarenka defeated the defending champion, Samantha Stosur, in the quarterfinals and Sharapova in the semifinals, but lost to Williams in her first US Open final, 2–6, 6–2, 5–7.https://www.usatoday.com/sports/tennis/story/2012/09/9/serena-williams-wins-fourth-us-open-crown/57720804/1 Serena Williams wins fourth U.S. Open crown USA Today 2012-09-10 2017-08-23 2012-09-14 https://web.archive.org/web/20120914000754/http://www.usatoday.com/sports/tennis/story/2012/09/9/serena-williams-wins-fourth-us-open-crown/57720804/1 dead She then won the China Open as the top seed, defeating Sharapova 6–3, 6–1 in the final and did not drop a set in the tournament.https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/tennis/2012/10/07/china-open-mens-final-novak-djokovic-beats-jo-wilfried-tsonga/1617797/ Djokovic, Azarenka win titles at China Open USA Today Associated Press 2012-10-07 Azarenka won her sixth title of the year at the Generali Ladies Linz defeating Julia Görges 6–3, 6–4, after blowing a 5–0 in the second.http://www.chinapost.com.tw/sports/tennis/2012/10/16/357768/Azarenka-wins.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20140222153710/http://www.chinapost.com.tw/sports/tennis/2012/10/16/357768/Azarenka-wins.htm dead February 22, 2014 Azarenka wins in Linz, 6th season title AFP 2012-10-16 thumb|170px|right|Maria Sharapova completed her grand slam collection after triumphing at the French Open. Maria Sharapova started 2012 by reaching the final of the Australian Open. Being the favorite for the title, she succumbed in a 3–6, 0–6 defeat by first time grand slam finalist, Victoria Azarenka, in the final. She followed up her consistent performance with back-to-back final appearances at the BNP Paribas Open, losing to Azarenka, 2–6, 3–6, and the Sony Ericsson Open, losing to Agnieszka Radwańska, 5–7, 4–6.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/17573828 Agnieszka Radwanska beats Maria Sharapova at Sony Ericsson Open BBC 2012-03-31 She then won her first title of the year at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, defeating world no. 1 Azarenka, 6–1, 6–4. She then also won the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, defeating Li Na, 4–6, 6–4, 7–6(7–5), coming back from 0–4 in the second set.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/18138072 Maria Sharapova wins Italian Open crown in Rome BBC 2012-05-20 At the French Open, she won her fourth grand slam singles title, defeating Sara Errani, 6–3, 6–2, in the final. The victory gave her a career grand slam and returned her to world no. 1.https://www.espn.com/tennis/french12/story/_/id/8029542/2012-french-open-maria-sharapova-wins-completes-career-grand-slam Maria Sharapova wins French Open Associated Press 2012-06-09 Entering Wimbledon as the top seed, Sharapova lost in the fourth round to Sabine Lisicki, 4–6, 3–6.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/jul/02/wimbledon-2012-maria-sharapova-loss Wimbledon 2012: Maria Sharapova goes out to Germany's Sabine Lisicki Guardian 2012-07-02 She rebounded well at the Summer Olympics, winning the silver medal after being outplayed by Serena Williams in the final, 0–6, 1–6.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/04/serena-williams-gold-medal-olympics-sharapova_n_1741297.html Serena Williams Wins Gold Medal In Olympic Singles Tennis, Beats Maria Sharapova In Final HuffPost Associated Press 2012-08-04 Despite skipping the US Open Series, she reached the US Open's semifinals, but lost to Azarenka.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/07/maria-sharapova-us-open-loses-victoria-azarenka_n_1866046.html Maria Sharapova Out Of U.S. Open, Loses To Victoria Azarenka In Semifinals HuffPost Associated Press 2012-09-06 She then reached the final of the China Open, once again facing Azarenka but lost 3–6, 1–6. thumb|140px|left|Serena Williams won two Grand Slam titles and the Olympic gold in 2012 On September 10, Serena Williams became the third player to qualify for the championships.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2915310,00.html Serena Among Five New Qualifiers Wtachampionships.com 2012-09-10 2012-09-10 2012 Serena Williams tennis season Serena Williams did not enjoy a good start of the season, injuring her ankle at her first tournament of 2012 in Brisbane and succumbing in the fourth round of the Australian Open to Ekaterina Makarova, 2–6, 3–6.https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-23/serena-williams-loses-to-makarova-in-round-fout-of-australian-open-tennis.html Serena Williams Loses to Makarova in Round Fout of Australian Open Tennis Bloomberg 2012-01-23 In the clay season, she won her first title on clay since 2008 at the Family Circle Cup, losing only 15 games and defeating Lucie Šafářová, 6–0, 6–1, in the final.http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/news/20120408/serena-williams-charleston/ https://web.archive.org/web/20120410112241/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/news/20120408/serena-williams-charleston/ dead April 10, 2012 Serena wins Charleston, first WTA tournament victory since August Associated Press 2012-04-08 She then won the Mutua Madrid Open over Victoria Azarenka, 6–1, 6–3. Coming to the French Open as a heavy favorite with a 17-match winning streak, Williams suffered a shocking first-round loss to Virginie Razzano, 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 3–6. This marked Williams' first loss in the first round in a Grand Slam.http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2012/05/29/serena-loses-in-1st-round-major-for-1st-time/ https://web.archive.org/web/20120601012702/http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2012/05/29/serena-loses-in-1st-round-major-for-1st-time/ dead June 1, 2012 Serena Williams loses in 1st round at French Open Fox News Associated Press 2012-05-29 However, she regrouped well and triumphed at Wimbledon by defeating Agnieszka Radwańska in the final, 6–1, 5–7, 6–2, for her 14th Grand Slam title, came back after losing a 4–2 lead in the second.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/18749540 Wimbledon 2012: Serena Williams wins fifth singles title BBC 2012-07-07 The following week, she defended her title at the Bank of the West Classic, defeating CoCo Vandeweghe, 7–5, 6–3.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/18853639 Serena Williams heads for London 2012 after Stanford win BBC 2012-07-16 At the Summer Olympics, she won the gold medal after dominating Maria Sharapova, 6–0, 6–1, in the final. She lost just a total of 17 games during the event. This victory completed the career Golden Slam in singles, making her only the second woman (after Steffi Graf) to do so. She also won the doubles gold with sister Venus Williams for the third time, over Lucie Hradecká and Andrea Hlaváčková, 6–4, 6–4.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/05/serena-venus-williams-olympics-tennis-doubles_n_1743600.html Serena, Venus Williams Win Historic Third Women's Doubles Olympic Tennis Gold Medal HuffPost Associated Press 2012-08-05 Her 19-match winning streak ended at the Western & Southern Open to Angelique Kerber.http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/news/20120817/cincinnati-open-friday/ https://web.archive.org/web/20120821053837/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/news/20120817/cincinnati-open-friday/ dead August 21, 2012 Serena Williams falls to Germany's Kerber Associated Press 2012-08-17 At the US Open, she reached the final with the loss of just 19 games. In the final, she defeated world no. 1, Victoria Azarenka, 6–2, 2–6, 7–5, for her second Grand Slam singles title of the year and 15th overall. thumb|140px|right|Agnieszka Radwańska reached her first grandslam singles final in 2012 On September 24, Agnieszka Radwańska became the fourth player to qualify for the championships.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2928568,00.html Radwańska Becomes Istanbul Qualifier No.4 Wtachampionships.com 2012-09-24 2012-09-24 Agnieszka Radwańska began the season with a semifinal appearance at Apia International Sydney and a quarterfinal finish at the Australian Open.http://blogs.tennis.com/racquet_reaction/2012/01/australian-open-azarenka-d-radwanska.html Australian Open: Azarenka d. Radwanska Tennis.com 2012-01-03 2012-09-27 2012-03-10 https://web.archive.org/web/20120310075024/http://blogs.tennis.com/racquet_reaction/2012/01/australian-open-azarenka-d-radwanska.html dead She claimed her first title of the year at the Dubai Tennis Championships over Julia Görges, 7–5, 6–4.https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/7614489/agnieszka-radwanska-overcomes-julia-goerges-win-dubai-title Agnieszka Radwanska wins Dubai title Associated Press 2012-02-25 She claimed her second title of the year at the Sony Ericsson Open by defeating Maria Sharapova in the final, 7–5, 6–4. In the clay season, she reached two semifinals, before losing in her opening match in the Internazionali BNL d'Italia to Petra Cetkovská, 4–6, 6–4, 1–6, her first lost to a player other than Azarenka in the year.http://sports.ndtv.com/tennis/news/item/190144-li-na-advances-agnieszka-radwanska-knocked-out-of-rome-masters https://archive.today/20130104052130/http://sports.ndtv.com/tennis/news/item/190144-li-na-advances-agnieszka-radwanska-knocked-out-of-rome-masters dead 2013-01-04 Li Na advances; Radwanska knocked out of Rome Masters NDTV 2012-05-16 However, she bounced back by winning the Brussels Open over Simona Halep, 7–5, 6–0.http://www.wtatennis.com/news/20120526/radwanska-wins-10th-wta-title-in-brussels_2256076_2789314 Radwanska Wins 10th WTA Title In Brussels WTA 2012-05-12 At the French Open, she fell to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the third round, 1–6, 2–6.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/jun/01/agnieszka-radwanska-svetlana-kuznetsova-french-open French Open 2012: Agnieszka Radwanska loses in third round Guardian 2012-06-01 At Wimbledon, she reached the first Grand Slam singles final of her career, losing to Serena Williams, 1–6, 7–5, 2–6.http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/news/20120708/roger-federer-wins-wimbledon-andy-murray/ https://web.archive.org/web/20120710233258/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/news/20120708/roger-federer-wins-wimbledon-andy-murray/ dead July 10, 2012 Federer wins 7th Wimbledon, but Murray's progress no small feat 8 July 2012 Sports Illustrated At the Summer Olympics, she was upset in the first round by Julia Görges, 5–7, 7–6(7–5), 4–6.http://www.iol.co.za/sport/tennis/radwanska-crashes-out-of-olympics-1.1351303 Radwanska crashes out of Olympics IOL 2012-07-29 At the US Open, she lost for the first time to Roberta Vinci in the fourth round, 1–6, 4–6.http://espn.go.com/espnw/more-sports/8334639/2012-us-open-no-2-agnieszka-radwanska-labors-loses-roberta-vinci https://web.archive.org/web/20120907035301/http://espn.go.com/espnw/more-sports/8334639/2012-us-open-no-2-agnieszka-radwanska-labors-loses-roberta-vinci dead September 7, 2012 No. 2 seed Radwanska labors, loses to Vinci ESPN 2012-09-04 She reached the final of the 2012 Toray Pan Pacific Open, where she was the defending champion, but was upset in the final by Nadia Petrova, 0–6, 6–1, 3–6.http://straightsets.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/29/petrova-wins-wild-tokyo-final/ Petrova Wins Wild Tokyo Final New York Times 2012-09-29 2012-10-04 https://web.archive.org/web/20121020032601/http://straightsets.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/29/petrova-wins-wild-tokyo-final/ 2012-10-20 dead thumb|130px|left|Angelique Kerber reached three Premier finals, winning one On October 4, three more spots were filled, as Angelique Kerber, Petra Kvitová, and Sara Errani qualified for the championships.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2939116,00.html Three More Qualify For Istanbul WTA Championships 2012-10-04 Angelique Kerber enjoyed her best season so far. She reached two semifinals in her Australian Open preparation, before losing in the third round of the Australian Open to Maria Sharapova, 1–6, 2–6.http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/news/articles/2012-01-21/201201211327114460636.html Sharapova continues steady progress Australian Open 2012-01-21 She then claimed her first career title at the Open GDF Suez, defeating Marion Bartoli, 7–6(7–3), 5–7, 6–3.https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/7568010/angelique-kerber-drops-marion-bartoli-open-gdf-suez-paris-first-wta-title Angelique Kerber wins Open GDF Suez Associated Press 2012-02-12 She won her second title of the year at the e-Boks Open, defeating defending champion Caroline Wozniacki, 6–4, 6–4.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/apr/15/angelique-kerber-caroline-wozniacki Angelique Kerber beats Caroline Wozniacki to take Copenhagen title TheGuardian.com Associated Press 2012-04-15 At the French Open, she fell in the quarterfinals to Sara Errani 3–6, 6–7(2–7).http://sports.ndtv.com/french-open-2012/news/item/191333-errani-beats-kerber-to-reach-1st-grand-slam-semi https://archive.today/20130104014250/http://sports.ndtv.com/french-open-2012/news/item/191333-errani-beats-kerber-to-reach-1st-grand-slam-semi dead 2013-01-04 Errani beats Kerber to reach 1st Grand Slam semi Associated Press 2012-06-05 In the grass season, she reached the final of the Aegon International, losing to Tamira Paszek, 7–5, 3–6, 5–7, despite having five match points and a 5–3 lead.https://www.foxnews.com/sports/paszek-rallies-past-kerber-for-eastbourne-title/ Paszek rallies past Kerber for Eastbourne title Sports Network 2012-06-23 At Wimbledon, reached her second Grand Slam semifinal, but ended up losing to Agnieszka Radwańska, 3–6, 4–6.http://www.india.diplo.de/Vertretung/indien/en/__pr/About__Germany__News/Wimbledon__Kerber.html Germany's Kerber loses in Wimbledon semis Deutsche Welle 2012-07-06 2012-10-04 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055930/http://www.india.diplo.de/Vertretung/indien/en/__pr/About__Germany__News/Wimbledon__Kerber.html 2016-03-04 dead At the Western & Southern Open, Kerber reached her first Premier 5 final and fourth final of the year, but lost to Li Na, 1–6, 6–3, 1–6.https://sports.yahoo.com/news/li-rallies-beat-kerber-cincinnati-215951920--ten.html Li rallies to beat Kerber for Cincinnati title Associated Press 2012-08-19 At the US Open, after reaching the semifinals the previous year, she fell in the fourth round to Errani, 6–7(5–7), 3–6.https://sports.yahoo.com/news/errani-beats-kerber-2-sets-195846283--ten.html https://archive.today/20130105134323/http://sports.yahoo.com/news/errani-beats-kerber-2-sets-195846283--ten.html dead January 5, 2013 Italians Errani, Vinci to meet in US Open quarters Associated Press 2012-09-03thumb|140px|right|Petra Kvitová reached two Grand Slam semifinals in 2012 Petra Kvitová came into 2012 as a strong contender. She began the year by winning the Hopman Cup with Tomáš Berdych over France's Marion Bartoli and Richard Gasquet.http://straightsets.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/08/czechs-singles-first-strategy-pays-off-at-hopman-cup/ Czechs' Singles-First Strategy Pays Off at Hopman Cup NY Times 2012-01-08 At the Australian Open, she reached the semifinals, losing to Maria Sharapova, 2–6, 6–3, 4–6.December 2019 At Wimbledon as the defending champion, she lost to eventual champion Serena Williams in the quarterfinals, 3–6, 5–7.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/18694240 Serena Williams beats Petra Kvitova in Wimbledon quarters BBC 2012-07-03 She then claimed her first title of the year at the Rogers Cup, defeating Li Na, 7–5, 2–6, 6–3, in the final.https://www.news.com.au/sport/tennis/petra-kvitova-wins-montreal-masters-with-victory-over-li-na/news-story/f1ba06143f7c83b3cf1c17878b0660b3 Petra Kvitova wins Montreal Masters with victory over Li Na AFP 2012-08-14 2012-10-05 2012-08-22 https://web.archive.org/web/20120822014021/http://www.news.com.au/sport/tennis/petra-kvitova-wins-montreal-masters-with-victory-over-li-na/story-fndkzym4-1226450055720 live She claimed the US Open Series top spot, after winning the New Haven Open at Yale, defeating Russian Maria Kirilenko, 7–6(11–9), 7–5.http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/kvitova-wins-wta-new-haven-050248639.html Kvitova wins WTA New Haven Eurosport 2012-08-26 At the US Open, she was upset by Marion Bartoli in the fourth round, 6–1, 2–6, 0–6.http://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/match_reports/2012-09-02/201209021346632895083.html Bartoli stuns Kvitova for first US Open quarterfinal US Open 2012-09-02 2012-10-05 https://web.archive.org/web/20120910231152/http://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/match_reports/2012-09-02/201209021346632895083.html 2012-09-10 dead thumb|120px|left|Sara Errani reached the final of the French Open and won four titles Sara Errani is having a breakthrough season. She reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinals at the Australian Open, losing to Petra Kvitová, 4–6, 4–6.http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/news/articles/2012-01-25/201201251327457231781.html Kvitova too good for brave Errani effort Australian Open 2012-01-25 She then won her first title of the year at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel, defeating Flavia Pennetta, 5–7, 7–6(7–2), 6–0.http://www.tennispanorama.com/archives/23288 https://archive.today/20130105031417/http://www.tennispanorama.com/archives/23288 dead 2013-01-05 Ferrer and Errani Win Acapulco Titles Tennis Panorama 2012-03-03 She then claimed the Barcelona Ladies Open over Dominika Cibulková, 6–2, 6–2.http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/errani-wins-barcelona-open-123647368.html Errani wins Barcelona Open Eurosport 2012-04-15 At the Budapest Grand Prix, the Italian claimed her third title of the year over Elena Vesnina, 7–5, 6–4.http://www.sportsnet.ca/tennis/2012/05/05/budapest_grand_prix_saturday_final_sara_errani_wins/ ERRANI WINS BUDAPEST GP FOR 3RD TITLE OF YEAR Associated Press 2012-05-05 2012-10-05 2012-05-10 https://web.archive.org/web/20120510171157/http://www.sportsnet.ca/tennis/2012/05/05/budapest_grand_prix_saturday_final_sara_errani_wins/ dead At the French Open, Errani made a surprising run, reaching the final and earning her first top-10 wins over no. 10 Angelique Kerber, 6–3, 7–6,(7–2) and no. 6 Samantha Stosur, 7–5, 1–6, 6–3, before losing to Maria Sharapova, 3–6, 2–6, in the final. The result broke her into the top 10.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/18358103 Errani stuns Stosur to make final BBC Sport At Wimbledon, Errani was on the receiving end of the first golden set in a Grand Slam, when she lost to Yaroslava Shvedova, 0–6, 4–6, in the third round.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/wimbledon/9367463/Wimbledon-2012-Yaroslava-Shvedova-claims-golden-set-as-Sara-Errani-makes-unwanted-history.html Wimbledon 2012: Yaroslava Shvedova claims 'golden set' as Sara Errani makes unwanted history Telegraph 2012-06-30 However, she bounced back by winning her fourth title at the Internazionali Femminili di Palermo over Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová 6–1, 6–3.http://www.wtatennis.com/news/20120715/errani-wins-palermo-breaks-italian-record_2256076_2850246 Errani Wins Palermo, Breaks Italian Record WTA 2012-07-15 At the US Open, she reached her second Grand Slam semifinal, where she lost to Serena Williams, 1–6, 2–6.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/19527653 Serena to meet Azarenka in final BBC Sportthumb|150px|right|Li Na won her first title of the year in Cincinnati. On October 5, after reaching the semifinals of the China Open, Li Na became the last qualifier.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2940238,00.html Li Secures Last Istanbul Spot WTA Championships 2012-10-05 Li Na's season was rather lackluster. She started the year by reaching the final of the Apia International Sydney (where she was the defending champion), losing to Victoria Azarenka in the final, 2–6, 6–1, 3–6. At the Australian Open, she lost to Kim Clijsters in the fourth round, 6–4, 6–7(6–8), 4–6, after squandering four consecutive match points when ahead 6–2 in the second-set tiebreak.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/australianopen/9031096/Australian-Open-2012-Li-Na-left-in-tears-as-she-reflects-on-her-fourth-round-defeat-to-Kim-Clijsters-in-Melbourne.html Australian Open 2012: Li Na left in tears as she reflects on her fourth round defeat to Kim Clijsters in Melbourne Telegraph 2012-01-22 She reached her second final of the year at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, losing to Maria Sharapova, 6–4, 4–6, 6–7(5–7), despite leading 4–0 in the second set. At the French Open as the defending champion, she was upset by Yaroslava Shvedova in the fourth round, 6–3, 2–6, 0–6.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/jun/04/french-open-2012-li-na French Open 2012: Li Na loses to world No142 Yaroslava Shvedova Guardian 2012-06-04 At Wimbledon, she fell to Sorana Cîrstea, 3–6, 4–6, in the second round.http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_sports/view/1210367/1/.html Tennis: Li Na's woes continue at Wimbledon AFP 2012-06-28 2012-10-05 2012-06-30 https://web.archive.org/web/20120630232957/http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_sports/view/1210367/1/.html dead She then reached her third final of the year at the Rogers Cup, losing to Petra Kvitová, 5–7, 6–2, 3–6. She won her first title of the year at the Western & Southern Open over Angelique Kerber, 1–6, 6–3, 6–1, placing her second in the US Open Series. At the US Open, she received a shock exit in the third round to Laura Robson, 4–6, 7–6(7–5), 2–6.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/aug/31/laura-robson-li-na-us-open Laura Robson beats No9 seed Li Na to reach fourth round at US Open Guardian 2012-08-31 The first alternate for the championships is Australian Samantha Stosur. Stosur reached 2 finals in the year, but failed to capture a title. She reached her first final of the year at the Qatar Total Open losing to top seed Victoria Azarenka 1–6, 2–6. She reached her second final at the Kremlin Cup losing to Caroline Wozniacki 2–6, 6–4, 5–7, despite leading 3–1 in the final set.http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/top-stories/Wozniacki-beats-Stosur-to-win-Kremlin-Cup-title/articleshow/16902642.cms Wozniacki beats Stosur to win Kremlin Cup title The Times of India AFP 2012-10-21 She reached the semifinals of the French Open losing to Sara Errani 5–7, 6–1, 3–6. As the defending champion, she fell in the quarterfinals of the US Open losing to Azarenka 1–6, 6–4, 6–7(5–7).https://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-09-05/stosur-goes-out-to-azarenka/4243368 Stosur loses thriller to Azarenka ABC News AAP 2012-09-05 The second alternate is Marion Bartoli, who is an alternate for the second straight year. She reached her first final at the Open GDF Suez losing to Angelique Kerber 6–7(3–7), 7–5, 3–6. She reached her second final of the year at the Mercury Insurance Open losing to Dominika Cibulková 1–6, 5–7.https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/8190139/dominika-cibulkova-beats-marion-bartoli-capture-carlsbad-title Dominika Cibulkova wins 2nd title Associated Press 2012-07-22 She reached the quarterfinals of the US Open losing to Maria Sharapova 6–3, 3–6, 4–6.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/sep/05/maria-sharapova-marion-bartoli-us-open Maria Sharapova screams past Marion Bartoli into US Open semi-finals Guardian 2012-09-05 Doubles #PlayersPointsTournDate Qualified1Sara Errani ITA Roberta Vinci ITA10,097156 September2Andrea Hlaváčková CZE Lucie Hradecká CZE7,3801410 September3Liezel Huber USA Lisa Raymond USA7,0361910 September4Maria Kirilenko RUS Nadia Petrova RUS5,3251220 October On September 6, Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci became the first doubles team to qualify for the championships. Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci had a breakthrough season as a team winning 8 titles. They won their first two titles of the year back-to-back at the Monterrey Open over Date-Krumm & Zhang 6–2, 7–6(8–6)http://blogs.bettor.com/Errani-Vinci-overpower-Date-Krumm-Zhang-to-lift-the-title-Whirlpool-Monterrey-Open-2012-a132292 ERRANI/VINCI OVERPOWER DATE-KRUMM/ZHANG TO LIFT THE TITLE – WHIRLPOOL MONTERREY OPEN 2012 Bettor 2012-09-27 https://archive.today/20130102051518/http://blogs.bettor.com/Errani-Vinci-overpower-Date-Krumm-Zhang-to-lift-the-title-Whirlpool-Monterrey-Open-2012-a132292 2013-01-02 dead and Abierto Mexicano Telcel over Domínguez Lino & Parra Santonja 6–2, 6–1.http://www.tennispanorama.com/archives/23288 https://archive.today/20130105031417/http://www.tennispanorama.com/archives/23288 dead 2013-01-05 Ferrer and Errani Win Acapulco Titles tennispanorama They won their third title at the Barcelona Ladies Open over Pennetta & Schiavone 6–0, 6–2.http://www.tennistonic.com/view_tennisnews?nid=771 https://archive.today/20130104211013/http://www.tennistonic.com/view_tennisnews?nid=771 dead 2013-01-04 Errani wins singles and doubles at the 2012 WTA Barcelona Open tennistonic They then won 4 titles in a row, this begun in the Mutua Madrid Open winning 6–1, 3–6, [10–4] and Internazionali BNL d'Italia 6–2, 7–5 both times over Makarova & Vesnina.http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120513/errani-vinci-conquer-madrid-break-top-10_2256567_2771431 Errani & Vinci Conquer Madrid, Break Top 10 WTA 2012-05-13 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20121103150730/http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120513/errani-vinci-conquer-madrid-break-top-10_2256567_2771431 2012-11-03 deadhttp://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120520/italians-conquer-rome-first-time-since-1985_2256567_2778071 Italians Conquer Rome, First Time Since 1985 WTA 2012-05-20 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20120625074406/http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120520/italians-conquer-rome-first-time-since-1985_2256567_2778071 2012-06-25 dead They then won their first slam titles at the Paris against Kirilenko & Petrova 4–6, 6–4, 6–2.http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120608/errani-vinci-capture-french-open-doubles_2256567_2806600 Errani & Vinci Capture French Open Doubles WTA 2012-06-08 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20120613181234/http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120608/errani-vinci-capture-french-open-doubles_2256567_2806600 2012-06-13 dead They continued their winning ways at the UNICEF Open defeating Kirilenko & Petrova 6–4, 3–6, [11–9].http://www.unicefopen.nl/en/news/news-overview/540-title-for-vinci-and-errani.html Title for Vinci and Errani Unicef 2012-06-24 2012-10-21 https://web.archive.org/web/20120825182648/http://www.unicefopen.nl/en/news/news-overview/540-title-for-vinci-and-errani.html 2012-08-25 dead They won their eight title and second slam at the US Open against Hlaváčková and Hradecká 6–4, 6–2.http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120909/errani-vinci-win-doubles-crown-in-nyc_2256567_2914620 Errani & Vinci Win Doubles Crown In NYC WTA 2012-09-09 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20121103200959/http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120909/errani-vinci-win-doubles-crown-in-nyc_2256567_2914620 2012-11-03 dead They also reached two other finals both losing to Russian pairings, at the Australian Open to Kuznetsova & Zvonareva 7–5, 4–6, 3–6https://www.espn.com/tennis/aus12/story/_/id/7509192/svetlana-kuznetsova-vera-zvonareva-win-australian-open-women-doubles Kuznetsova, Zvonareva take title Associated Press 2012-01-27 and the Sony Ericsson Open to Kirilenko & Petrova 6–7(0–7), 6–4, [4–10].http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120401/kirilenko-petrova-crowned-in-doubles_2256567_2709235 Kirilenko & Petrova Crowned In Doubles WTA 2012-04-01 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20120627003259/http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120401/kirilenko-petrova-crowned-in-doubles_2256567_2709235 2012-06-27 dead On September 10, two more teams qualified for the championships. They were Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká from Czech Republic and Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond from the United States. Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká had a solid season in 2012. They were able to reach 7 finals, winning 3 of them. Their first title came in ASB Classic over Görges & Pennetta 6–7(2–7), 6–2, [10–7].https://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120107/czech-duo-wins-first-wta-title-of-2012_2256567_2569217 https://archive.today/20121209091243/https://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120107/czech-duo-wins-first-wta-title-of-2012_2256567_2569217 dead 2012-12-09 Czech Duo Wins First WTA Title Of 2012 WTA 2012-01-09 They then won their second title at the Memphis International over Dushevina & Govortsova 6–3, 6–4. They did not reach a final until the grass season, however it came in with 5 straight finals. The first one in the Wimbledon losing to Serena & Venus 5–7, 4–6https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/tennis-busted-racquet/serena-venus-williams-win-wimbledon-doubles-championship-215015888--ten.html Serena and Venus Williams win Wimbledon doubles championship Yahoo 2012-07-07 They then won the silver medal at the Summer Olympics losing once again to Serena & Venus 4–6, 4–6https://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120805/williams-sisters-win-gold-rewrite-history_2256567_2872378 Williams Sisters Win Gold, Rewrite History WTA 2012-08-05 They then won their biggest title of the year at the Western & Southern Open defeating Srebotnik & Zheng 6–1, 6–3.http://www.cincytennis.com/news/silver_medalists_hlavackova_hradecka_win/ Silver Medalists Hlavackova, Hradecka Win Cincytennis The following week, they reach the final of the New Haven Open at Yale losing to Huber & Raymond 6–4, 0–6, [4–10].http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120825/huber-raymond-win-fifth-title-of-season_2256567_2900521 Huber & Raymond Win Fifth Title Of Season WTA 2012-08-25 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20120828093057/http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120825/huber-raymond-win-fifth-title-of-season_2256567_2900521 2012-08-28 dead They then reached their second slam final of the year at the US Open losing to Errani & Vinci 4–6, 2–6, their first loss to the team. Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond started early parts of the year strongly, winning 4 successive titles. They won the Open GDF Suez over Grönefeld & Martić 7–6(7–3), 6–1http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120212/liezel-lisa-ascend-career-titles-list_2256567_2609879 Liezel & Lisa Ascend Career Titles List WTA 2012-11-02 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20121128014238/http://www.wtatennis.com/doublesnews/20120212/liezel-lisa-ascend-career-titles-list_2256567_2609879 2012-11-28 dead and the Qatar Total Open over Kops-Jones & Spears 6–3, 6–1.http://blogs.bettor.com/Liezel-Huber-and-Lisa-Raymond-win-the-doubles-championship-title-Qatar-Total-Open-2012-a130549 LIEZEL HUBER AND LISA RAYMOND WIN THE DOUBLES CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE – QATAR TOTAL OPEN 2012 Bettor 2012-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20120224042030/http://blogs.bettor.com/Liezel-Huber-and-Lisa-Raymond-win-the-doubles-championship-title-Qatar-Total-Open-2012-a130549 2012-02-24 dead They then beat Mirza & Vesnina in the Dubai Tennis Championships 6–2, 6–1 and BNP Paribas Open 6–2, 6–3.http://www.dubaidutyfreetennischampionships.com/News/Tennis/2012/WTA-Tournament/Saturday-Huber-Raymond-Win-Doubles-Trophy.aspx HUBER-RAYMOND WIN DUBAI DOUBLES TROPHY Dubai Duty Free 2012-02-25https://www.bnpparibasopen.com/News/Tennis/2012/Tournament/WTA-Doubles-Huber-Raymond-Win-Title.aspx RED-HOT HUBER/RAYMOND WIN DESERT TITLE BNPParibasOpen 2012-03-07 They did not win any title until the New Haven Open at Yale over Hlaváčková & Hradecká 4–6, 6–0, [10–4]. At the Summer Olympics, they lost to Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova in the bronze medal match 4–6, 6–4, 6–1.http://www.tennisworldusa.org/Petrova-Kirilenko-win-bronze-medal-at-womens-doubles-event-of-Olympics-articolo5294.html Petrova/Kirilenko win bronze medal at women's doubles event of Olympics TennisWorldUSA 2012-08-05 They finished runner-up at three tournaments this year, at the Apia International Sydney losing to Peschke & Srebotnik 1–6, 6–4, [11–13],http://www.tennisworldusa.org/WTA-Sydney---Peschke-Srebotnik-save-matchpoint-to-win-title-articolo2996.html WTA Sydney – Peschke Srebotnik save matchpoint to win title TennisWorldUSA 2012-01-13 at the Aegon Classic to Babos & Hsieh 5–7, 7–6(7–2), [8–10],https://www.lta.org.uk/fans-major-events/LTA-summer-grass-court-events/AEGON-Classic/News/2012/Timea-Babos--Su-Wei-Hsieh-win-AEGON-Classic-doubles-title/ Timea Babos & Su-Wei Hsieh win Classic doubles title LTA 2012-06-17 and Aegon International to Llagostera Vives & Martínez Sánchez 6–4 RET. On October 20, the final spot went to the Russian pairing of Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova after defeating co-contenders Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears in the semifinals of the Kremlin Cuphttp://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2954847,00.html Kirilenko & Petrova Book Place In Istanbul WTA Championships 2012-10-20 Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova compiled a solid season. They won in their first final of the year at the Sony Ericsson Open defeating the Italian pairing of Errani and Vinci 7–6(7–0), 4–6, [10–4]. They reached their first slam final as a team at the French Open once again facing Errani and Vinci, but this time they lost 6–4, 4–6, 2–6. They once again faced Errani and Vinci for the third time in a final in the UNICEF Open, but once again fell short losing 4–6, 6–3, [9–11]. At the Olympics, the Russians claimed the bronze medals defeating Americans Huber and Raymond.http://www.sportsmole.co.uk/tennis/united-states/olympics/result/result-russians-overcome-americans-for-bronze_38482.html Nadia Petrova, Maria Kirilenko overcome Americans for women's doubles bronze Sportsmole 2012-08-05 2012-10-21 https://web.archive.org/web/20120807061139/http://www.sportsmole.co.uk/tennis/united-states/olympics/result/result-russians-overcome-americans-for-bronze_38482.html 2012-08-07 dead Petrova paired with Vania King at the Mercury Insurance Open and reached the final losing to Kops-Jones and Spears 2–6, 4–6.https://womenwhoserve.blogspot.com/2012/07/cibulkova-wins-in-carlsbad.html Cibulkova wins in Carlsbad Women Who Serve 2012-07-22 Petrova also reached another final, this time with Katarina Srebotnik at the Rogers Cup losing to Klaudia Jans-Ignacik and Mladenovic 5–7, 6–2, [7–10].http://www.rogerscup.com/women/english/currentNews.php?id=Jans_Ignacik_and_Mladenovic_win_the_doubles_title Jans-Ignacik and Mladenovic win the doubles title RogersCup 2012-08-12 2012-10-21 https://archive.today/20130201162509/http://www.rogerscup.com/women/english/currentNews.php?id=Jans_Ignacik_and_Mladenovic_win_the_doubles_title 2013-02-01 dead Groupings The 2012 edition of the year-end championships featured three current or former World number ones, five Grand Slam champions, two Grand Slam finalists. Two competitors made their debut at the championships. The competitors were divided into two groups representing the colors of the flag of Turkey. The Red group consisted of no. 1 seed Victoria Azarenka, no. 3 seed Serena Williams, no. 5 seed Angelique Kerber and no. 8 seed Li Na. The White Group was composed of no. 2 seed Maria Sharapova, no. 4 seed Agnieszka Radwańska, no. 6 seed Petra Kvitová and no. 7 seed Sara Errani. Samantha Stosur and Marion Bartoli served as alternates.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2955543,00.html Breaking Down The Istanbul Elite Eight WTA 2012-10-21 In the red group, their respective records in their group, World no. 1 Victoria Azarenka was 7–14, Serena Williams was 16–3, Angelique Kerber was 2–8 and Li Na was 10–10. Leading the group Azarenka, has a poor record against Williams being 1–10 lifetime against her and having lost their last eight encounters, 4 times in 2012. Most recently they met in the finals of the 2012 US Open with Williams winning 6–2, 2–6, 7–5. Against Kerber, she has a 2–0 record winning both encounters in 2012, the last in the quarterfinals of the 2012 London Olympics 6–4, 7–5. Against Li, their head-to-head is tied at 4–4 but Azarenka has won their last three encounters, 2 coming in 2012, last meeting a 3–6, 6–3, 6–3 win in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Mutua Madrid Open. Williams on the other hand, is tied at 1–1 head-to-head against Kerber losing their only encounter of 2012 at the 2012 Western & Southern Open 6–4, 6–4. Against Li, she is 5–1 lifetime having won their last four encounters, the last encounter coming at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships 7–5, 6–3. Kerber and Li, the head-to-head is 5–1 in favor of Li who has won their last two encounters. They met 3 times in 2012, most recently in the finals of the 2012 Western & Southern Open with Li winning 1–6, 6–3, 6–1. In the white group, in their head-to-heads with players within their group, Maria Sharapova was 12–4, Agnieszka Radwańska was 7–11, Petra Kvitová was 8–4, and Sara Errani was 1–8. Like Williams, Sharapova has a good record against each member of her group. Against Radwańska, she is 7–2 lifetime however lost their only encounter of 2012 in the finals of the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open 7–5, 6–4. Against Kvitová, Sharapova leads their head-to-head 4–2, winning their last three encounters most recently in the semifinals of the French Open 6–3, 6–3. Against Errani, Sharapova leads 1–0 winning their only matchup in the finals of the French Open 6–3, 6–2. Radwańska, on the other hand has a mixed record against Kvitová and Errani. She trails Kvitová 0–3, with their last encounter coming at last year's Championships 7–6(4), 6–3 in a round robin matchup. However, against Errani, Radwańska leads their head-to-head 5–1 winning their last four encounters, most recently in the second round of the 2012 Mutua Madrid Open 6–0, 6–1. In the match-up between Kvitová and Errani, the Czech owns a 3–0 record against Errani with all three meeting coming in straight sets all in 2012 most recently at the New Haven Open at Yale with a 6–1, 6–3 scoreline. The four doubles teams started the semifinals without group play. Player head-to-head Below are the head-to-head records as they approached the tournament.http://www.wtachampionships.com/SEWTATour-Archive/Archive/TournamentStats/2012/808_h2h.pdf 2012 CHAMPIONSHIPS PARTICIPANTS – HEAD-TO-HEAD BREAKDOWN WTA Overall YTD Azarenka BLR Victoria Azarenka Sharapova RUS Maria Sharapova Williams USA Serena Williams Radwańska POL Agnieszka Radwańska Kerber GER Angelique Kerber Kvitová CZE Petra Kvitová Errani ITA Sara Errani Li CHN Li Na 7–4 1–10 11–3 2–0 2–4 4–1 4–4 31–26 63–8 4–7 2–9 7–2 3–1 4–2 1–0 8–4 29–25 56–10 10–1 9–2 3–0 1–1 3–0 4–0 5–1 35–5 53–4 3–11 2–7 0–3 4–2 0–3 5–1 3–5 17–32 57–17 0–2 1–3 1–1 2–4 2–1 1–2 1–5 8–18 60–19 4–2 2–4 0–3 3–0 1–2 3–0 2–2 15–13 45–15 1–4 0–1 0–4 1–5 2–1 0–3 0–5 4–23 54–20 4–4 4–8 1–5 5–3 5–1 2–2 5–0 26–23 41–15 Day-by-day summaries Day 1 The action in this year's Tour Championships began with the White Group with Wimbledon finalist Agnieszka Radwańska and 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitová. The Czech entered the match with a 25-match winning streak on indoor courts with her last defeat coming in Moscow in 2010. Radwańska never having beaten Kvitová before raced out to an early 3–0 lead only to see Kvitová even things out at 3–3. Radwańska however regrouped to win the next three games to take the first set 6–3. Kvitová dropped her first two service games of the second, was able to break back once, but she was unable to threaten the steadier Radwańska who closed out the match with a 6–3, 6–2 scoreline.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2957476,00.html Radwanska Impresses In Istanbul Opener WTA 2012-10-23 They were followed by Wimbledon, US Open and Olympic champion Serena Williams and Wimbledon semifinalist and first time qualifier Angelique Kerber. Similar to the first match Williams raced out to an early 3–0 lead only to see Kerber even things out at 3–3. However four games later Williams was able to break Kerber to win the first set 6–4. The first three games went on serve until Williams was able to break for a 3–1 lead. She held then broke Kerber again, serving out the match 6–4, 6–1.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2957663,00.html Williams Makes Winning Start In Istanbul WTA 2012-10-23 The final match for the day featured French Open champion Maria Sharapova and French Open finalist Sara Errani. It was a rematch of the 2012 French Open finals. They went on serve until Errani failed to convert either break point at 15–40 on the Sharapova serve. The Russian then broke serve at the eight game and closed it out 6–3. Sharapova then carried on into the second set winning it 6–2. MatchesGroupWinnerLoserScoreWhite GroupPOL Agnieszka Radwańska [4]CZE Petra Kvitová [6]6–3, 6–2Red GroupUSA Serena Williams [3]GER Angelique Kerber [5]6–4, 6–1White GroupRUS Maria Sharapova [2]ITA Sara Errani [7]6–3, 6–2 Day 2 The second day began with the Red Group with Wimbledon, US Open and Olympic champion Serena Williams and 2011 French Open champion Li Na. The match began with Williams breaking Li's serve to take an early 1–0 lead. However Li was quick to strike back reeling off four games to take a 4–1 lead only to see Williams comeback to take four straight games herself to take a 5–4 lead to serve for the set. Li was able to break at love for 5–5 but was broken right back. Williams again served for the set but was broken again at love to send the set into a tie-breaker. Williams won it comfortably 7–2 to take a one set lead. The second began in similar fashion with Li breaking for a 1–0 lead only to see Williams again reel off four games to take a 4–1 lead. The rest of the set went on serve until Williams closed out the match 7–6(7–2), 6–3.https://sports.yahoo.com/news/serena-williams-beats-li-na-185126416--ten.html Serena Williams beats Li Na at WTA Championships Associated Press 2012-10-24 2017-01-14 2012-11-11 https://web.archive.org/web/20121111183424/http://sports.yahoo.com/news/serena-williams-beats-li-na-185126416--ten.html dead They were followed by World No. 1 and Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka and Angelique Kerber. Kerber raced out to an early 3–1 lead. Azarenka however was able to level the match at 4–4. The set went on serve and into a near-historic tie-break, where Kerber saved five set points – four with huge forehands – to claim it, 13–11. It was the equal-longest tie-break in the history of the tournament and the first time Kerber had taken a set off Azarenka in their two prior meetings. The second set began with Azarenka building a 4–2 lead only to see Kerber take three straight games to lead 5–4. Serving to stay in the match Azarenka saved 2 match points with some ferocious ball striking to even the set at 5–5. The set again went to a tie-break which Azarenka won 7–2. Both players went toe to toe in the final set until Azarenka was able to break for 5–3 to serve for the match. Kerber was able to break right back but was unable to hold serve while serving to stay in the match, with Azarenka closing out the 3 hour, 6 minute contest 6–7(9–11), 7–6(7–2), 6–4.http://www.stevegtennis.com/2012/10/azarenka-overcomes-kerber-at-the-wta-championships-2012/ Azarenka overcomes Kerber at the WTA Championships 2012 Steve G 2012-10-24 The final match for the day featured Maria Sharapova and Agnieszka Radwańska. It was a rematch of the Sony Ericsson Open finals. The match began with eleven straight holds of serve until Radwańska was able to break Sharapova to take a one set lead 7–5. Sharapova broke Radwańska in the beginning of the first set but Radwańska broke back immediately, Radwańska then led 4–2 with a break, Sharapova then took 3 games in a row but got broken when serving for the set at 5–4. Sharapova then took the next two games to take it to a final set. At the third set both held serve until the fifth and sixth games where both traded breaks of serve. Sharapove then broke at the eleventh game of the set and served it out to win 5–7, 7–5, 7–5.http://www.stevegtennis.com/2012/10/sharapova-battles-to-defeat-radwanska-at-the-wta-championships/ Sharapova beats Radwanska in a marathon match Steve G 2012-10-24 MatchesGroupWinnerLoserScoreRed GroupUSA Serena Williams [3]CHN Li Na [8]7–6(7–2), 6–3Red GroupBLR Victoria Azarenka [1]GER Angelique Kerber [5]6–7(11–13), 7–6(7–2), 6–4White GroupRUS Maria Sharapova [2]POL Agnieszka Radwańska [4]5–7, 7–5, 7–5 Day 3 The day began with the Red Group with Li Na and Angelique Kerber. Prior to the match Li lead their head-to-head 5–1, and both are looking for their first win in the event. Kerber after an amazing display against Azarenka in a 3-hour loss started well and led 4–2, however Li came back and won the first set 6–4 after a doubles fault from the German. Li then closed it out in the second set winning it 6–3.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2960038,00.html Li Keeps Final Four Hopes Alive WTA 2012-10-25 They were followed by Victoria Azarenka and Serena Williams in a rematch of the 2012 US Open finals. The match began with seven straight holds of serve until Williams was able to break for a 5–3 lead awith a chance to serve out the set. Azarenka was able to break straight back for 4–5 but was unable to hold serve, double-faulting to give away the set one 6–4. Azarenka began the second by reeling of three straight games for a 3–0 lead breaking Williams twice along the way. However she was unable to hold on as Williams won four straight games herself to take a 4–3 lead. Azarenka was able to hold for 4–4. Williams held for 5–4 with Azarenka now having to serve to stay in the match. She, however was not able to hold serve, double-faulting on match point. Williams have now improved her record against Azarenka to 11–1 and advancing into semifinals as the Red Group's top player with a 3–0 match win record and without the loss of a set. Azarenka will now have to defeat Li Na to advance to the semifinals and secure the year end No.1 or Maria Sharapova will have a chance to end the year at No.1 by winning the title.http://www.wtachampionships.com/page/LatestNews/Read/0,,12910~2960178,00.html In-Form Williams Upends Azarenka WTA 2012-10-25 The final match for the day featured Sara Errani and 2011 US Open champion Samantha Stosur who entered the event as an alternate due to the withdrawal of defending champion Petra Kvitová. Errani won the match 6–3, 2–6, 6–0 with a doubles fault from Stosur. Stosur ended with 26 more winners but also 24 more unforced errors in an erratic display.https://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-26/stosur-suffers-early-exit-for-wta-finals/4335104 Stosur suffers early exit from WTA finals ABC 2012-10-26 MatchesGroupWinnerLoserScoreRed GroupCHN Li Na [8]GER Angelique Kerber [5]6–4, 6–3Red Group USA Serena Williams [3]BLR Victoria Azarenka [1]6–4, 6–4White GroupITA Sara Errani [7]AUS Samantha Stosur [9]6–3, 2–6, 6–0 Day 4 MatchesGroupWinnerLoserScoreWhite GroupRUS Maria Sharapova [2]AUS Samantha Stosur [9]6–0, 6–3White GroupPOL Agnieszka Radwańska [4]ITA Sara Errani [7]6–7(6–8), 7–5, 6–4Red GroupBLR Victoria Azarenka [1]CHN Li Na [8]7–6(7–4), 6–3 Day 5 MatchesGroupWinnerLoserScoreDoubles – SemifinalsCZE Andrea Hlaváčková [2] CZE Lucie Hradecká [2]USA Liezel Huber [3]USA Lisa Raymond [3]7–6(8–6), 6–1Singles – SemifinalsUSA Serena Williams [3]POL Agnieszka Radwańska [4]6–2, 6–1Singles – SemifinalsRUS Maria Sharapova [2]BLR Victoria Azarenka [1]6–4, 6–2Doubles – SemifinalsRUS Maria Kirilenko [4]RUS Nadia Petrova [4]ITA Sara Errani [1]ITA Roberta Vinci [1]1–6, 6–3, [10–4] Day 6 MatchesGroupWinnerLoserScoreDoubles – FinalsRUS Maria Kirilenko [4]RUS Nadia Petrova [4]CZE Andrea Hlaváčková [2] CZE Lucie Hradecká [2] 6–1, 6–4Singles – FinalsUSA Serena Williams [3]RUS Maria Sharapova [2]6–4, 6–3 Points breakdown Singles Rank Athlete Grand Slam tournament Premier Mandatory Best Premier 5 Best other Total points Tourn AUS FRO WIM USO IW MIA MAD BEI12123456 1 BLR Victoria Azarenka W2,000 R16280SF900F1,400 W1,000 QF250 F700 W1,000W900QF225W470B340F320W280R16125A010,19017(16) 2 RUS Maria Sharapova F1,400 W2,000R16280SF900 F700 F700 QF250 F700W900QF225W470S470QF120A0A0A09,11516(13) 3 USA Serena Williams R16280 R1285W2,000W2,000 A0 QF250 W1,000 A0SF395QF225G685W470W470QF1207,90014(12) 4 POL Agnieszka Radwańska QF500 R32160F1,400R16280 QF250 W1,000 SF450 QF250F620SF395W470W470QF225QF225SF200SF2007,09521 5 GER Angelique Kerber R32160 QF500SF900R16280 SF450 R645 R16140 QF250F620SF395W470SF395F320W280QF175SF1305,47020 6 CZE Petra Kvitová SF900 SF900QF500R16280 R3280 R645 R3280 R3280W900SF395W470QF225SF200SF200A0A05,21519(17) 7 ITA Sara Errani QF500 F1,400R32160SF900 R1285 R645 R3280 R645QF225R16125W280W280W280W280SF200SF1304,85522 8 CHN Li Na R16280 R16280R64100R32160 QF250 QF250 QF250 SF450W900F620F620F320R16125QF120R321A04,72617(16) 9 AUS Samantha Stosur R1285 SF900R64100QF500 R3280 R16140 QF250 R325F620SF395F320QF225SF200SF130R16125R161254,1202110 FRA Marion Bartoli R32160 R64100R64100QF500 QF250 SF450 R645 SF450SF395R16125F320F320SF200R16125QF120QF1203,74024 See also WTA ranking Points 2012 ATP World Tour Finals 2012 WTA Tournament of Champions References 3 External links 2012 WTA Tour Championships http://www.wtachampionships.com Category:2012 WTA Tour 2012 WTA Tour Championships 2012 WTA Tour Championships 2012 WTA Tour Championships Category:Tennis tournaments in Turkey Category:Sport in Bakırköy