Sofia, "Tour of Champions" - La lista definitiva delle otto ammesse, fra le quali la nostra Roberta Vinci

La WTA ha confermato la lista definitiva delle otto partecipanti al "masterino" di Sofia, fra le quali la nostra Roberta Vinci - Inizio martedì 30 ottobre

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) today announced the eight players who will contest the Qatar Airways Tournament of Champions Sofia, the annual seasonending championships for the WTA’s International tournaments, taking place in Bulgaria’s capital city from October 30 – November 4, 2012. With total prize money of $750,000, the event is to be played on an indoor hardcourt at Sofia’s Arena Armeec.

Caroline Wozniacki, Nadia Petrova, Roberta Vinci, Hsieh Su-Wei, Zheng Jie and Daniela Hantuchova are the six highest-ranked International Series tournament winners (excluding players who qualified for the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships, as well as the injured Kaia Kanepi and Venus Williams, who won the title at Luxembourg last week but has longstanding commitments in South Africa), thereby qualifying for the 2012 Tournament of Champions. Russia’s Maria Kirilenko and Bulgarian star Tsvetana Pironkova have been awarded wildcards, rounding out the Sofia field [...]

 

Qatar Airways Tournament of Champions Sofia – 2012 Participants   

 

Caroline Wozniacki, Denmark, No.11 - Caroline Wozniacki reached three finals in 2012, winning titles at the KDB Korean Open in Seoul,putting her in contention for Sofia, and capping the main playing season with victory just last week atthe Premier level Kremlin Cup in Moscow – the 20th WTA singles title of her career. Among otherhighlights, Wozniacki posted her first ever win over Serena Williams en route to the semifinals at the Sony Open Tennis in Miami. Still only 22 years of age, 2009 US Open runner-up Wozniacki spent 67 weeks at No.1 on the rankings, ending both the 2010 and 2011 seasons in the top spot. Wozniacki is making her Tournament of Champions debut.

 

Nadia Petrova, Russia, No.13 - Former world No.3 Nadia Petrova, 30, has enjoyed a resurgence in 2012. In June she won the International title on grass at ‘s-Hertogenbosch, and in October she beat three Top 10 players to capture the biggest singles title of her career at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, taking her tally to 12 titles. Across her career, Petrova has reached at least the quarterfinals at all four Grand Slam

events, including two semis at Roland Garros. In doubles this year she has enjoyed much success 

with Kirilenko, winning at Miami, reaching the final at Roland Garros and claiming the Olympic

bronze medal; the team qualified for the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships in Istanbul in fourth

place. Petrova is making her second appearance at the Tournament of Champions, having reached the

semis in Bali last year.

Maria Kirilenko, Russia, No.15 - In addition to her standout doubles results with Petrova, 25-year-old Maria Kirilenko has enjoyed acareer season in 2012. The owner of five WTA singles titles, she was runner-up at Pattaya City inFebruary (l. Hantuchova) and at New Haven (l. Kvitova) in August, after which she moved to newcareer high ranking of No.12. A semifinalist in singles at the Olympics (l. Azarenka in bronze medal play-off), Kirilenko also reached her second Grand Slam quarterfinal at Wimbledon. Having received a wildcard, she is making her Tournament of Champions debut.

 

Roberta Vinci, Italy, No.16 - After a 2011 season that saw her break into the Top 20 for the first time, Vinci has done even better in 2012, cracking the Top 15 for the first time. Her best moments this year came at the end of the summer during a nine-match winning streak, winning her seventh WTA title at Dallas and reaching her firstGrand Slam quarterfinal at the US Open. She also reached two semifinals (Acapulco and Estoril) andfour more quarterfinals (Paris [Indoors], Birmingham, 's-Hertogenbosch and Montréal) and has beenpart of the world’s top doubles team this year, alongside fellow Italian and best friend Sara Errani. The

duo won Roland Garros and the US Open among eight titles, and Vinci recently ascended to the No.1

ranking. The 29-year-old played the Tournament of Champions in Bali last year, falling to eventual

champion Ana Ivanovic in the first round.

 

Hsieh Su-Wei, Taiwan, No.25 -Earlier in her career Hsieh Su-Wei was best known for her doubles results, as she worked her way tonine titles and into the Top 10. But in 2012 the 26-year-old has made a breakthrough in singles,winning International titles at Kuala Lumpur and Guangzhou as well as the semifinals at Pattaya City, where she fell to eventual champion Hantuchova. Boosted further by strong results on the ITF Circuit, Hsieh arrives in Sofia on a new career high ranking of No.25 (this time last year she was No.182). Hsieh is making her Tournament of Champions debut.

 

Zheng Jie, China, No.29 - A trailblazer for Chinese tennis, Zheng Jie began the 2012 season strongly with a trophy run atAuckland, her fourth WTA singles title. This year she also reached the last 16 at the Australian Open andthe semifinals on grass at Birmingham. Indeed, it was on the lawns of Wimbledon in 2008 that Zhengbecame China’s first Grand Slam semifinalist, a feat she matched by reaching the final four at the 2010 Australian Open. In 2006, the doubles team of Zheng and Yan Zi captured China’s first Grand Slam titles of any kind, at the Australian Open and Wimbledon. Now 29, former world No.15 Zheng is making herdebut at the Tournament of Champions.

 

Daniela Hantuchova, Slovakia, No.32 -Former world No.5 Daniela Hantuchova began the 2012 season strongly, reaching the Premier final atBrisbane, the quarterfinals at Sydney and Dubai, and successfully defending her crown at the PTTPattaya Open – the fifth WTA singles title of her career. A foot injury interrupted the 29-year-old’sseason, but she arrives in Sofia after a semifinal run at Luxembourg. A two-time champion at IndianWells and one of just six women all-time to complete a career Grand Slam in mixed doubles,Hantuchova is playing the Tournament of Champions for the third time, after two appearances in Bali.

 

Tsvetana Pironkova, Bulgaria, No.44 -Tsvetana Pironkova, who became the first Bulgarian to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon in 2010,and made the quarters at the All England Club in 2011, will be bidding for her first WTA title in Sofia.This year the 25-year-old has consolidated her place in the Top 50 by reaching three quarterfinals,also posting a strong run to the round of 16 at the US Open – her best result at a Grand Slam awayfrom Wimbledon’s lawns.

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(credits: Sofia.tennis.bg)