TEB BNP PARIBAS WTA CHAMPIONSHIPS – ISTANBUL 2011

Written by: Staff on 30th October 2011

TEB BNP PARIBAS WTA CHAMPIONSHIPS - ISTANBUL 2011

Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic holds up the trophy after she won the final match against Victoria Azarenka of Belarus at the WTA Championships tennis tournament in Istanbul, Turkey on 30 October 2011. EPA/TOLGA BOZOGLU |

Istanbul, Turkey

October 25-30, 2011

$4,900,000/SEC

Hard/Indoors

Results – Sunday, October 30, 2011

Singles – Final

(3) Petra Kvitova (CZE) d. (4) (BLR) 75 46 63

Doubles – Final

(2) Huber/Raymond (USA/USA) d. (1) Peschke/Srebotnik (CZE/SLO) 64 64

Final Facts

– 21-year-old Kvitova becomes the third player to win the WTA Championships on debut, after Serena Williams in 2001 and Maria Sharapova in 2004.

– Kvitova is the third Czech to triumph at the season finale. Jana Novotna was victorious in 1997, while Martina Navratilova won the event in 1978-79, prior to gaining US citizenship.

– Her victory in Istanbul represents Kvitova’s sixth singles title of the year, after Brisbane, Paris [Indoors], Madrid, Wimbledon and Linz. She ends the season tied with world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki atop the 2011 singles title leaderboard.

– Kvitova now has seven WTA singles titles to her name (she is 7-2 in finals).

– Having finished 2010 ranked No.34, Kvitova is projected to rise to No.2 on Monday’s rankings, a new career high. Among Czech women, only Navratilova and Novotna have attained this ranking, Navratilova of course going all the way to No.1.

– Including her five wins in Istanbul, Kvitova concludes 2011 with a perfect 19-0 record in hard/indoor matches.

– By virtue of winning all three of her round robin matches in Istanbul, as well as her semi and final, the Czech lefty takes home prize money of $1,750,000.

– Kvitova has now beaten Azarenka four times in a row, and leads their head-to-head series 4-2.

– 22-year-old Azarenka, who was gunning for her fourth title of the year, is now 8-8 in WTA singles finals.

– After falling at the round robin stage in 2009-10, Azarenka this week became the first Belarusian to reach the singles final of the WTA Championships. Natasha Zvereva qualified on six occasions, reaching the semis in 1995.

– On this week’s rankings Azarenka is projected to return to her previous career-high of No.3.

– Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond win their first WTA Championships title together. Huber also won the event in 2007-08 and was runner-up in 2009 (all w/Cara Black), while Raymond won all three of her previous finals (2001 w/Rennae Stubbs, 2005-06 w/Samantha Stosur). Raymond becomes the second player to win the event with three different partners (Davenport won with Mary Joe Fernandez, Novotna and Zvereva in the 1990s).

– This week Huber was making her fifth appearance at the season-ending championships; Raymond boasts 11 qualifications.

– Huber now owns 48 career doubles titles, including five majors; Raymond has 74 doubles titles to her name, including six majors. Having first teamed up in April this year, they went title-less in their first 11 outings, but have now won four titles together. Before winning in Istanbul they captured Toronto, the US Open and Tokyo in the second half of 2011.

– Huber returned to No.1 in the WTA doubles rankings after the US Open; she is currently in her 154th week at the top spot and has secured the year-end doubles No.1 ranking for the fourth time. On January 2, 2012, she will move past Black for weeks at No.1, with 164, and into second place on the all-time list (behind Navratilova, 237).

– Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik finish runners-up at the season finale for the second year in a row. Last year in Doha – their first qualification as a team – they were beaten in the final by Gisela Dulko and Flavia Pennetta.

– Peschke and Srebotnik nonetheless finish 2011 as the top-ranked team in the world, having won six doubles titles this year, and reached four other finals.

– Tournament attendance figures: A total of 70,824 fans packed the Sinan Erdem Dome across the six days of the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships. Average daily attendance was 11,804, peaking at 13,676 on finals day (Sunday). Istanbul’s tenure as host runs for another two years, 2012-13.

Final Quotes

Petra Kvitova, 2011 TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships singles champion:

“When I started this season I didn’t have any goals. I just wanted to improve my game. But first Wimbledon, and now the year-end Championships and getting to No.2 in the world, it’s just a dream. We both played some of our best here in Istanbul today – it was a final, so why not!”

Victoria Azarenka, 2011 TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships singles runner-up:

“I gave it my all today. The crowd kept me fighting all the way through – they were amazing today and all week, I have no words to describe it. It’s hard to lose, but I’m glad I lost to such a champion who deserved to win. Petra was amazing today. She really did a great job.”

Liezel Huber, 2011 TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships doubles champion:

“The first part of the season is long forgotten. We’ve worked very hard and have learned a lot about our own character. I think the chemistry now is that we really want to play together, and we’ll do anything to make it work. This is a fantastic moment for us right now.”

Lisa Raymond, 2011 TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships doubles champion:

“Istanbul is an absolutely beautiful city. But I think the highlight was the fact that we were able to pack this place for every session, singles and doubles. The crowds have been phenomenal… I have never played a doubles match in front of that many people – you know, even at a Slam, even in a final. That was awesome. I think that they love their tennis here. They’re proving that.”

Kveta Peschke, 2011 TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships doubles runner-up:

“We had a wonderful, wonderful week. I really do appreciate playing with Kata, a great friend and a wonderful tennis player on my side.”

Katarina Srebotnik, 2011 TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships doubles runner-up:

“It was an unbelievable week. The fans are incredible. I want to thank them for supporting doubles so much. It’s a pleasure to play here.”