Ekaterina Alexandrova

Ekaterina Yevgenyevna Alexandrova (Russian: Екатерина Евгеньевна Александрова; born 15 November 1994) is a Russian professional tennis player.[1] She has won one WTA singles title, three WTA 125K series titles and seven singles titles on the ITF Circuit.[2] On 17 February 2020, she reached her best singles ranking of No. 25.[3]

Ekaterina Alexandrova
Екатерина Александрова
Alexandrova at the 2019 Wimbledon Championships
Full nameEkaterina Yevgenyevna Alexandrova
Country (sports) Russia
ResidencePrague, Czech Republic
Born (1994-11-15) 15 November 1994
Chelyabinsk, Russia
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Turned pro2011
PlaysRight-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize moneyUS$2,352,603
Singles
Career record291–190 (60.5%)
Career titles1
Highest rankingNo. 25 (17 February 2020)
Current rankingNo. 33 (23 November 2020)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open3R (2020)
French Open3R (2019, 2020)
Wimbledon2R (2016)
US Open2R (2017, 2019, 2020)
Doubles
Career record23–26 (46.9%)
Career titles1
Highest rankingNo. 89 (3 February 2020)
Current rankingNo. 101 (23 November 2020)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open2R (2018)
French Open2R (2020)
US Open2R (2019)
Last updated on: 23 November 2020.

Tennis career

2016: WTA debut, Grand Slam debut, first WTA 125k title

Despite starting the year as the World No.291, Alexandrova made a flying start to the season as she clinched her fifth ITF title at the 10k event in Trnava.

Alexandrova then made her WTA Tour singles debut at the 2016 Katowice Open, where she qualified for the main draw after surviving the qualifying rounds as an unseeded player. In her first WTA main draw match, she defeated World No.115 Klára Koukalová[4] before falling to eventual finalist Camila Giorgi in three sets.

In the first grass-court tournament of her career, she qualified for a main draw berth at a Grand Slam for the first time in her career at the Wimbledon Championships. She was only able to enter the qualifying draw after 10 players ahead of her withdrew and it was also her first Grand Slam appearance,[5] prevailing 14-12 and 13-11 against Stephanie Vogt and Harriet Dart respectively to reach the main draw. Overall, she played 108 games in just three matches.[6] In the first round, she defeated former World No.1 Ana Ivanovic in straight sets, causing one of the biggest upsets in the tournament.[7]

Immediately after her Wimbledon run, Alexandrova returned onto clay and reached the final of the ITS Cup, an ITF 50k event, losing to compatriot and top seed Elizaveta Kulichkova in three sets.[8] At the Coupe Banque Nationale, she claimed the biggest win of her career against World No.59 Julia Görges in the first round.[9]

Entering the Open de Limoges, a WTA 125k event, as the World No.133, Alexandrova caused a huge shock by ending the season with the biggest title of her career. En route, she defeated three big local favourites: Fourth-seeded Pauline Parmentier in the second round, second-seeded Alizé Cornet in the semifinals[10] and top-seeded World No.24 Caroline Garcia in the final.[11]

2017: Top 100 debut

In the 2017 season, Alexandrova continued to be a constant presence on the WTA Tour but not achieving any major success. She received direct entry into the Australian Open main draw for the first time in her career, but lost to compatriot and 30th seed Ekaterina Makarova in the first round.[12]

She made her Top 100 debut with consecutive title runs at ITF 60k events Pingshan Open and Engie Open de Seine-et-Marne.[13] Making her first French Open main draw appearance, she beat Kateřina Siniaková before falling short of eventual semifinalist and World No.2 Karolína Plíšková in three sets.[14] At the Wimbledon Championships, Alexandrova lost to eventual champion Garbiñe Muguruza in the first round.[15]

Alexandrova qualified for a Premier 5 tournament for the first time in her career at the Rogers Cup, but lost to World No.6 and eventual finalist Caroline Wozniacki in the second round.[16] At the Open de Limoges, she lost in the quarterfinals to Antonia Lottner as the defending champion.

2018: Maiden WTA final

Alexandrova enjoyed a breakthrough season on the WTA Tour in the year.

At the Australian Open, she was beaten by fellow hard-hitting Madison Keys in the second round, winning just one game in the process.[17]

After some mediocre results, Alexandrova fell out of the Top 100. However, she managed to make the semifinals of ITF 100k events, the Empire Slovak Open and Ilkley Trophy. Alongside a run to the final of the ITF 100k event, the Hungarian Pro Circuit Ladies Open, she returned to the Top 100 after a brief period.

She made her first WTA quarterfinal at the Korea Open, clinching her first Top 10 victory over World No.10 Jeļena Ostapenko in straight sets.[18] Alexandrova made an astonishing run at another international tournament, now in Linz, Austria, reaching the final of a WTA tournament for the first time. Sailing through the qualifying rounds with the loss of just four games, Alexandrova beat compatriot Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets to reach her first WTA semifinal.[19] There, she recovered from a bagel to beat former Top 10 player Andrea Petkovic and booked her spot in the final.[20] However, she was defeated by Camila Giorgi in straight sets, but nonetheless made her return to the Top 100 with her fantastic run after a brief spell outside the Top 100.[21]

She ended the season by tradition at the Open de Limoges, winning the title for the second time in her career after beating Evgeniya Rodina in straight sets.[22] This victory solidified her place in the Top 100, finding herself at the 73rd spot of the rankings after the tournament.[23]

2019: Russian No. 1

In 2019, Alexandrova continued to earn more success on the WTA Tour.

She began her season at the Shenzhen Open, where she lost in the second round to eventual champion and top seed Aryna Sabalenka.[24] Alexandrova also qualified for the main draw at the Sydney International, but failed to serve out the match against Top 10 player Sloane Stephens in the first round.

Playing in a WTA main draw at home for the first time in her career, Alexandrova successfully prevailed in the qualifying rounds before reaching the quarterfinals of the St. Petersburg Ladies' Trophy where she fell to Sabalenka in straight sets once again.[25] She then set a new career-high ranking of No.59 after a semifinal run at the Hungarian Ladies Open where she held five match points against eventual champion Alison Van Uytvanck.[26]

In her best result at a Premier Mandatory event, Alexandrova reached the third round of the Premier Mandatory BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells after beating World No. 13 Caroline Wozniacki in three sets.[27] She did not perform well on clay-court tournaments, except at the French Open, reaching the third round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in her career. She beat 30th seed Mihaela Buzărnescu in the first round, before stunning 2010 finalist Samantha Stosur in the second round.[28]

In the grass-court season, Alexandrova made it into the quarterfinals of the Eastbourne International and Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, losing there to eventual champions Karolina Pliskova[29] and Alison Riske respectively. A disappointing first-round exit at the Wimbledon Championships followed, losing to Kateřina Siniaková in three sets.

She achieved her best run in a Premier 5 tournament at the Rogers Cup, reaching the third round as qualifier. After leading throughout the majority of both sets, Alexandrova fell to Serena Williams in straight sets.[30] Alexandrova also led World No.4 Simona Halep by a set and a break in the second round of the Western & Southern Open, but failed to sustain her high level.[31] She was defeated by 33rd seed Zhang Shuai in the second round of the US Open, a player whom she defeated in Cincinnati earlier on. Nonetheless, she became the highest-ranked Russian after this tournament.

Alexandrova reached her second career WTA semifinal at the Korea Open, where she beat Kristie Ahn in the quarterfinals by hitting a personal-record 22 aces.[32] Another strong run came at the Premier Mandatory event, the China Open. There, she stunned World No.5 Halep in straight sets after her disappointment in Cincinnati, claiming the biggest win of her career.[33] However, she was defeated by compatriot Daria Kasatkina in straight sets.[34]

Defending finalist points at the Upper Austria Ladies Linz, Alexandrova rolled into the semifinals but failed to convert her match points against Jeļena Ostapenko and leading in both the second and final sets.[35] Making her main draw debut at the Kremlin Cup, the Russian made the quarterfinals although her run was eventually stopped by the in-form Karolína Muchová.[36] For the third time in her career, Alexandrova closed out her season with a triumph at the Open de Limoges, this time lifting the trophy as the top seed.[37]

2020: First WTA title, Fed Cup debut

Alexandrova started the 2020 WTA Tour by winning the Shenzhen Open. Alexandrova defeated Wang Qiang in three sets,[38] before stunning former World No.1 Garbiñe Muguruza on her way to the final,[39] and then defeated Elena Rybakina in straight sets.[40] As a result, she became the first player to win a WTA tournament in the new decade. At the Australian Open where she was seeded at a Grand Slam for the first time in her career, Alexandrova defeated Jil Teichmann and Barbora Krejčíková, before losing to Petra Kvitová in the third round.[41]

Alexandrova then represented Russia for the first time in her career, leading the team against Romania in the Fed Cup Qualifying Round as the Russian No.1.[42] On her debut, she led Russia to a tight 3-2 win over the home team, defeating Elena-Gabriela Ruse in straight sets[43] and Ana Bogdan in a tight three-setter,[44] helping to book Russia's spot in the inaugural Fed Cup Finals.[45] She next participated at St. Petersburg, where she defeated Daria Kasatkina from a break down in the deciding set[46] and the higher-ranked Donna Vekić in straight sets.[47] After receiving a walkover from an injured Kvitová,[48] before losing in three sets to the defending champion, and eventual champion, Kiki Bertens.[49] Before the WTA Tour was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alexandrova was ranked No. 27 in the world and suffered a first-round exit in Doha in the hands of Amanda Anisimova.

The Russian suffered mediocre results after the resumption of the tour in July, winning consecutive matches just once in eight tournaments. Alexandrova returned into action at the Palermo Open, where she defeated Kristina Mladenovic in the first round,[50] but lost to eventual champion Fiona Ferro in her next match.[51] At the Western & Southern Open, she claimed a straight-sets victory over Rybakina[52] but was unable to defeat qualifier Christina McHale. The tournament was held at the USTA BJK National Tennis Center for the first time, lowering the risk of the transmission of the virus behind closed doors. At the same competition ground, Alexandrova stunned the returning former World No.1 Kim Clijsters in the first round of the US Open after recovering from a set down.[53] However, she failed to back up her good win as she fell short to Caty McNally in the second round.[54]

Alexandrova managed to replicate her 2019 performance at the French Open, reaching the third round as the 27th seed and winning back-to-back matches for the first time since the tour resumption. There, she was defeated by third seed Elina Svitolina in straight sets.[55]

Career statistics
Main article: Ekaterina Alexandrova career statistics

Grand Slam tournament performance timelines
Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# A P Z# PO G F-S SF-B NMS NH
(W) Won; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (A) absent; (P) postponed; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (F-S) silver or (SF-B) bronze Olympic medal; a (NMS) downgraded Masters Series/1000 tournament; (NH) not held. SR=strike rate (events won/competed)
To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.

Singles
Tournament 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 SR W–L Win %
Australian Open A 1R 2R 1R 3R 0 / 4 3–4 43%
French Open A 2R 1R 3R 3R 0 / 4 5–4 56%
Wimbledon 2R 1R 1R 1R NH 0 / 4 1–4 20%
US Open Q2 2R 1R 2R 2R 0 / 4 3–4 43%
Win–Loss 1–1 2–4 1–4 3–4 5–3 0 / 16 12–16 43%
Career statistics
Titles 0 0 0 0 1 Career total: 1
Finals 0 0 1 0 1 Career total: 2
Year-end ranking 133 73 93 35 $2,352,603

References
  1. "Ekaterina Alexandrova | Player Stats & More – WTA Official". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  2. "Ekaterina Alexandrova Bio | Bio & Career – WTA Official". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  3. "Ekaterina Alexandrova | Ranking History | Weekly & Yearly Rankings – WTA Official". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  4. "WTA Katowice Open 1st Round Results – SofaScore News". Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  5. Isl, The Tennis; Staff (2016-06-25). "Road from Roehampton: Qualifying Wraps at Wimbledon". The Tennis Island. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  6. Александрова пробилась в основу Уимблдона, обыграв Дарт — 13:11 в третьем сете
  7. https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/ivanovic-is-rocked-by-alexandrova-34838731.html
  8. vfiala. "The winner of ITS CUP 2016 became Elizaveta Kulichkova". ITS CUP. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  9. "WTA QUEBEC CITY: Goerges, Beck and Lucic-Baroni ousted". Tennis World USA. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  10. "No all-French final in Limoges as Cornet loses". beIN SPORTS. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  11. "Garcia vs. Alexandrova | Final ENGIE Open de Limoges 2016 | WTA Official". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  12. VAVEL.com (2018-09-24). "Australian Open: Ekaterina Makarova suffers scare against Ekaterina Alexandrova in first round match". VAVEL. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  13. à 15h06, Le 1 avril 2017; À 17h03, Modifié Le 1 Avril 2017 (2017-04-01). "TENNIS, ITF : Ekaterina Alexandrova, nouvelle reine de Croissy-Beaubourg". leparisien.fr (in French). Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  14. sampaolo (2017-06-01). "Karolina Pliskova edges past Ekaterina Alexandrova to reach the French Open third round for the first time in her career". UBITENNIS. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  15. Chauhan, Aditya (2017-07-05). "Wimbledon 2017: Angelique Kerber, Garbine Muguruza advance; David Ferrer beats Gasquet". www.indiatvnews.com. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  16. "Wozniacki off to winning start in Toronto". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  17. "Keys waltzes to victory over Alexandrova". Sport. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  18. "Alexandrova stuns defending champion Ostapenko in Seoul". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  19. "Alexandrova knocks out former champ Pavlyuchenkova to reach Linz SF". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  20. "Alexandrova completes Petkovic comeback, into first WTA final in Linz". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  21. "Giorgi conquers Alexandrova for second WTA title in Linz". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  22. "La rusa Alexandrova recupera el dominio en Limoges". AS.com (in Spanish). 2018-11-11. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  23. "WTA Rankings 2018: Alexandrova makes big jump up the ladder". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  24. "Shenzhen. Ekaterina Aleksandrova lost to Aryna Sabalenka -". 2019-01-02. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  25. "Sabalenka stops Alexandrova to reach St. Petersburg semis". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  26. sampaolo (2019-02-23). "Alison Van Uytvanck saves five match points to beat Ekaterina Alexandrova in Budapest semifinal". UBITENNIS. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  27. "Alexandrova stuns Wozniacki in lengthy Indian Wells upset". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  28. "French Open results: Samantha Stosur to drop out of top 100 after French Open exit at hands of Ekaterina Alexandrova". Fox Sports. 2019-05-30. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  29. Meyer, Luke (2019-06-28). "Amazing Pliskova crushes Alexandrova in the quarter in Eastbourne". Tennis Tonic - News, Predictions, H2H, Live Scores, stats. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  30. "'I was able to just fight through that': Serena ousts Alexandrova in Toronto, Osaka awaits". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  31. "'I got confidence game by game' - Halep outlasts Alexandrova in Cincinnati comeback". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  32. 유지호 (2019-09-20). "(LEAD) Korean-American Kristie Ahn falls in quarterfinals at Korea Open". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  33. "'Concentrated and focused' Alexandrova blasts past Halep in Beijing". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  34. "'The Russian wall is back!' - Kasatkina quells Alexandrova to make Beijing quarters". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  35. "'Something interesting is happening here!' - Ostapenko saves match points, outlasts Alexandrova in Linz semis". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  36. "Mladenovic Bounces Bertens, Into Moscow Semifinals - Tennis Now". www.tennisnow.com. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  37. "Defending champion Alexandrova zips to Limoges 125K title". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  38. "Alexandrova ousts Wang Qiang to reach Shenzhen semis". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  39. "Alexandrova powers past Muguruza to reach Shenzhen final". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  40. "Russia's Alexandrova wins maiden WTA title in Shenzhen". france24.com.
  41. "Kvitova races into Australian Open Round of 16 over Alexandrova". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  42. "Billie Jean King Cup- Experience and new faces available to Russia". www.billiejeankingcup.com. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  43. "Billie Jean King Cup- Bogdan keeps Romania in hunt against Russia". www.billiejeankingcup.com. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  44. "Billie Jean King Cup- Doubles delight secures Russia spot in Budapest". www.billiejeankingcup.com. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  45. VAVEL.com (2020-02-10). "Fed Cup Qualifiers: Russia clinches deciding doubles rubber to defeat Romania 3-2". VAVEL. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  46. "ALEXANDROVA OUTPLAYS KASATKINA". ST. PETERSBURG LADIES TROPHY 2021. 2020-02-11. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  47. "Alexandrova continues hot streak with Vekic victory in St. Petersburg". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  48. "Kvitova forced out of St. Petersburg with illness". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  49. "Bertens bests Alexandrova to return to St. Petersburg final". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  50. "Alexandrova comeback ousts Mladenovic in Palermo". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  51. "Ferro ousts Alexandrova in Palermo upset". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  52. "Alexandrova outserves Rybakina in Cincinnati opener". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  53. "Alexandrova quells 'legend' Clijsters' US Open comeback". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  54. VAVEL.com (2020-09-04). "US Open: Catherine McNally stuns 21st seed Ekaterina Alexandrova". VAVEL. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
  55. "Svitolina edges Alexandrova in French Open third round". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 2020-11-03.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.