The Doha Eight
This month at Doha, the event promises to showcase the eight top tennis players chosen for the elite end of year event. The chosen eight are selected on basis of Women’s Tennis Association ranking and overall performance during tournaments all year round.
The top ranking pro tennis players who have made it to the event this year are Caroline Wozniacki, Vera Zvonareva, Francesca Schiavone, Kim Clijsters, Samantha Stosur, Jelena Jankovic, Elena Dementieva and Victoria Azarenka. Sisters Serena and Venus Williams,
who would have been shoe-ins for the event, but have opted out due to injuries.
These eight players have been divided by the tournament administration into two groups, white and maroon. To win the end of year championship crown, players will compete against each other in round robin matches, a system where every player has an opportunity
to play against every opponent in the draws.
This year, the first seed is World Number 1, Caroline Wozniacki. She has had a remarkable run this year, starting off with a few victories in the third rounds of her events and them moving on to actually grabbing titles. Her first great performance was at
the French Open in Roland Garros, where she reached the quarter finals. She lost the match to eventual champion, Francesca Schiavone. In June, she improved this record by proceeding to the fourth round at the Wimbledon Championships. She also put in a semi-final
appearance at the US Open in Flushing Meadows before being knocked out by seventh seed Vera Zvonareva. Septmeber and October have been her best months; she won her eleventh and twelfth titles at tournaments in Tokyo and Beijing. On 11th October,
she dethroned Serena Williams to take the place of World Number 1.
Second seed Zvonareva began this year with a drop out at the first round of the Australian Open. However, she then won her tenth WTA title and reached the Charleston final before losing to Stosur in April. Her first Grand Slam final was in June, at Wimbledon.
She lost the match to champion Serena Williams. Her second Grand Slam final was the US Open, where she lost to Kim Clijsters. Her next final was at Beijing, pushing her ranking from Number 4 to Number 3.
Third seed Kim Clijsters has had a good year – she has taken some brief breaks as well as some big wins. She won the Brisbane International as a starting event, put in an appearance at the Eastbourne quarter final, and reached the quarter finals of Wimbledon
in June. She went on to win Cincinnati in August, and defended her US Open title by scoring her third Grand Slam title at Flushing Meadows.
Fourth seed Francesca Schiavone began 2010 with an appearance at the Auckland semi final in January. She also won the Barcelona title in April, and continued her form to win her first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros. After facing a long slump where she
was knocked out in the first round of each tournament she played, Schiavone finally reached the semis at Tokyo and the quarters at Beijing.
The fifth seed of the event, Samantha Stosur, made it to the fourth round of the Australian Open. She also progressed to the Indian Wells semi finals, and won her second WTA title at Charleston in April. Her first Grand Slam final was at Roland Garros, where
she was defeated by Schiavone. Stosur also made it to the quarters of the US Open.
Sixth seed, Serbian Jankovic, has had a mediocre year. She made a few appearances at the quarter finals in Charleston, Stuttgart and Rome, apart from which she could not match her usual standards of play.
Seventh seed Dementieva began the year with a WTA win. She made it to the quarter finals at Indian Wells as well as the semis of at Roland Garros. Other notable appearances are the Stanford quarter final and her fourth round loss at US Open.
The event’s eighth seed, Azarenka, kicked off 2010 with the semis at Sydney. She was also a finalist at the Dubai Open, and a semi finalist at the Toray Pan Pacific Open. She recently won the Kremlin Cup tournament in Moscow.
These eight players will now battle it out in adrenaline pumpin matches to prove their worth as players, and seize the spot of the best WTA player in 2010. This promises to be a fight only the strongest and smartest will be able to take.
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