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Maria Yuryevna Kirilenko ( rus, Мари́я Ю́рьевна Кириле́нко, p=mɐˈrʲijə kʲɪrʲɪˈlʲɛnkə ; born 25 January 1987) is a Russian former professional tennis player. A junior Grand Slam champion at the 2002 US Open at the age of 15, she went on to become a top ten player in both singles and doubles. Kirilenko won six WTA singles titles and 12 doubles titles. She was a three
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
singles quarterfinalist (reaching that stage at the
2010 Australian Open The 2010 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place in Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia, from 18 to 31 January. It was the 98th edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam event of the year. In the singles competi ...
, the
2012 Wimbledon Championships The 2012 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament played on grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London in the United Kingdom. It was the 126th edition of the The Championships, Wimbledon, Wimbledon C ...
, and the
2013 French Open The 2013 French Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 117th edition of the French Open and the second Grand Slam event of the year. It took place at the Stade Roland Garros from 26 May to 9 June. It consisted of e ...
), a semifinalist at the
2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
(where she lost to
Victoria Azarenka Victória Fyódarauna Azárenka ( be, Вікторыя Фёдараўна Азаранка; Russian: Виктория Фёдоровна Азаренко; born 31 July 1989) is a Belarusian professional tennis player. Azarenka is a former wo ...
in the bronze medal match), and reached a career-high ranking of world No. 10 on 10 June 2013. In women's doubles, she became ranked as high as No. 5 in the world on 24 October 2011, and reached two Grand Slam finals, at the
2011 Australian Open The 2011 Australian Open was a tennis tournament featuring six different competitions, and part of the 2011 ATP World Tour, the 2011 WTA Tour, ITF Junior Tour and the NEC Tour, as tournaments for professional, junior and wheelchair players wer ...
with Azarenka and the
2012 French Open The 2012 French Open (also known as Roland Garros, after the famous French aviator) was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 116th edition of the French Open, and took place at the Stade Roland Garros from 27 May until 11 ...
with compatriot
Nadia Petrova Nadezhda Viktorovna "Nadia" Petrova (russian: Надежда Викторовна Петрова ; born 8 June 1982) is a Russian former professional tennis player. A former top-five player in both singles and doubles, she reached a career-high ...
. Along with Petrova, Kirilenko won the
2012 WTA Tour Championships 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 S ...
in doubles and was a bronze medalist at the
2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
.


Tennis career


Junior career

In 2002, Kirilenko won the junior tournaments at the Canadian Open and US Open.


Professional career


2003–2006

In 2002, Kirilenko started participating in WTA events. She began moving up the rankings in 2004, but was set back by an injury. At the
2004 French Open The 2004 French Open was the 108th edition of the tournament. Gastón Gaudio became the first men's Open Era Grand Slam title winner to save two match points in the final; the last time that had happened was 70 years earlier. Gaudio also became th ...
, Kirilenko took the first set off
Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American inactive professional tennis player. Considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for ...
before losing in three sets. She was the runner-up to
Nicole Pratt Nicole Pratt (born 5 March 1973) is a retired tennis player from Australia. Pratt was born in Mackay, Queensland. She is the middle sibling of five children of cane farmers and was taught to play by her father, George, who was a top junior pl ...
at the Hyderabad Open. At the end of 2005, she climbed back up the rankings and won her first title in Beijing. On 12 June 2006, she broke into the world's top 20 for the first time. At the US Open, Kirilenko was seeded 20th and reached the third round, before losing to
Aravane Rezaï Aravane Rezaï (; fa, ارغوان رضایی ''Arghavān-e Rezāyi'' , born 14 March 1987) is an Iranian–French tennis player. She has defeated many top players on the WTA Tour, such as Justine Henin, Venus Williams, Victoria Azarenk ...
. Kirilenko made her debut for Russia at the Fed Cup tournament in April 2006. In the World Group quarterfinal tie against Belgium, she lost her singles match against 2005 US Open champion
Kim Clijsters Kim Antonie Lode Clijsters (; born 8 June 1983) is a Belgian former professional tennis player. Clijsters reached the world No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles, having held both rankings simultaneously in 2003. She won six major titles, ...
, but partnering with
Dinara Safina Dinara Mubinovna Safina (; ; tt-Cyrl, Динара Мөбин кызы Сафина; born April 27, 1986) is a Russian former world No. 1 tennis player. Safina was runner-up in singles at the 2008 French Open, 2009 Australian Open, and the ...
, won her doubles match against
Justine Henin Justine Henin (; born 1 June 1982) is a Belgian former professional tennis player. She spent a total of 117 weeks as the world No. 1 and was the year-end No. 1 in 2003, 2006 and 2007. Henin, coming from a country with limited success in te ...
and Clijsters. However, Russia ended up losing, 2–3.


2007

In January 2007, she advanced to the third round of the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, before being defeated by third seed
Svetlana Kuznetsova Svetlana Aleksandrovna Kuznetsova (born 27 June 1985) is a Russian inactive professional tennis player. She is a two-time major singles champion, winning the 2004 US Open and 2009 French Open, and finishing runner-up at two other majors. I ...
. She then competed in the
Toray Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-l ...
in Tokyo, where she advanced to the second round, upsetting world No. 15
Shahar Pe'er Shahar Pe'er ( he, שחר פאר, ; born ) is an Israeli retired tennis player. Pe'er won five singles and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as four singles and three doubles titles on the ITF circuit in her career. She reached ...
of Israel, before being defeated by
Ai Sugiyama is a Japanese former tennis player. She reached the world No. 1 ranking in women's doubles on the WTA Tour and had a career-high singles ranking of world No. 8, achieved on February 9, 2004. In her career, she won six singles and 38 doubles t ...
. She then competed in the
Dubai Tennis Championships The Dubai Tennis Championships or Dubai Open (also known as the ''Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships'' for sponsorship reasons) (formerly known for sponsorship reasons as the ''Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships'' and the ''Dubai Duty Free Men's ...
, where she reached the second round, before losing in a close match to
Daniela Hantuchová Daniela Hantuchová (; born 23 April 1983) is a Slovak tennis commentator and retired player. She turned professional in 1999 and had her breakthrough year in 2002, when she won her first WTA Tour title at the Indian Wells Masters, defeating Mar ...
. At the
Acura Classic The Southern California Open currently known as The San Diego Open is an ATP 250 and WTA 500 tournament held at the Barnes Tennis Centre in San Diego, California. The event originated as the Southern California Championships that ran from 1887 ...
in San Diego, California, Kirilenko upset second seeded
Jelena Janković Jelena Janković ( sr-Cyrl, Јелена Јанковић, ; born 28 February 1985) is a Serbian former tennis player. A former world No. 1, Janković reached the top ranking before her career-best major performance, a runner-up finish at the ...
to advance to the quarterfinals, before losing to fellow Russian
Elena Dementieva Elena Viacheslavovna Dementieva (, ; born 15 October 1981) is a Russian former professional tennis player. She won the singles gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, having previously won the silver medal at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. ...
. At the
East West Bank Classic The LA Women's Tennis Championships was a WTA Premier tournaments, Premier-level tennis tournament on the Women's Tennis Association, WTA Tour held in Carson, California, a suburb of Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles. The tournament was playe ...
in Los Angeles, she upset sixth seed
Marion Bartoli Marion Bartoli (; born 2 October 1984) is a French former professional tennis player. Bartoli won the 2013 Wimbledon Championships singles title after previously being runner-up in 2007, and was a semifinalist at the 2011 French Open. She als ...
in straight sets before losing to eventual champion
Ana Ivanovic Ana Schweinsteiger ( sr, Ана Швајнштајгер / ''Ana Švajnštajger''; born 6 November 1987), professionally known by her birth name Ana Ivanovic (Ана Ивановић / ''Ana Ivanović'', ), is a Serbian former world No. 1 tenn ...
in the quarterfinals. Unseeded at the US Open, she defeated Martina Müller and 22nd seed
Katarina Srebotnik Katarina Srebotnik (born 12 March 1981) is a Slovenian retired professional tennis player. She reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 20 on 7 August 2006. On 4 July 2011, she reached No. 1 of the WTA doubles rankings, holding this ...
. She then lost to unseeded
Julia Vakulenko Julia Olehivna Vakulenko ( uk, Юлія Оле́гівна Вакуленко; born July 10, 1983) is a Ukraine-born female tennis player. She achieved her career-high ranking of No. 32 in November 2007. In April, 2008, Vakulenko renounced her U ...
. After the US Open, she appeared in the Sunfeast Open. There, Kirilenko won her second WTA Tour singles title, defeating unseeded
Mariya Koryttseva Mariya Serhiyivna Koryttseva ( uk, Марія Сергіївна Коритцева; born 25 May 1985) is a Ukrainian former tennis player. On 18 August 2008, she achieved her career-high singles ranking of world No. 50. On 23 June 2008, she ...
in straight sets. The next week at a tournament in
Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
, Kirilenko, as the fourth seed also reached the finals, but lost to top seed
Venus Williams Venus Ebony Starr Williams (born June 17, 1980) is an American professional tennis player. A former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, five at Wimbledon and two at the US Open. She is ...
.


2008

At the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, Kirilenko reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in her career, beating sixth seed
Anna Chakvetadze Anna Djambuliovna Chakvetadze ( ; born 5 March 1987) is a Russian former professional tennis player. In her career, Chakvetadze won eight WTA Tour singles titles, the biggest being the 2006 Kremlin Cup. She booked her highest singles ranking o ...
. Her next opponent was Daniela Hantuchová, to whom she lost, 6–1, 4–6, 4–6, after leading 6–1, 3–1. Kirilenko then reached the second round of a Tier-I event in Doha, beating
Ekaterina Makarova Ekaterina Valeryevna Makarova ( rus, Екатери́на Вале́рьевна Мака́рова; ; born 7 June 1988) is a Russian former professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles, and world No. 8 in singles. She ...
, before losing to
Anabel Medina Garrigues Ana Isabel Medina Garrigues (, ; born 31 July 1982) is a Spanish tennis coach and former professional player. As a player she reached a career-high ranking of world No. 16 in 2020, and won 11 singles and 28 doubles titles, including the 2008 ...
in three sets. Kirilenko then lost four matches in a row at Dubai, Bangalore, Indian Wells, and Miami. However, as the second seed, she reached the final of a Tier-IV event at Estoril, where she defeated
Iveta Benešová Iveta Benešová () (formerly Melzer, cs, Melzerová; born 1 February 1983) is a Czech former tennis player. She began playing tennis at age of seven and turned professional in 1998. She won two WTA Tour singles and 14 doubles tournaments, and ...
in straight sets. She also won the doubles title there, partnering with
Flavia Pennetta Flavia Pennetta (; born 25 February 1982) is an Italian former professional tennis player. She became Italy's first top-ten female singles player on 17 August 2009 and the first Italian to be ranked world No. 1 in doubles, on 28 February 2011. ...
. Kirilenko also won in Barcelona, defeating Martinez-Sanchez for her fourth career WTA title and the second of the year. Kirilenko played at the Tier-III tournament in
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
in August, where she was third seed. She reached the semifinals, where she lost to eventual champion
Nadia Petrova Nadezhda Viktorovna "Nadia" Petrova (russian: Надежда Викторовна Петрова ; born 8 June 1982) is a Russian former professional tennis player. A former top-five player in both singles and doubles, she reached a career-high ...
. She partnered with Petrova as the second-seed doubles team and beat the top-seed pair of
Hsieh Su-wei Hsieh Su-wei ( ;''Xiè 謝淑薇Shūwēi'' in Chinese mainland. Taiwanese Mandarin: ; in Standard Mandarin of Chinese mainland. born 4 January 1986) is an inactive Taiwanese professional tennis player. She has won three singles titles and 30 ...
and
Yaroslava Shvedova Yaroslava Vyacheslavovna Shvedova (; born 12 September 1987) is a Kazakhstani former professional tennis player. Before 2008, she represented her country of birth, Russia. She won one singles title and 13 doubles titles on the WTA Tour, plus o ...
in the finals.


2009

Kirilenko was seeded 27th at the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, but lost to future top five player
Sara Errani Sara Errani (; born 29 April 1987) is an Italian professional tennis player. She is a former top five player in singles and former world No. 1 in doubles. With 9 singles titles and 27 doubles titles (including 5 Grand Slam doubles championship ...
in the first round. In the
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
doubles tournament, Kirilenko partnered with
Agnieszka Radwańska Agnieszka Roma Radwańska (; born 6 March 1989) is a Polish former professional tennis player. She won 20 career singles WTA Tour titles, two doubles titles, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2 on 9 July 2012. Her achievem ...
, and even though they were unseeded, they reached the final, eventually losing to
Liezel Huber Liezel Huber (née Horn; born 21 August 1976) is a South African-American retired tennis player who represented the United States internationally since August 2007. Huber has won four Grand Slam titles in women's doubles with partner Cara Blac ...
and
Cara Black Cara Cavell Black (born 17 February 1979) is a Zimbabwean former professional tennis player. Black was primarily a doubles specialist, winning 60 WTA Tour and 11 ITF doubles titles. A former doubles world No. 1, she won ten major titles. By ...
, the world No. 1 doubles pairing at that time. At the 2009 French Open, Kirilenko was unseeded in the singles tournament, and lost to
Olivia Rogowska Olivia Rogowska (; born 7 June 1991) is an Australian former tennis player. Both of her parents are Polish. The right-hander was born in and lives in Melbourne. Her career-high singles ranking is world No. 102, achieved on 11 August 2014. Her ...
of Australia in the first round. In the doubles tournament, Kirilenko and doubles partner Flavia Pennetta of Italy were seeded eighth. They made it to the third round, before losing to 11th seeded
Anna-Lena Grönefeld Anna-Lena Grönefeld (also spelled Groenefeld; born 4 June 1985) is a German former professional tennis player. Competing as a professional from 2003 until 2019, she won one singles title on the WTA Tour, at the 2006 Mexican Open, and reached t ...
of Germany and
Patty Schnyder Patty Schnyder (born 14 December 1978)
Weltwoche, 14. September 2011
is a Swiss reti ...
of Switzerland. Kirilenko was unseeded at
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
and made it to the second round, losing to ninth seeded
Caroline Wozniacki Caroline Wozniacki (; born 11 July 1990) is a Danish former professional tennis player. She was ranked world No. 1 in singles for a total of 71 weeks, including at the end of 2010 and 2011. She achieved the top ranking for the first time on 11 ...
. At the US Open, she made it to the third round, defeating her doubles partner Radwańska before losing to
Li Na Li Na (born 26 February 1982) is a Chinese former professional tennis player. She achieved a career-high WTA ranking of world No. 2 on 17 February 2014. Over the course of her career, Li won nine WTA Tour singles titles including two Grand Sl ...
. She then competed in the Korea Open in Seoul, where she was the defending champion, but lost in the semifinals to eventual champion
Kimiko Date-Krumm is a Japanese former professional tennis player. She reached the semifinals of the 1994 Australian Open, the 1995 French Open and the 1996 Wimbledon Championships, and won the Japan Open a record four times. She reached a career-high ranking ...
.


2010: First Grand Slam quarterfinal

Kirilenko began the year by competing in the ASB Classic, where she reached the quarterfinals but lost to Shahar Pe'er. With a ranking at that time of No. 58, Kirilenko was unseeded at the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, where in the first round she upset her friend, former doubles partner,
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
champion and 14th seed
Maria Sharapova Maria Yuryevna Sharapova ( , ; rus, Мари́я Ю́рьевна Шара́пова, p=mɐˈrʲijə ʂɐˈrapəvə, a=Maria_sharapova.ogg; born 19 April 1987) is a Russian former List of WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 ...
, 7–6, 3–6, 6–4, in a 3-hour 22-minute marathon. It was the second-longest women's match in Australian Open history (only behind the 2011 fourth-round match between Francesca Schiavone and Svetlana Kuznetsova). She advanced to the quarterfinals, losing to
Zheng Jie Zheng Jie (born 5 July 1983) is a retired tennis player from China. In May 2009, she achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 15. Zheng is one of the most successful tennis players from China. She won four WTA singles titles – Ho ...
, who was also unseeded for this tournament. In the doubles portion, she and her partner, Agnieszka Radwańska, were seeded 15th and advanced to the semifinals, losing there to the world No. 1 pairing of Cara Black and Liezel Huber in three sets. Kirilenko entered as 32nd seed at the
BNP Paribas Open The Indian Wells Masters, also known as the Indian Wells Open and BNP Paribas Open is an annual tennis tournament usually held in early- and mid-March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California, United States. The owner is La ...
in Indian Wells. She made it to the third round, losing there to second seeded Caroline Wozniacki. Kirilenko participated in the
Sony Ericsson Open The Miami Open (also known as the Miami Masters, and currently branded as the Miami Open presented by Itaú for sponsorship reasons) is a tennis tournament held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. It is part of the men's ATP Tour Mas ...
in Miami as 32nd seed. Like Indian Wells, she advanced to the third round, again losing to Wozniacki. Kirilenko played in Rome in the
Internazionali BNL d'Italia The Italian Open ( it, Internazionali d'Italia; literally: ''Italy's Internationals''), originally called the Italian International Championships, is a tennis tournament held in Rome, Italy. It is one of the most important clay tennis tournament ...
, where she was unseeded. She advanced to the quarterfinals, where she lost to world No. 1 Serena Williams. Kirilenko entered the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
as 30th seed where she advanced to the round of 16 for the first time in her career, before losing to 17th seed and eventual champion Francesca Schiavone, having defeated defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova en route. In the doubles draw, Kirilenko and Radwańska were seeded 11th. They reached the quarterfinals, before losing to the eventual champions Serena and Venus Williams in straight sets. At
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
, she was 27th seed in the singles draw. She advanced to the third round, losing to eighth seed Kim Clijsters. Kirilenko also paired up with Agnieszka Radwańska in the doubles draw, where they were seeded 10th. Kirilenko made the quarterfinals of the
Bank of the West Classic The Silicon Valley Classic, sponsored by Mubadala Investment Company, is a week-long tennis tournament on the WTA Tour held on the campus of San Jose State University in San Jose, California, United States. Started in 1971, the tournament is the ol ...
in
Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is considere ...
, California before losing to Radwańska. She entered in the doubles tournament with
Victoria Azarenka Victória Fyódarauna Azárenka ( be, Вікторыя Фёдараўна Азаранка; Russian: Виктория Фёдоровна Азаренко; born 31 July 1989) is a Belarusian professional tennis player. Azarenka is a former wo ...
, they ended in the semifinals. She then reached the second rounds of Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open and the
Rogers Cup The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec. T ...
, losing to
Vera Zvonareva Vera Igorevna Zvonareva ( rus, Вера Игоревна Звонарёва, p=ˈvʲɛrə ˈiɡərʲɪvnə zvənɐˈrʲɵvə, a=Vera zvonareva.ogg; born 7 September 1984) is a Russian professional tennis player. She was introduced to tennis at ...
and Victoria Azarenka, respectively. At the
Pilot Pen Tennis The Connecticut Open was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was a WTA Premier Tournament on the WTA Tour until its final edition in 2018. From 2005 through 2010 the tournament was also part of the ATP World Tour 2 ...
, she reached the semifinals, losing to Nadia Petrova. She reached the third round of the US Open losing to 11th seed Svetlana Kuznetsova. She then reached the second rounds of Korea Open, losing to former world No. 1 Dinara Safina, and
Toray Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-l ...
, losing to Flavia Pennetta. At the last Premier-Mandatory event of the year, the China Open, she lost in the third round to eventual finalist and compatriot Vera Zvonareva. In the
HP Open The Japan Women's Open Tennis is a professional women's tennis tournament played on Hard court, outdoor hard courts. The event is affiliated with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), and is an WTA International Tournaments, International-level to ...
, she retired in the second round due to a hip injury against
Chang Kai-chen Chang Kai-chen (; ; born January 13, 1991) is a Taiwanese former professional tennis player. Career Her father is Chang Chin-lai and mother is Jun Yu-mei; she has two older brothers, Yao-lun and Yao-chung (both play tennis). Born and raised ...
, after losing the first set 4–6. Kirilenko reached the final of the
Kremlin Cup The Kremlin Cup (russian: Кубок Кремля) is a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts, which was suspended in 2022. It was part of the ATP Tour 250 series of the ATP Tour and was a Premier Tournament on the WTA ...
where she fell to Victoria Azarenka. Kirilenko ended the 2010 season ranked No. 20 in the world.


2011: Steady ranking

She competed at the
Hong Kong Tennis Classic The Hong Kong Tennis Classic (formerly known as the ''JB Group Classic'' and the '' Watsons Water Champions Challenge'') is a women's exhibition tennis tournament held (with temporary stands) in Victoria Park, Hong Kong, in the first week of Jan ...
and won the Gold Group Championship with her compatriots Vera Zvonareva and
Yevgeny Kafelnikov Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Kafelnikov ( rus, Евгений Александрович Кафельников, , jɪvˈɡʲenʲɪj ˈkafʲɪlʲnʲɪkəf, a=Ru-Yevgeny-Kafelnikov.ogg; born 18 February 1974) is a Russian former world No. 1 tennis p ...
. At the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, she failed to defend her quarterfinal points by being knocked out in the second round. However, in the doubles competition, she reached the final, partnered with Victoria Azarenka, but lost to Pennetta and Dulko. She then fell early in the Pattaya Open and
Dubai Tennis Championships The Dubai Tennis Championships or Dubai Open (also known as the ''Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships'' for sponsorship reasons) (formerly known for sponsorship reasons as the ''Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships'' and the ''Dubai Duty Free Men's ...
. She then reached the third round of both
BNP Paribas Open The Indian Wells Masters, also known as the Indian Wells Open and BNP Paribas Open is an annual tennis tournament usually held in early- and mid-March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California, United States. The owner is La ...
and
Sony Ericsson Open The Miami Open (also known as the Miami Masters, and currently branded as the Miami Open presented by Itaú for sponsorship reasons) is a tennis tournament held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. It is part of the men's ATP Tour Mas ...
losing to Agnieszka Radwańska on both occasions. She then suffered three losses in a row in the second round of
Family Circle Cup The Credit One Charleston Open, formerly known as the Volvo Car Open and the Family Circle Cup, is a WTA Tour-affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, held every year since 1973. It is the oldest professional all-women's tournament in ...
, and the first rounds of
Mutua Madrid Open The Madrid Open ( es, Masters de Madrid, link=no), currently sponsored by Mutua Madrileña and known as the Mutua Madrid Open, is a joint men's and women's professional tennis tournament, held in Madrid, during early May. The clay-court event is ...
and
Internazionali BNL d'Italia The Italian Open ( it, Internazionali d'Italia; literally: ''Italy's Internationals''), originally called the Italian International Championships, is a tennis tournament held in Rome, Italy. It is one of the most important clay tennis tournament ...
. However, she won doubles at the Mutua Madrid Open with Victoria Azarenka. At the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
, she reached the fourth round losing to
Andrea Petkovic Andrea Petkovic (, ; born 9 September 1987) is a German former professional tennis player. Born in Tuzla, SFR Yugoslavia, to Serbian father Zoran and Bosniak mother Amira, she moved to Germany at six months old and turned professional in 2006 a ...
in three sets. She then fell in the first round of
UNICEF Open The Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, branded by its sponsored name as the Libéma Open since 2018, (formerly known as the Continental Grass Court Championships, Heineken Trophy, Ordina Open, UNICEF Open, Topshelf Open and RICOH Open), is a pro ...
to
Kimiko Date-Krumm is a Japanese former professional tennis player. She reached the semifinals of the 1994 Australian Open, the 1995 French Open and the 1996 Wimbledon Championships, and won the Japan Open a record four times. She reached a career-high ranking ...
, However, she rebounded by reaching the third round of the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
, eventually being stopped by the seventh-seeded Serena Williams. She then failed to win back-to-back matches falling in the second rounds of
Bank of the West Classic The Silicon Valley Classic, sponsored by Mubadala Investment Company, is a week-long tennis tournament on the WTA Tour held on the campus of San Jose State University in San Jose, California, United States. Started in 1971, the tournament is the ol ...
,
Mercury Insurance Open The Southern California Open currently known as The San Diego Open is an ATP 250 and WTA 500 tournament held at the Barnes Tennis Centre in San Diego, California. The event originated as the Southern California Championships that ran from 188 ...
, first round of
Rogers Cup The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec. T ...
, and the second rounds of Western & Southern Open and
Bank of the West Classic The Silicon Valley Classic, sponsored by Mubadala Investment Company, is a week-long tennis tournament on the WTA Tour held on the campus of San Jose State University in San Jose, California, United States. Started in 1971, the tournament is the ol ...
. She then rebounded at the US Open, losing to eventual champion Samantha Stosur 2–6, 7–615–17, 3–6 in the fourth round. The second set tie-break score of 15–17 was the longest in any major in the history of women's tennis. She reached her first semifinal of the year at the
Guangzhou International Women's Open The Guangzhou International Women's Open is a tennis tournament held in Guangzhou, People's Republic of China. Held since 2004, the inaugural tournament had Li Na Li Na (born 26 February 1982) is a Chinese former professional tennis player. ...
, losing to
Chanelle Scheepers Chanelle Scheepers ( ; born 13 March 1984) is a retired South African tennis player. She won one singles and one doubles title on the WTA Tour, as well as 12 singles and 20 doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit in her career. On 10 October ...
5–7, 7–5, 4–6. She then played at the
Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-l ...
and the China Open, where she defeated
Samantha Stosur Samantha Jane Stosur ( ; born 30 March 1984) is an Australian professional tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 in doubles, a ranking which she first achieved on 6 February 2006 and held for 61 consecutive weeks. Also a former top ten s ...
in three sets in both occasions in the second round; she also fell in the quarterfinals on both events losing to Vera Zvonareva and
Monica Niculescu Monica Niculescu (born 25 September 1987) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She has been ranked by the Women's Tennis Association as high as 28 in singles and 11 in doubles. Niculescu has won several titles: three singles and ten doubles ...
, respectively. She played her last tournament of the year at the
BGL Luxembourg Open The Luxembourg Open, currently sponsored by BGL, is a women's tennis tournament held in Kockelscheuer, Luxembourg. Held since 1991, the tournament was an exhibition event (winners including Novotná, Navratilova and Appelmans) until 1995. ...
, where she had to withdrew in the second round due to an ankle injury.


2012: 4th place at 2012 Olympics

Kirilenko began her 2012 season at the
Apia International Sydney The Sydney International (formerly known as the Championship of New South Wales and New South Wales Open, with various title sponsors), formerly sponsored as the Apia International Sydney from 2012 to 2017, is a professional tennis tournament i ...
in Sydney. She lost in the second round of qualifying to
Sofia Arvidsson Lena Sofia Alexandra Arvidsson (born 16 February 1984) is a Swedish professional padel player and a former tennis player. In her tennis career, she won two singles titles and one doubles title on the WTA Tour, as well as 20 singles and 13 double ...
. Seeded twenty-seventh at the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, Kirilenko retired during her third-round match against second seed Petra Kvitová due to an upper left leg injury. Seeded fourth at the
PTT Pattaya Open The Thailand Open (also known as PTT Pattaya Open) was a women's tennis tournament held in Pattaya, Thailand. Held since 1991, this WTA Tour event was classified as an International Series tournament and was played on hardcourts. The event wa ...
, Kirilenko reached the final where she was defeated by third seed Daniela Hantuchová. In Doha at the
Qatar Total Open The Qatar Ladies Open, currently sponsored by TotalEnergies and called the Qatar TotalEnergies Open, is a women's tennis tournament held in Doha, Qatar. Held since 2001, this WTA Tour event was a Tier I-tournament in 2008, and was played on outdoo ...
, Kirilenko lost in the second round to fourteenth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova. At the
Dubai Tennis Championships The Dubai Tennis Championships or Dubai Open (also known as the ''Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships'' for sponsorship reasons) (formerly known for sponsorship reasons as the ''Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships'' and the ''Dubai Duty Free Men's ...
, Kirilenko was defeated in the second round by Ana Ivanovic. Seeded twentieth at the
BNP Paribas Open The Indian Wells Masters, also known as the Indian Wells Open and BNP Paribas Open is an annual tennis tournament usually held in early- and mid-March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California, United States. The owner is La ...
, Kirilenko advanced to the quarterfinal where she lost to second seed Maria Sharapova. Seeded twenty-second in Miami at the
Sony Ericsson Open The Miami Open (also known as the Miami Masters, and currently branded as the Miami Open presented by Itaú for sponsorship reasons) is a tennis tournament held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. It is part of the men's ATP Tour Mas ...
, Kirilenko was defeated in the fourth round by seventh seed Marion Bartoli. Kirilenko began her clay-court season at the Estoril Open. Seeded second, she lost in the second round to qualifier
Karin Knapp Karin Knapp (born 28 June 1987) is a retired Italian tennis player. In her career, Knapp won two singles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as six singles titles and six doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit, ITF Circuit. On 24 August 2015, sh ...
. Seeded sixteenth at the
Mutua Madrid Open The Madrid Open ( es, Masters de Madrid, link=no), currently sponsored by Mutua Madrileña and known as the Mutua Madrid Open, is a joint men's and women's professional tennis tournament, held in Madrid, during early May. The clay-court event is ...
, Kirilenko was defeated in the second round by Ekaterina Makarova. Seeded sixteenth in Rome at the Italian Open, Kirilenko lost in the first round to Flavia Pennetta. Seeded third at the
Internationaux de Strasbourg The Internationaux de Strasbourg (formally known as the Strasbourg Grand Prix) is a professional women's tennis tournament held in Strasbourg, France. It is an International-level outdoor event of the WTA Tour played on clay courts. The tournament ...
, Kirilenko retired during her first-round match against
Sloane Stephens Sloane Stephens (born March 20, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. She achieved a career-best ranking of world No. 3 after Wimbledon in 2018. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in t ...
due to a right ankle injury. Seeded sixteenth at the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
, Kirilenko was defeated in the second round by Klára Zakopalová. Kirilenko played only one tournament before Wimbledon which was the
UNICEF Open The Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, branded by its sponsored name as the Libéma Open since 2018, (formerly known as the Continental Grass Court Championships, Heineken Trophy, Ordina Open, UNICEF Open, Topshelf Open and RICOH Open), is a pro ...
. Seeded fifth, she lost in the first round to Francesca Schiavone. Kirilenko then played at the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
where she was the seventeenth seed. She had sudden success reaching the round of 16 for the first time with easy wins over
Alexandra Cadanțu Alexandra () is the feminine form of the given name Alexander (, ). Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; GEN , ; meaning 'man'). Thus it may be roughly translated as "defender of man" or "prot ...
,
Lourdes Domínguez Lino Lourdes Domínguez Lino (; born 31 March 1981) is a retired tennis player from Spain. She reached career-high rankings of world No. 40 in singles and 45 in doubles. Tennis career In the 1999 Roland Garros, she won the junior girls' singles, de ...
and Sorana Cîrstea. She had officially reached the second week of all four majors. She defeated thirtieth seed Peng Shuai to reach her second Grand Slam quarterfinal and her first at Wimbledon. After almost three hours of play, three rain delays and switching courts, she eventually lost in a very close and tough quarterfinal to third seed and eventual finalist Agnieszka Radwańska. Playing for Russia at the
Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...
, Kirilenko reached the semifinal upsetting sixth seed Petra Kvitová in her quarterfinal match. She lost the semifinal match to eventual silver medalist Maria Sharapova. Despite the loss, she still had a chance to win the bronze medal. In the bronze medal match, she was defeated by Victoria Azarenka to end u being in 4th place. However, she won a bronze medal in women's doubles with Nadia Petrova by beating the No. 1 ranked team of Liezel Huber/Lisa Raymond. Kirilenko started her preparation for the US Open at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. Seeded twelfth, she lost in the first round to Venus Williams. She bounced back into form at the Premier level
New Haven Open at Yale The Connecticut Open was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was a WTA Premier Tournament on the WTA Tour until its final edition in 2018. From 2005 through 2010 the tournament was also part of the ATP World Tour 2 ...
. Seeded seventh, Kirilenko reached her second final of the year where she was defeated by second seed Petra Kvitová. Seeded fourteenth at the US Open, Kirilenko suffered a third-round upset at the hands of
Andrea Hlaváčková Andrea is a given name which is common worldwide for both males and females, cognate to Andreas, Andrej and Andrew. Origin of the name The name derives from the Greek word ἀνήρ (''anēr''), genitive ἀνδρός (''andrós''), that ref ...
. In doubles, Kirilenko and Petrova upset the Williams sisters in the third round before losing in the quarterfinal to eighth seeds Nuria Llagostera Vives/María José Martínez Sánchez. Seeded second at the Korea Open, Kirilenko retired from her first-round match against Lee So-ra due to a back injury. Competing as the thirteenth seed at the China Open, Kirilenko lost in the first round to Ekaterina Makarova. Seeded seventh at the
Kremlin Cup The Kremlin Cup (russian: Кубок Кремля) is a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts, which was suspended in 2022. It was part of the ATP Tour 250 series of the ATP Tour and was a Premier Tournament on the WTA ...
, Kirilenko was defeated in the semifinal by Sofia Arvidsson. Seeded third at the Qatar Airways Tournament of Champions, Kirilenko lost her first match to second seed Nadia Petrova, but she won her second one over eighth seed
Tsvetana Pironkova Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova ( bg, Цветана Кирилова Пиронкова ; born 13 September 1987) is a Bulgarian professional tennis player. Considered to be one of the best grass court players of her generation, she has been noted ...
. She withdrew from her third match against sixth seed Jie Zheng due to an upper respiratory illness. Kirilenko played her final tournament of the season at the
WTA Tour Championships WTA may refer to: Organizations *Washington Trails Association *Whatcom Transportation Authority *Waskahegan Trail Association, the management board for the Waskahegan Trail *Water Transit Authority, former name of the San Francisco Bay Area Water ...
. She and Petrova won the doubles title beating Andrea Hlaváčková/Lucie Hradecká in the final. Kirilenko ended the year ranked 14 in singles and 7 in doubles.


2013: World No. 10 & injuries

Beginning her season at the
Apia International Sydney The Sydney International (formerly known as the Championship of New South Wales and New South Wales Open, with various title sponsors), formerly sponsored as the Apia International Sydney from 2012 to 2017, is a professional tennis tournament i ...
, Kirilenko lost in the second round to third seed Sara Errani. Seeded fourteenth at the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
, Kirilenko made it to the fourth round where she lost to third seed Serena Williams. Seeded second at the
PTT Pattaya Open The Thailand Open (also known as PTT Pattaya Open) was a women's tennis tournament held in Pattaya, Thailand. Held since 1991, this WTA Tour event was classified as an International Series tournament and was played on hardcourts. The event wa ...
, Kirilenko won the tournament defeating fifth seed Sabine Lisicki in the final. During the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was cha ...
tie versus Japan, Kirilenko played one match and beat Kimiko Date-Krumm. Russia won the tie 3-2 to advance to the semifinal. Seeded twelfth at the
Qatar Total Open The Qatar Ladies Open, currently sponsored by TotalEnergies and called the Qatar TotalEnergies Open, is a women's tennis tournament held in Doha, Qatar. Held since 2001, this WTA Tour event was a Tier I-tournament in 2008, and was played on outdoo ...
, Kirilenko retired from her first-round match versus qualifier Ekaterina Bychkova due to a shoulder injury. Seeded thirteenth at the
BNP Paribas Open The Indian Wells Masters, also known as the Indian Wells Open and BNP Paribas Open is an annual tennis tournament usually held in early- and mid-March at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California, United States. The owner is La ...
, Kirilenko reached the semifinal after wins over Christina McHale, qualifier
Mallory Burdette Mallory Burdette (born January 28, 1991 in Macon, Georgia) is the retired American collegiate and professional tennis player. Personal life Burdette was born to Alan and Judy Burdette in Macon, Georgia. She has two sisters, Erin and Lindsay, ...
, third seed Agnieszka Radwańska, and fifth seed Petra Kvitová. She was defeated in her semifinal match by second seed and eventual champion Maria Sharapova. Seeded fourteenth at the
Sony Open Tennis The Miami Open (also known as the Miami Masters, and currently branded as the Miami Open presented by Itaú for sponsorship reasons) is a tennis tournament held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. It is part of the men's ATP Tour Mas ...
, Kirilenko lost in the third round to twenty-first seed Klára Zakopalová. Seeded third in Mexico at the
Monterrey Open The Monterrey Open is a professional women's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. The event is affiliated with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), and is part of the 250 series on the WTA Tour. From 2009 to 2013, the tournament wa ...
, Kirilenko made it to the semifinal where she was defeated by top seed and eventual finalist
Angelique Kerber Angelique Kerber (; born 18 January 1988) is a German professional tennis player. She has been ranked as high as world No. 1, for a total of 34 weeks, and won three major titles at the 2016 Australian Open, the 2016 US Open, and the 2018 Wim ...
. In the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was cha ...
semifinal tie versus Slovakia, Kirilenko lost her first match to Daniela Hantuchová but beat Dominika Cibulková in her final match. Russia won 3-2 to advance to the final in November versus Italy. Kirilenko began her preparation for the French Open at the
Mutua Madrid Open The Madrid Open ( es, Masters de Madrid, link=no), currently sponsored by Mutua Madrileña and known as the Mutua Madrid Open, is a joint men's and women's professional tennis tournament, held in Madrid, during early May. The clay-court event is ...
. Seeded thirteenth, she was defeated in the third round by top seed, defending champion, and eventual champion Serena Williams. Seeded twelfth at the Italian Open, Kirilenko retired during her third-round match against seventh seed Sara Errani due to a left knee injury. Seeded twelfth at the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
, Kirilenko defeated
Nina Bratchikova Nina Bratchikova (russian: Нина Олеговна Братчикова; born 28 June 1985) is a Russian former professional tennis player. Bratchikova won nine singles and 35 doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. On 10 December 2012, s ...
,
Ashleigh Barty Ashleigh is the feminine form of the Old English name Ashley (given name), Ashley, which means "dweller near the ash tree forest". It is most common in the United States and United Kingdom. Notable people B *Ashleigh Ball (born 1983), Canadian ...
to advance to the third round where she defeated Stefanie Vögele. In the fourth round, she defeated Bethanie Mattek-Sands to reach her first quarterfinal at the French Open. She subsequently lost her quarterfinal match to her former doubles partner and third seed Victoria Azarenka. Her run in Paris catapulted her into the top 10 for the first time. Seeded sixth at the
Aegon International The Eastbourne International is a tennis tournament on the WTA Tour and the ATP Tour held at the Devonshire Park Lawn Tennis Club, Eastbourne, United Kingdom. Held since 1974, it is classified as a WTA 500 series on the WTA Tour and an ATP Tour ...
, Kirilenko was suffering from a knee injury, but she still made it through to the quarterfinal where she was defeated by Yanina Wickmayer. Seeded tenth at the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
, Kirilenko suffered a first-round upset at the hands of home crowd favorite
Laura Robson Laura Robson (born 21 January 1994) is a British former professional tennis player. She debuted on the ITF Junior Circuit in 2007, and a year later won the Junior Wimbledon championships at the age of 14. As a junior, she also twice reached th ...
. As a result, Kirilenko dropped to No. 12 in the world rankings due to the fact that she was defending a quarterfinal appearance from 2012. Kirilenko started her US Open series at the
Rogers Cup The Canadian Open (french: Tournoi de tennis du Canada), also known as the Canada Masters, and currently branded as the National Bank Open presented by Rogers for sponsorship reasons, is an annual tennis tournament held in Ontario and Quebec. T ...
. Seeded eleventh, she lost in the second round to Alizé Cornet. Seeded sixteenth at the Western & Southern Open, Kirilenko was defeated in the second round by
Mona Barthel Mona Barthel (born 11 July 1990) is a German tennis player. Barthel has won four singles and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, one doubles title on the WTA Challenger Tour as well as five singles titles and one doubles title on the ITF Cir ...
. Seeded fourteenth at the US Open, Kirilenko lost in the third round to twenty-first seed
Simona Halep Simona Halep (; born 27 September 1991) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles twice between 2017 and 2019, for a total of 64 weeks, which ranks eleventh in the history of the Women's Tennis Assoc ...
. Kirilenko started the Asian swing at the Korea Open. Seeded second, she was defeated in the second round by Kimiko Date-Krumm. In Beijing at the China Open, Kirilenko lost in the third round to top seed and eventual champion Serena Williams. Seeded third at the
Kremlin Cup The Kremlin Cup (russian: Кубок Кремля) is a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts, which was suspended in 2022. It was part of the ATP Tour 250 series of the ATP Tour and was a Premier Tournament on the WTA ...
, Kirilenko was defeated in the second round by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Injury ended her season at the Garanti Koza WTA Tournament of Champions in Sofia with a 0–5 retirement loss to Alizé Cornet. Kirilenko ended the year ranked 19.


2014: Last season

Kirilenko was not listed on any entry lists for 2014 tournaments, still recovering from the knee injury suffered in the Tournament of Champions in Sofia. She also missed the
Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...
due to the injury. After missing the pair of Premier Mandatory events at Indian Wells and
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, Kirilenko made her comeback at the
Family Circle Cup The Credit One Charleston Open, formerly known as the Volvo Car Open and the Family Circle Cup, is a WTA Tour-affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, held every year since 1973. It is the oldest professional all-women's tournament in ...
in Charleston. Seeded tenth, she was upset in the first round by qualifier
Belinda Bencic Belinda Bencic ( sk, Belinda Benčičová, ; born 10 March 1997) is a Swiss professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of No. 4 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) which she achieved in February 2020. Bencic has won six singl ...
, who eventually reached her first WTA semifinal. At the
Mutua Madrid Open The Madrid Open ( es, Masters de Madrid, link=no), currently sponsored by Mutua Madrileña and known as the Mutua Madrid Open, is a joint men's and women's professional tennis tournament, held in Madrid, during early May. The clay-court event is ...
, Kirilenko defeated qualifier Kristina Mladenovic in the first round to recorded her first victory of the year. She withdrew from her second-round match against qualifier
Caroline Garcia Caroline Garcia (, born 16 October 1993) is a French professional tennis player. She has been ranked in the top 5 in both singles at world No. 4 and in doubles at world No. 2. Garcia is the 2022 WTA Finals singles champion. She is also a two-ti ...
due to a left wrist injury. In Rome at the Italian Open, Kirilenko lost to Svetlana Kuznetsova in the first round. Kirilenko exited in the first round at the
French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...
, winning three games against
Johanna Larsson Johanna Larsson (; born 17 August 1988) is a Swedish former tennis player. She won two singles and 14 doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as 13 singles and 17 doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. Her career-high WTA rankings are No. ...
. As a result, her ranking plunged 44 places down to 88 after failing to defend quarterfinal points. Kirilenko played the pre-Wimbledon tournament in Rosmalen at the
Topshelf Open The Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, branded by its sponsored name as the Libéma Open since 2018, (formerly known as the Continental Grass Court Championships, Heineken Trophy, Ordina Open, UNICEF Open, Topshelf Open and RICOH Open), is a pro ...
but lost to Mona Barthel in the first round. Kirilenko entered the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, All England Club in ...
ranked 109, her lowest ranking in five years. She caused an upset by defeating eighteenth seed and the previous year's quarterfinalist Sloane Stephens in the first round. She was defeated in the second round by Peng Shuai. After a month-long break, Kirilenko entered the US Open unseeded and drew fifth seed and 2006 champion Maria Sharapova in the first round. She lost the match in straight sets. In Seoul, South Korea at the Korea Open, Kirilenko participated as a wildcard. She reached her first quarterfinal in 15 months by defeating
Donna Vekić Donna Vekić (; born 28 June 1996) is a Croatian professional tennis player and businesswoman. She has won three singles titles on the WTA Tour – at the 2014 Malaysian Open, at the 2017 Nottingham Open, and the 2021 Courmayeur Ladies Open. S ...
and third seed Klára Koukalová in her first two matches. She then defeated sixth seed Kaia Kanepi for a place in the semifinals. Her run came to an end in the hands of second seed and eventual champion
Karolína Plíšková Karolína Hrdličková ( née Plíšková; ; born 21 March 1992) is a Czech professional tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 in singles, reaching the top of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) rankings on 17 July 2017 and holding the pos ...
. Kirilenko played her final tournament of the season at the China Open. She was defeated in the first round by qualifier Tsvetana Pironkova. Kirilenko ended the year ranked 186.


2015–present

Between 2015 and 2017, Kirilenko gave birth to two children, and has since not returned to professional tennis. She has not competed professionally since 2014, and is not ranked by the WTA.


Fashion

In 2006, Kirilenko was selected to be the face of
Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...
tennis gear designed by noted British fashion designer
Stella McCartney Stella Nina McCartney (born 13 September 1971) is an English fashion designer. She is a daughter of British singer-songwriter Paul McCartney and the late American photographer and animals rights activist Linda McCartney. Like her parents, McCa ...
and played exclusively in it for three years. In 2009, she was replaced by
Caroline Wozniacki Caroline Wozniacki (; born 11 July 1990) is a Danish former professional tennis player. She was ranked world No. 1 in singles for a total of 71 weeks, including at the end of 2010 and 2011. She achieved the top ranking for the first time on 11 ...
following the US Open. She appeared in the 2009 ''
Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition The ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit Issue is published annually by American magazine ''Sports Illustrated'' and features female fashion models, celebrities and athletes wearing swimwear in various locales around the world. The highly coveted cov ...
'' alongside
Daniela Hantuchová Daniela Hantuchová (; born 23 April 1983) is a Slovak tennis commentator and retired player. She turned professional in 1999 and had her breakthrough year in 2002, when she won her first WTA Tour title at the Indian Wells Masters, defeating Mar ...
and
Tatiana Golovin Tatiana Golovin ( rus, Татья́на Григóрьевна Головина́, r=Tatyana Grigoryevna Golovina; born 25 January 1988) is a Russian-born French professional tennis player. She won the 2004 French Open mixed-doubles event, partn ...
in a pictorial entitled "Volley of the Dolls".


Personal life

Kirilenko dated fellow Russian tennis player
Igor Andreev Igor Valeryevich Andreev (russian: link=no, И́горь Вале́рьевич Андре́ев, BGN/PCGN: ''Andreyev'', ISO 9: ''Andreev'', ; born 14 July 1983) is a Russian former professional tennis player. He won three ATP Tour singles ti ...
for several years. They split in 2011. In November 2011, Russian ice-hockey player
Alexander Ovechkin Alexander Mikhailovich Ovechkin ( rus, Александр Михайлович Овечкин, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ɐˈvʲetɕkʲɪn; born 17 September 1985) is a Russian professional ice hockey left winger and captain of the Washington Capitals ...
of the
Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL) ...
identified Kirilenko as his girlfriend on his Twitter account. On 31 December 2012, Ovechkin confirmed the rumors that he and Kirilenko were engaged. In July 2014, she called off her planned wedding saying in comments distributed by the Russian Tennis Federation that there were "a lot of reasons" behind her decision. Ovechkin had faced questions from Russian media about the relationship when he did not accompany Kirilenko to Wimbledon in June. On 24 January 2015, Kirilenko got married but the name of her husband was not revealed until a few days later: she married Alexei Stepanov, reported to be the head of the Committee of Public Services in Moscow. In July 2015, following a ten-month absence from professional tennis, it was reported that Kirilenko had given birth to a baby boy. In July 2017, Kirilenko gave birth to a baby girl.


Career statistics


Grand Slam performance timelines


Singles


Doubles


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirilenko, Maria 1987 births Living people Tennis players from Moscow Russian female tennis players Russian people of Ukrainian descent US Open (tennis) junior champions Tennis players at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic tennis players of Russia Olympic medalists in tennis Olympic bronze medalists for Russia Grand Slam (tennis) champions in girls' singles Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics