2006 Maria Sharapova tennis season

Results and statistics from Maria Sharapova's 2006 tennis season.

2006 Maria Sharapova tennis season
Maria Sharapova won her second Grand Slam title at the US Open.
Full nameMaria Sharapova
Country Russia
Singles
Calendar titles5
Year-end rankingNo. 2
Ranking change from previous year2
Grand Slam & significant results
Australian OpenSF
French Open4R
WimbledonSF
US OpenW
Last updated on: 3 February 2013.

Yearly summary

Australian Open series

Maria Sharapova began her season at the Australian Open, as the fourth seed. After overcoming a tricky section which included Serena Williams and Daniela Hantuchová, she reached the semi-finals for the second (of four) consecutive year, where she fell in three sets to Justine Henin-Hardenne.[1]

Indian Wells & Miami

Sharapova won her first title of the year at Indian Wells, by defeating compatriot Elena Dementieva in the final in straight sets; it was her first title since she won Birmingham in 2005, and it was the eleventh final out of the last thirteen contested in which she won.[2] Her good form continued into Miami, where she also reached the final for the second consecutive year. However, she was defeated in straight sets by Svetlana Kuznetsova; this marked only the fourth final in which she lost.[3] After the latter defeat, Sharapova took two months off the Tour to recover from a foot injury.

European clay court season

Sharapova was seeded fourth at the French Open. In the first round, she overcame Mashona Washington, saving three match points in the process.[4] She then lost in the fourth round to Dinara Safina (after leading 5–1 in the final set), thus failing to make the quarter-finals of the French Open for the first time since 2003.[5]

Wimbledon

Sharapova was again seeded fourth at Wimbledon, where she reached the semi-finals for the third consecutive year. After winning her first three matches in straight sets, she was more sternly tested by Flavia Pennetta in the fourth round, but still pulled through in three sets.

In the final eight, she faced first-time Wimbledon quarter-finalist Elena Dementieva and won through in straight sets after a streaker briefly interrupted the match in the second set.[6]

In the semi-finals, she lost to Amélie Mauresmo, who eventually captured the title.[7] This marked the fifth time since her Wimbledon victory in 2004 in which she lost to the eventual champion at a Major, and also the fifth time in which she was defeated in the semi-finals of a Major tournament.

US Open series

In the lead-up to the US Open, Sharapova captured her second title of the season by defeating Kim Clijsters in the final of the Acura Classic in San Diego, and in doing so claimed her first victory over the Belgian in five attempts.[8]

Sharapova entered the US Open as the third seed. She defeated Michaëlla Krajicek, Émilie Loit, Elena Likhovtseva, Li Na and Tatiana Golovin all in straight sets, before being tested in three sets by World No. 1 Amélie Mauresmo, who had beaten her at Wimbledon earlier in the year. Sharapova would be too good for the Frenchwoman this time, winning in three sets, two of which were won without dropping a game.[9] In the final, she faced Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne, who had previously captured the title in 2003 (and would do so again in 2007), and recorded an impressive straight sets victory to claim her second Grand Slam title at just 19 years of age.[10]

Fall series

After her success at the us open she won back to back titles at the tier 1 Zurich Open by defeating Shahar Pe'er, Timea Bacsinszky, Katarina Srebotnik, Daniela Hantuchova. She also won the tier 2 Linz Open by defeating Nadia Petrova in the final and thus taking her 5th title of the year.

WTA Tour Championships

Sharapova qualified for the year-end WTA Tour Championships for the third consecutive year, having captured five titles during the regular season. As the second seed, she was drawn in the Red Group along with Kim Clijsters, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Elena Dementieva. Sharapova went through the round robin stage undefeated, and thus qualified for the semi-finals after finishing first in the group.

The semi-final saw her up against Justine Henin-Hardenne for the fourth time in the year. Sharapova was defeated in straight sets, thus bringing an end to her otherwise impressive 2006 season.

All matches

This table chronicles all the matches of Sharapova in 2006, including walkovers (W/O) which the WTA does not count as wins. They are marked ND for non-decision or no decision.

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 matches

Tournament # Round Opponent Result Score
Australian Open
Melbourne, Australia
Grand Slam
Hard, outdoor
16–29 January 2006
1
1R
Sandra Klösel
Win
6–2, 6–1
2
2R
Ashley Harkleroad
Win
6–1, 7–5
3
3R
Jelena Kostanić
Win
6–0, 6–1
4
4R
Daniela Hantuchová
Win
6–4, 6–4
5
QF
Nadia Petrova
Win
7–6(8–6), 6–4
6
SF
Justine Henin-Hardenne
Loss
6–4, 1–6, 4–6
Pacific Life Open
Indian Wells, United States of America
Tier I
Hard, outdoor
6–19 March 2006
1R
Bye
2R
Jamea Jackson
Win
6–4, 6–3
3R
Lisa Raymond
Win
6–4, 6–0
4R
Shahar Pe'er
Win
7–6(7–2), 6–1
QF
Anna-Lena Grönefeld
Win
6–1, 6–3
SF
Martina Hingis
Win
6–3, 6–3
W
Elena Dementieva
Win (1)
6–1, 6–2
NASDAQ-100 Open
Miami, United States of America
Tier I
Hard, outdoor
20 March–2 April 2006
1R
Bye
2R
Li Na
Win
6–2, 6–4
3R
Maria Elena Camerin
Win
6–2, 7–6(7–2)
4R
Maria Kirilenko
Win
3–6, 6–4, 6–1
QF
Anastasia Myskina
Win
6–4, 6–4
SF
Tatiana Golovin
Win
6–3, 6–7(5–7), 4–3, ret.
F
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Loss (2)
4–6, 3–6
French Open
Paris, France
Grand Slam
Clay, outdoor
28 May–11 June 2006
1R
Mashona Washington
Win
6–2, 5–7, 7–5
2R
Iveta Benešová
Win
6–4, 6–1
3R
Alicia Molik
Win
6–0, 7–5
4R
Dinara Safina
Loss
5–7, 6–2, 5–7
Wimbledon
London, Great Britain
Grand Slam
Grass, outdoor
26 June–9 July 2006
1R
Anna Smashnova
Win
6–2, 6–0
2R
Ashley Harkleroad
Win
6–2, 6–2
3R
Amy Frazier
Win
6–3, 6–2
4R
Flavia Pennetta
Win
7–6(7–5), 3–6, 6–3
QF
Elena Dementieva
Win
6–1, 6–4
SF
Amélie Mauresmo
Loss
3–6, 6–3, 2–6
Acura Classic
San Diego, United States of America
Tier I
Hard, outdoor
29 July–6 August 2006
1R
Bye
2R
Vasilisa Bardina
Win
6–4, 6–1
3R
Vera Zvonareva
Win
6–4, 6–4
QF
Mary Pierce
Win
6–2, 6–3
SF
Patty Schnyder
Win
7–5, 6–4
W
Kim Clijsters
Win (2)
7–5, 7–5
US Open
New York City, United States of America
Grand Slam
Hard, outdoor
28 August–10 September 2006
1R
Michaëlla Krajicek
Win
6–3, 6–0
2R
Émilie Loit
Win
6–0, 6–1
3R
Elena Likhovtseva
Win
6–3, 6–2
4R
Li Na
Win
6–4, 6–2
QF
Tatiana Golovin
Win
7–6(7–4), 7–6(7–0)
SF
Amélie Mauresmo
Win
6–0, 4–6, 6–0
W
Justine Henin-Hardenne
Win (3)
6–4, 6–4
Zurich Open
Zurich, Switzerland
Tier I
Hard, indoor
16–22 October 2006
1R
Bye
2R
Shahar Pe'er
Win
6–4, 7–6(7–4)
QF
Timea Bacsinszky
Win
6–4, 6–3
SF
Katarina Srebotnik
Win
7–6(7–3), 6–2
W
Daniela Hantuchová
Win (4)
6–1, 4–6, 6–3
Generali Ladies Linz
Linz, Austria
Tier II
Hard, indoor
23–29 October 2006
1R
Bye
2R
Eleni Daniilidou
Win
7–5, 6–1
QF
Ana Ivanovic
Win
7–6(7–3), 7–5
SF
Patty Schnyder
Win
7–5, 7–5
W
Nadia Petrova
Win (5)
7–5, 6–2
WTA Tour Championships
Madrid, Spain
WTA Tour Championships
Hard, indoor
7–12 November 2006
RR
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Win
6–1, 6–4
RR
Kim Clijsters
Win
6–4, 6–4
RR
Elena Dementieva
Win
6–1, 6–4
SF
Justine Henin-Hardenne
Loss
2–6, 6–7(5–7)

Tournament schedule

Singles Schedule

Date Championship Location Category Surface Prev. result New result Outcome
16 January 2006–
29 January 2006
Australian OpenMelbourne (AUS)Grand Slam tournamentHardSFSFLost in the semi-finals against Justine Henin-Hardenne
6 March 2006–
19 March 2006
Pacific Life OpenIndian Wells (USA)Tier IHardSFWWon in the final against Elena Dementieva
20 March 2006–
2 April 2006
NASDAQ-100 OpenMiami (USA)Tier IHardFFLost in the final against Svetlana Kuznetsova
28 May 2006–
11 June 2006
French OpenParis (FRA)Grand Slam tournamentClayQF4RLost in the fourth round against Dinara Safina
26 June 2006–
9 July 2006
The Championships, WimbledonLondon (GBR)Grand Slam tournamentGrassSFSFLost in the semi-finals against Amélie Mauresmo
29 July 2006–
6 August 2006
Acura ClassicSan Diego (USA)Tier IHardDNPWWon in the final against Kim Clijsters
28 August 2006–
10 September 2006
US OpenNew York (USA)Grand Slam tournamentHardSFWWon in the final against Justine Henin-Hardenne
16 October 2006–
22 October 2006
Zurich OpenZurich (SUI)Tier IHard (i)DNPWWon in the final against Daniela Hantuchová
23 October 2006–
29 October 2006
Generali Ladies LinzLinz (AUT)Tier IIHard (i)DNPWWon in the final against Nadia Petrova
7 November 2006–
12 November 2006
WTA Tour ChampionshipsMadrid (ESP)WTA Tour ChampionshipsHardSFSFLost in the semi-finals against Justine Henin-Hardenne

Yearly Records

Head-to-head matchups

Ordered by number of wins

Singles: 7 (5–2)

Category
Grand Slam (1–0)
WTA Tier I (3–1)
WTA Tier II (1–1)
Titles by surface
Hard (5–2)
Titles by conditions
Outdoors (3–2)
Indoors (2–0)
OutcomeNo.DateChampionshipSurfaceOpponent in the finalScore in the final
Runner-up 3. February 26, 2006 Dubai, United Arab Emirates Hard Justine Henin-Hardenne 5–7, 2–6
Winner 11. March 19, 2006 Indian Wells, USA (1) Hard Elena Dementieva 6–1, 6–2
Runner-up 4. April 1, 2006 Miami, USA (2) Hard Svetlana Kuznetsova 4–6, 3–6
Winner 12. August 6, 2006 San Diego, USA (1) Hard Kim Clijsters 7–5, 7–5
Winner 13. September 9, 2006 New York City, USA (1) Hard Justine Henin-Hardenne 4–6, 4–6
Winner 14. October 22, 2006 Zurich, Switzerland Hard (i) Daniela Hantuchová 6–1, 4–6, 6–3
Winner 15. October 29, 2006 Linz, Austria Hard (i) Nadia Petrova 7–5, 6–2

See also

References

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