Karolina Šprem
Encyclopedia
Karolina Šprem was a Croatia
n tennis
player.
She has won eight titles (seven singles, one doubles) all at the ITF
level. She has not won any titles on the WTA Tour. Career highlight is a quarterfinal appearance at Wimbledon
in 2004 where she defeated two-time champion, four-time finalist and then-world No. 8 Venus Williams
in the second round before losing to Lindsay Davenport
in the quarterfinal. The umpire of her match against Venus Williams awarded her an extra point in the second set tie break. He was relieved of his duties after the end of the match.
In her first two WTA-tournaments she reached the finals, however in late 2004 her form declined. She began training with Borna Bikic, who at that time was brother of the boyfriend of Jelena Dokić
.
In late 2007 Šprem announced a permanent split from Bikic, and returned to her old coach. Still, she had to cope with a serious elbow injury. In April 2008 she successfully returned to the pro-tour winning in Amelia Island over Ai Sugiyama
and top 10 player Daniela Hantuchová
, before falling to Lindsay Davenport
in the third round.
In July 2008, Šprem made the semi-finals of a Tier III event in Budapest, eventually losing to Andreja Klepač.
In 2009, Karolina came back in the top 100, with a main draw entry in the Australian Open, Winning Qualifier rounds at Paris and the Sony Ericsson open. Karolina has won 2 ITF single tournamnets, Beating Kirsten Flipkens
of Belgium in Biberach, Germany and defeating Viktoriya Kutuzova
in Torhout, Belgium
At the start of 2009, Šprem changed from a Wilson
K-factor Blade 98 to a Tecnifibre
racquet.
In 2010, she scored one of her biggest wins in years when she defeated 25th seed Anabel Medina Garrigues
at the 2010 Australian Open
. She followed this up with a tight loss to Australian wildcard Casey Dellacqua
At the 2010 Open GDF Suez
in Paris Šprem won through three rounds of qualifying to reach the main draw of the Premier event. In the first round she defeated Swiss no. 2 Timea Bacsinszky
before losing to 6th seed Shahar Pe'er
in the second round.
In 2011, Sprem started her campaign with a first round qualifying win at the Brisbane International
defeating Doi of Japan in 3 sets. In the second round, she lost to Anna Tatishvili
in 3 sets. Her next tournament was the Medibank International where she defeated American Christina McHale
again in the qualis in a rain interrupted match. She the lost to Ekaterina Makarova
7-6 6-3. She now faces Chanelle Scheepers
of South Africa in the first round at the Australian Open
.
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player.
She has won eight titles (seven singles, one doubles) all at the ITF
International Tennis Federation
The International Tennis Federation is the governing body of world tennis, made up of 205 national tennis associations.It was established as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by 12 national associations meeting at a conference in Paris, France on 1 March 1913...
level. She has not won any titles on the WTA Tour. Career highlight is a quarterfinal appearance at Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
in 2004 where she defeated two-time champion, four-time finalist and then-world No. 8 Venus Williams
Venus Williams
Venus Ebony Starr Williams is an American professional tennis player who is a former World No. 1 and is ranked World No. 101 as of 10 October 2011 in singles and World No. 20 in doubles as of 2011. She has been ranked World No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association on three separate...
in the second round before losing to Lindsay Davenport
Lindsay Davenport
Lindsay Ann Davenport is a former World No. 1 American professional tennis player. She has won three Grand Slam singles tournaments and an Olympic gold medal in singles. In 2005, TENNIS Magazine ranked her as the 29th-best player of the preceding forty years...
in the quarterfinal. The umpire of her match against Venus Williams awarded her an extra point in the second set tie break. He was relieved of his duties after the end of the match.
In her first two WTA-tournaments she reached the finals, however in late 2004 her form declined. She began training with Borna Bikic, who at that time was brother of the boyfriend of Jelena Dokić
Jelena Dokic
Jelena Dokić is an Australian female professional tennis player.During the height of her career, she played for Serbia and Montenegro and reached a career-high ranking of World No. 4 on 19 August 2002. After several family-related difficulties , she slowly slipped down the rankings in 2006...
.
In late 2007 Šprem announced a permanent split from Bikic, and returned to her old coach. Still, she had to cope with a serious elbow injury. In April 2008 she successfully returned to the pro-tour winning in Amelia Island over Ai Sugiyama
Ai Sugiyama
is a retired Japanese professional tennis player. She reached No. 1 in women's doubles on the WTA Tour. Her career-high singles ranking was No. 8, achieved on February 9, 2004. She turned professional in 1992...
and top 10 player Daniela Hantuchová
Daniela Hantuchová
Daniela Hantuchová is a Slovak professional tennis player. She turned professional in 1999 and had her breakthrough year in 2002, when she won her first Tier I tournament and ended the year in the top 10.She is currently coached by Larri Passos...
, before falling to Lindsay Davenport
Lindsay Davenport
Lindsay Ann Davenport is a former World No. 1 American professional tennis player. She has won three Grand Slam singles tournaments and an Olympic gold medal in singles. In 2005, TENNIS Magazine ranked her as the 29th-best player of the preceding forty years...
in the third round.
In July 2008, Šprem made the semi-finals of a Tier III event in Budapest, eventually losing to Andreja Klepač.
In 2009, Karolina came back in the top 100, with a main draw entry in the Australian Open, Winning Qualifier rounds at Paris and the Sony Ericsson open. Karolina has won 2 ITF single tournamnets, Beating Kirsten Flipkens
Kirsten Flipkens
Kirsten Flipkens is a professional female Belgian tennis player since 2003. Her career high rank for singles is No. 59 . She won 10 ITF Singles titles, and 1 ITF Doubles title....
of Belgium in Biberach, Germany and defeating Viktoriya Kutuzova
Viktoriya Kutuzova
Viktoriya Kutuzova is a female tennis player from Ukraine.On November 28, 2005, Kutuzova reached her highest singles ranking, World No. 76.Kutuzova remains most notable for her results as a 14 year old...
in Torhout, Belgium
At the start of 2009, Šprem changed from a Wilson
Wilson Sporting Goods
The Wilson Sporting Goods Company is a sports equipment manufacturer based in Chicago, Illinois, and currently is a foreign subsidiary of the Finnish company Amer Sports....
K-factor Blade 98 to a Tecnifibre
Tecnifibre
Tecnifibre is a sports equipment company , specializing in equipment for tennis and squash.-Tecnifibre Sponsorships in Tennis:...
racquet.
In 2010, she scored one of her biggest wins in years when she defeated 25th seed Anabel Medina Garrigues
Anabel Medina Garrigues
Ana Isabel Medina Garrigues , better known as Anabel Medina, is a Spanish female tennis player. She reached a career high WTA Tour ranking of No. 16 on 4 May 2009, and has won 11 singles titles and 14 doubles titles, including the 2008 French Open and 2009 French Open with Virginia Ruano Pascual...
at the 2010 Australian Open
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....
. She followed this up with a tight loss to Australian wildcard Casey Dellacqua
Casey Dellacqua
Casey Dellacqua is an Australian professional tennis player who currently resides in Perth, Western Australia. She was previously coached by former Australian player Nicole Pratt, before the two decided to part ways prior to the 2009 Australian Open...
At the 2010 Open GDF Suez
2010 Open GDF Suez
The 2010 Open GDF Suez was a women's professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 18th edition of the Open GDF Suez and was a Premier tournament on the 2010 WTA Tour...
in Paris Šprem won through three rounds of qualifying to reach the main draw of the Premier event. In the first round she defeated Swiss no. 2 Timea Bacsinszky
Timea Bacsinszky
Timea Bacsinszky is a professional female tennis player residing in Belmont-sur-Lausanne, Switzerland. She joined the WTA Tour in 2004 and was ranked World No. 37 on 7 June 2010....
before losing to 6th seed Shahar Pe'er
Shahar Pe'er
Shahar Pe'er is an Israeli professional tennis player. Her career-high singles ranking is World No. 11, which she achieved on January 31, 2011 ....
in the second round.
In 2011, Sprem started her campaign with a first round qualifying win at the Brisbane International
Brisbane International
The Brisbane International is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It is currently part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the Association of Tennis Professionals World Tour and of the WTA Premier tournaments of the Women's Tennis Association Tour...
defeating Doi of Japan in 3 sets. In the second round, she lost to Anna Tatishvili
Anna Tatishvili
Anna Tatishvili is a professional Georgian tennis player. Her highest WTA singles ranking is No. 84, which she reached on 4 July, 2011. Her career high in doubles is 107, which she reached on April 12, 2010...
in 3 sets. Her next tournament was the Medibank International where she defeated American Christina McHale
Christina McHale
Christina McHale is a professional American tennis player. Her highest WTA singles ranking is No. 45, and in doubles it is No. 171. McHale has beaten numerous top WTA tour players, including current world no...
again in the qualis in a rain interrupted match. She the lost to Ekaterina Makarova
Ekaterina Makarova
Ekaterina Valeryevna Makarova is a professional Russian tennis player. She achieved her career high ranking of number 29 on June 6, 2011.-Career:...
7-6 6-3. She now faces Chanelle Scheepers
Chanelle Scheepers
Chanelle Scheepers is a South African professional tennis player. Her career high WTA singles ranking is No. 37, which she reached on 10 October 2011. Her career high doubles ranking is 91, set at 30 August 2010....
of South Africa in the first round at the Australian Open
Australian Open
The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court...
.
WTA singles finals (3)
| No. | Outcome | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponents in the final | Score |
| 1. | Runner–up | May 24, 2003 |  StrasbourgStrasbourg Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,... (Tier III) |
Clay |  Silvia Farina EliaSilvia Farina Elia Silvia Farina Elia is a former female tennis player from Italy. She reached a career high of World No. 11 on 20 May 2002. She won her first ITF title at Caltagirone in 1991 and her first WTA tournament at Strasbourg in 2001... |
3-6, 6-4, 4-6 |
| 2. | Runner–up | June 14, 2003 |  ViennaVienna Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre... (Tier III) |
Clay |  Paola SuárezPaola Suárez Paola Suárez was a top 10 tennis player in the early 2000s. She gained prominence in 2004 by reaching the finals of nine straight WTA doubles tournaments, and by reaching the singles semifinals of the French Open tournament, held in Paris."La Negra" Suárez began playing professional tennis at the... |
6(0)-7, 6-2, 4-6 |
| 3. | Runner–up | September 25, 2005 |  KolkataKolkata Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India... (Tier III) |
Hard |  Anastasia MyskinaAnastasia Myskina Anastasiya Andreyevna Myskina is a professional tennis player from Russia. She won the 2004 French Open singles title, becoming the first Russian female tennis player to win a Grand Slam main draw singles title. Subsequent to this victory she rose to number 3 on the WTA ranking, becoming the first... |
2-6, 2-6 |
ITF singles finals (14)
| No. | Outcome | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponents in the final | Score |
| 1. | Runner–up | September 2, 2001 |  MostarMostar Mostar is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the largest and one of the most important cities in the Herzegovina region and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva river and is the fifth-largest city in the country... ($10,000) |
Clay | Adriana Basaric |
4-6, 3-6 |
| 2. | Winner | January 27, 2002 | Courmayer ($10,000) |
Hard |  Stefanie Weis |
4-6, 7-6(3), 6-4 |
| 3. | Winner | February 17, 2002 | Bergamo Bergamo Bergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan... ($10,000) |
Hard | Rita Degli-Esposti |
6-1, 6-2 |
| 4. | Runner–up | March 31, 2002 | Rome - Parioli Parioli Parioli is a neighbourhood in the north of Rome, Italy. The name comes from Monti Parioli, a series of tufa hills, and was given to the area before its incorporation into the city proper at the beginning of the 20th century... ($10,000) |
Clay | Dinara Safina Dinara Safina Dinara Mikhailovna Safina , born April 27, 1986 in Moscow, is a Russian professional tennis player of Tatar background. Safina's career high ranking is World No. 1.... |
7-6(3), 2-6, 3-6 |
| 5. | Runner–up | June 23, 2002 | Gorizia Gorizia Gorizia is a town and comune in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia, and it is a local center of tourism, industry, and commerce. Since 1947, a twin... ($25,000) |
Clay |  Ainhoa Goni-Blanco |
6(4)-7, 1-6 |
| 6. | Runner–up | August 11, 2002 | Rimini Rimini Rimini is a medium-sized city of 142,579 inhabitants in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia and Ausa... ($25,000) |
Clay | Laurence Andretto |
5-7, 4-6 |
| 7. | Winner | January 26, 2003 | Grenoble Grenoble Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère... ($10,000) |
Hard | Sophie Lefèvre Sophie Lefèvre Sophie Lefèvre is a professional French tennis player. On September 15, 2003, she reached her highest WTA singles ranking of 216. Her highest doubles ranking was 87 reached on May 18, 2009.-External links:... |
7-5, 7-5 |
| 8. | Winner | February 16, 2003 |  SouthamptonSouthampton Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest... ($25,000) |
Hard |  Magdalena Zdenovcova |
6-1, 3-0 RET |
| 9. | Winner | February 23, 2003 | Redbridge Redbridge -Places:*London Borough of Redbridge**Redbridge, London, a place in that borough**Redbridge tube station*Redbridge, Kansas City, a neighborhood in South Kansas City, Missouri*Redbridge, Hampshire... ($25,000) |
Hard |  Olga BarabanschikovaOlga Barabanschikova Olga Barabanschikova is a professional Belarusian tennis player.Barabanschikova highest WTA singles ranking is 49th, which she reached on 2 March 1998. Her career high in doubles was at 81 set at 19 October 1998... |
6-3, 6-2 |
| 10. | Winner | March 23, 2003 | Castellon Castellón de la Plana Castellón de la Plana or Castelló de la Plana is the capital city of the province of Castelló, in the Valencian Community, Spain, in the east of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Costa del Azahar by the Mediterranean Sea... ($25,000) |
Clay |  Ľudmila CervanováLudmila Cervanová Ľudmila Cervanová is a professional female tennis player from Slovakia. She turned professional in 1997.Cervanová was born in Piešťany and currently still lives in her birthplace.... |
6-3, 6-3 |
| 11. | Winner | November 2, 2003 | Poitiers Poitiers Poitiers is a city on the Clain river in west central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and of the Poitou-Charentes region. The centre is picturesque and its streets are interesting for predominant remains of historical architecture, especially from the Romanesque... ($50,000) |
Hard | Roberta Vinci Roberta Vinci Roberta Vinci is an Italian tennis player. As of 29 August 2011, Vinci is ranked World No. 20, on the WTA Tour Rankings. Vinci has won thirteen WTA Tour titles, six in singles and seven in doubles.... |
6-4, 7-5 |
| 12. | Winner | March 1, 2009 | Biberach Biberach Biberach is the name of several locations in Germany.* Biberach an der Riss, a town in Upper Swabia* Biberach , which has Biberach an der Riss as its capital* Biberach, Baden, a municipality in the Ortenaukreis... ($50,000) |
Hard |  Kirsten FlipkensKirsten Flipkens Kirsten Flipkens is a professional female Belgian tennis player since 2003. Her career high rank for singles is No. 59 . She won 10 ITF Singles titles, and 1 ITF Doubles title.... |
6-1, 6-2 |
| 13. | Winner | April 11, 2009 | Torhout Torhout Torhout is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality only comprises the city of Torhout proper. On January 1, 2008 Torhout had a total population of 19,755... ($100,000+H) |
Hard |  Viktoriya KutuzovaViktoriya Kutuzova Viktoriya Kutuzova is a female tennis player from Ukraine.On November 28, 2005, Kutuzova reached her highest singles ranking, World No. 76.Kutuzova remains most notable for her results as a 14 year old... |
6-1, 6-4 |
| 14. | Winner | April 11, 2009 | Mestre Mestre Mestre is a city part of the comune of Venice, in Veneto, northern Italy.The city is connected to Venice by a large rail and road bridge, called Ponte della Libertà .... ($50,000+H) |
Hard | Yvonne Meusburger Yvonne Meusburger Yvonne Meusburger is a tennis player from Austria. She is currently the country's third highest ranked female player. Her career high ranking is No. 60, a ranking she achieved on 19 November 2007.-Tennis career:... |
2-6, 6-2, 6-4 |
ITF doubles final (1)
| No. | Outcome | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score |
| 1. | Winner | November 24, 2002 |  ZagrebZagreb Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city... ($10,000) |
Hard | Mervana Jugić-Salkić Mervana Jugic-Salkic Mervana Jugić-Salkić is a Bosnian tennis player. She turned professional in 1999, and reached her highest singles ranking on 21 June 2004, when she was ranked Word No. 99. On 10 July 2006, Jugić-Salkić reached No. 59 in doubles, after winning ASB Classic in 2004 with Jelena Kostanić and... |
Jelena Kostanić Jelena Kostanic Jelena Kostanić Tošić is a retired professional female tennis player from Croatia. On July 26, 2004 she reached her career-high singles ranking: World No. 32... Matea MezakMatea Mezak Matea Mezak is a Croatian professional tennis player. She has been on the ITF circuit since 2004, with six doubles titles and five singles wins.... |
6–2, 6-4 |
Grand Slam singles performance timeline
| Tournament | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open Australian Open The Australian Open is the only Grand Slam tennis tournament held in the southern hemisphere. The tournament was held for the first time in 1905 and was last contested on grass in 1987. Since 1972 the Australian Open has been held in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1988, the tournament became a hard court... |
1R | 4R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 2R 2010 Australian Open – Women's Singles Serena Williams defended her title after winning 6–4, 3–6, 6–2 against Justine Henin in the final.-Seeds:# Serena Williams # Dinara Safina ... |
2R 2011 Australian Open – Women's Singles Serena Williams was the defending champion, but could not defend her title due to a foot injury sustained in the middle of the 2010 season.Kim Clijsters won her first Australian Open title and fourth Grand Slam overall by beating Li Na 3–6, 6–3, 6–3 in the final match... |
||
| French Open | 1R | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R 2009 French Open – Women's Singles Ana Ivanović was the defending champion, but lost in the fourth round to Victoria Azarenka.Svetlana Kuznetsova won in the final 6–4, 6–2, against Dinara Safina in 74 minutes. It was the third all-Russian final in Grand Slam history, and the first since 2004... |
1R 2010 French Open – Women's Singles Svetlana Kuznetsova was the defending champion, but lost in the third round to Maria Kirilenko.Francesca Schiavone defeated Samantha Stosur 6–4, 7–6 in the final and became the first Italian woman to win a Grand Slam tournament.-Seeds:... |
|||
| Wimbledon | 2R | QF | 1R | 3R | 1R | 2R 2010 Wimbledon Championships – Women's Singles The Women's Singles event at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships saw defending champion and top seed Serena Williams successfully defend her title with a 6–3, 6–2 win over Vera Zvonareva in the final, whilst failing to lose a set throughout the entire tournament... |
|||
| US Open | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | LQ | 1R 2010 US Open – Women's Singles Kim Clijsters was the defending champion, and successfully defended her 2009 title, after she won 6–2, 6–1, against Vera Zvonareva in the final. This match lasted only one hour.-Seeds:# Caroline Wozniacki # Kim Clijsters ... |
External links
- Ajmo K-Lina - Official Karolina Šprem website