Lucie Šafárová
Encyclopedia
Lucie Šafářová (ˈlutsɪjɛ ˈʃafaːr̝ovaː) (born 4 February 1987) is a professional Czech
tennis player. She was born in Brno
.
Šafářová has won four WTA
tour singles titles and reached the quarterfinals of the 2007 Australian Open
, upsetting defending champion Amélie Mauresmo
en-route. She has reached ten singles finals: Estoril
(clay), 's-Hertogenbosch (grass), Forest Hills
(hardcourt) in 2005; Gold Coast
(hardcourt) in 2006; Open GDF Suez, Paris (carpet) in 2007; Forest Hills
in 2008; Bell Challenge
, Quebec City in 2009; Open GDF Suez, Paris (indoors) in 2010 and the BMW Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur and Danish Open, Copenhagen both in 2011. She is ranked World No. 27 as of 10 October 2011.
. Her timing off the ground allows her to project groundstrokes with power and she is quick to spot opportunities to take the initiative. Šafářová is notorious for having a volatile return, capable of hitting clean winners as well as unforced errors. Her preferred surface is clay
.
, 3–6, 6–2, 6–2. In August, she won her second tournament over Sania Mirza
in the final.
Šafářová started off 2006 with a straight sets victory in the final of the Gold Coast
tournament, upsetting world No. 6 Patty Schnyder
in the semifinal, en route to the title. Also in 2006, she made her first Tier II semifinal at Amelia Island
, upsetting Nicole Vaidišová
in the round of 16. She later lost to eventual champion Nadia Petrova
. Šafářová then made another semifinal, this time at the Tier IV Palermo
. She was later defeated by Anabel Medina Garrigues
.On August 19 she defeated Ana Ivanavic at the Rogers Cup in Toronto.
when she stunned the defending champion and No. 2 seed Amélie Mauresmo
in the fourth round, 6–4, 6–3. She then lost to fellow Czech Nicole Vaidišová
, 6–1, 6–4, in the quarterfinals. After the Australian Open, her ranking rose from No. 70 to No. 31.
Šafářová continued her good start to 2007 at the Open Gaz de France in Paris. She reached the final, defeating Tsvetana Pironkova
in three sets and Nicole Vaidišová, Svetlana Kuznetsova
and Justine Henin, all in straight sets. However, she failed against Nadia Petrova
(4–6, 6–1, 6–4). She pulled out of her next event in Antwerp due to a shoulder injury.
Šafářová lost in R3 of both Indian Wells and Miami to Shahar Pe'er
and Serena Williams
, respectively. She defeated Daniela Hantuchová
, 7–6, 4–6, 6–3, in the Czech Republic vs. Slovak Republic Fed Cup encounter. Šafářová then lost in the SF of Tier IV Estoril to Victoria Azarenka
, 6–4, 6–0.
At Roland Garros
, Šafářová defeated Mauresmo again, this time in the third round of Roland Garros
. She won, 6–3, 7–6(3). It was the second time in a row that Šafářová had beaten Mauresmo in a Grand Slam, after winning their only previous encounter in January at the Australian Open. In the next round, Šafářová lost in three sets to Anna Chakvetadze
.
As the #25 seed, Šafářová defeated Zuzana Ondrášková
at Wimbledon
, followed by a win over Eleni Daniilidou
in three sets. However, she lost to #3 seed (and world #3 ranked) Jelena Janković
in round 3, also in three sets, after coming within two points of another Grand Slam upset. After several long rallies and winners, the match was described as the best WTA match of 2007 up to that point and the best women's Wimbledon match in many years.
Šafářová entered the 2007 US Open as the #20 seed, defeating Jessica Moore in the first round and Andrea Petkovic
in the second round. She fell to Marion Bartoli
in the third round. Closing out the 2007 Grand Slams, she placed third round or better in all, and quarterfinals in the Australian Open.
. She was ranked No. 23 took on the World 56 Alicia Molik
. The Czechs lost the match, 7–5, 6–2, followed by a loss with her partner on and off the court, Tomáš Berdych
, in mixed Doubles. She then competed against Serena Williams
, who represented the United States. Šafářová lost the first set, 6–0. She managed to come back to win the second set, 6–2, but lost the final set, 7–5. Šafářová and Berdych lost the first set of the mixed doubles, 6–0. They eventually had to leave the tournament, due to Berdych's health concerns.
Šafářová's second competition of the year was the Medibank International. In round one, she faced Australia's Alicia Molik
. Šafářová won the first set, 7–6. In the second set, Molik was up, 6–5, but Šafářová was able to force a tiebreaker. Both had set points and match points throughout the tiebreaker, but Šafářová was able to come out on top, 12–10, leaving the final score, 7–6, 7–6. She subsequently pulled out of the second round against world No. 1 Justine Henin.
Šafářová entered the Australian Open
as the number 22 seed. In the first round, she faced Catalina Castaño
of Colombia
, losing, 1–6, 4–6, in 71 minutes. Later it was revealed that a gluteal strain was plaguing Šafářová during the match. She sustained the injury from her first round encounter against Molik at the 2008 Sydney Medibank International.
Competing at the Pacific Life Open in the United States, Šafářová, seeded number 26, lost, 6–7, 6–2, 4–6, in the second round to American Ashley Harkleroad
. Following that, Šafářová played the Sony Ericcson Open, where she lost, 2–6, 1–6, in the third round to the number 4 seed Jelena Janković
.
and Samantha Stosur
before being defeated by second-seeded Victoria Azarenka
of Belarus 7–6(5), 6–4. After failing to qualify for the premier event in Sydney, Šafářová reached the third round of the Australian Open
en route defeating Sybille Bammer
and Marina Erakovic
before losing to Marion Bartoli
3–6, 6–2, 6–1.
before losing to eventual champion Kim Clijsters
6–1, 0–6, 6–4.
She then suffered disappointing first round losses. Firstly at the 2010 Moorilla Hobart International
, retiring against Kateryna Bondarenko
at 2–6, 7–6(4), 2–3 and secondly at the 2010 Australian Open
, losing to 6th seed Venus Williams
2–6, 2–6.
Šafářová made her first final of the year at the 2010 Open GDF Suez
in Paris by defeating Flavia Pennetta
in the semi-finals 4–6, 6–3, 6–4. She won the first set but could not hold on, falling 7–6, 1–6, 4–6 to top seed Elena Dementieva
in the final.
Šafářová then suffered 2 more first round losses at the 2010 Monterrey Open
, losing to Julie Coin
7–5, 4–6, 4–6, and the 2010 BNP Paribas Open
at Indian Wells, losing to Julia Görges
5–7, 6–3, 3–6.
At the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open
, Šafářová was unseeded and won her first round match, defeating Kaia Kanepi
6–7(1), 6–4, 6–3 and then defeated María José Martínez Sánchez
in the second round 4–6, 7–6(3), 6–2 after being down match points at 5–2 in the second set. She will then fell to 4th seed Victoria Azarenka
.
At the 2010 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
, Šafářová upset World No2 and top seed Caroline Wozniacki
in the second round. She then fell, in three sets, to qualifier Anna Lapushchenkova
in the quarterfinals.
Šafářová upset World No. 9 Agnieszka Radwańska
in the third round of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia but lost to eventual champion María José Martínez Sánchez
7–6 6–4 in the quarterfinals.
Šafářová upset World No. 12 Maria Sharapova
in the first round of the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open. She then defeated Olga Govortsova
and Alexandra Dulgheru
to advance to the quarterfinals where she beat World No. 18 Nadia Petrova
. She retired from a thigh injury while trailing Aravane Rezaï
1–6 in the semifinals.
Šafářová is seeded 24th at the 2010 French Open
. She defeated Jelena Dokić
in the first round but was defeated by Polona Hercog
6–1, 6–2 in the second round.
and made it all the way to the quarterfinals with tough matches from Akgul Amanmuradova
and Shahar Pe'er
in between before losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
6–2, 6–7(4), 6–3.
As the 31st seed at the 2011 Australian Open
, Šafářová struggled through her first two rounds, defeating Shuai Zhang
7–5 4–6 6–1 in the first round, and Klára Zakopalová 6–3 6–7(2) 7–5 in the second. In the third round, she lost in two sets to World #2 Vera Zvonareva
6–4 7–6(9) having had set point in the second set.
Following the Australian Open, Šafářová defeated Daniela Hantuchová
of Slovakia
in the 2011 Fed Cup
, but retired in her second rubber against Jana Čepelová
.
Her next tournament was the 2011 Open GDF Suez
where she fell to a resurgent Jelena Dokić
in the first round 4–6 6–3 6–4. A week later at the 2011 Dubai Tennis Championships
, Šafářová once again lost in the first round, this time to fellow Czech Klára Zakopalová 6–2 6–2. Her performance at the 2011 Qatar Ladies Open
was more positive, as she defeated World #10 Agnieszka Radwańska
7–6(3) 6–3 before falling in 3 sets in the second round to Flavia Pennetta
.
Šafářová had her best result in 2011 at the 2011 Malaysian Open
, where she reached the final and held championship points against an in-form Jelena Dokić
but succumbed 2–6 7–6(9) 6–4 having held two match points in the second set tiebreaker.
She reached the 2nd round of Indian Wells, beating Kristina Barrois in round 1 7–6(9) 6–7(5) 6–0, serving a WTA season high 18 aces, before losing a close match to 21 seed Petkovic 7–6(8) 7–5. The following week as 31st seed, she had a bye in round 1 of Miami before beating Patty Schnyder 6–2 6–4 in round 2. She then lost to 4th seed Sam Stosur 6–0 7–6(1) in round 3.
Šafářová was forced to pull out of the Czech Fed Cup tie against Belgium the following week due to a left thigh problem. She attempted to play Stuttgart, but lost 6–1 6–4 to Barrois. She then pulled out of Barcelona with the same leg injury.
Her next tournament was the premier Madrid event. She defeated Spanish player Anabel Medina-Garrigues 6–2 2–6 7–6(3), coming back from 0–3 and match point down in the third set to win. She followed this with a 6–4 4–6 7–5 win over 7th seed Jelena Jankovic in round 2, and a 6–3 6–3 win over Gajdosova in round 3, making this the second consecutive year she has reached the Madrid Quarterfinal. She lost a hard-fought match to 4th seed Azarenka 6–3 3–6 6–2 in the Quarterfinal.
In Rome the following week, she began with a 7–5 6–2 win over Kimiko Date-Krumm. In the 2nd round, she fell to Jankovic 6–0 6–3.
Unseeded at the French Open, she opened with a 6–1 6–1 win over Kirsten Flipkens. In round 2, she lead 6–2 4–2 against 17th seeded German Julia Görges, but eventually succumbed 2–6 7–5 6–2. In the doubles event she and Michaella Krajicek opened with a win over Miami champions A.Radwanska/Hantuchova 6–7(5) 6–3 6–2. In round 2, they defeated Pauline Parmentier/Kristina Mladenovic 2–6 7–6(3) 6–0 before falling to 5th seeded Madrid Champions Azarenka/Kirilenko 7–5 6–3. This marked her best doubles result at the French Open.
As the fourth seed in Copenhagen, she faced a series of tough three set wins, never winning the first set. Beating Konta, Krajicek, Zhang and Martic (after trailing 6–1 4–0), she lost the final to home favourite and world number 1 Caroline Wozniacki 6–1 6–4. She then travelled to Eastbourne, where she lost in the opening round to eventual champion Marion Bartoli 6–3 3–6 7–6(7) despite holding match point.
In wimbledon, Safarova was seeded 31. She defeated fellow Czech Lucie Hradecka 2–6 6–3 6–3 in round 1; her first win at Wimbledon since 2007. She was defeated by another Czech, Zakopalova in round 2 6–0 6–7(3) 6–4. She next played on clay in Bastad, but was taken out by Vesna Dolonts 6–3 6–4 in round 1.
She pulled out of tournaments in Baku and San Diego before returning to the tour in Toronto. Following wins over Polona Hercog and Simona Halep, she took out 8th seeded Francesca Schiavone 6–3 6–3 to reach her 2nd Toronto Quarterfinal. She lost this match to eventual champion Serena Williams 4–6 6–3 6–2. In Cincinnati the following week she defeated Zakopalova 6–2 6–2, but lost her 2nd round to 5th seed Li Na 6–3 6–4.
Seeded 27 at the US Open, she began by defeating Magdalena Rybarikova 2–6 6–3 6–2, signifiying her first US Open win since 2007. She then defeated American Wildcard Madison Keys 3–6 7–5 6–4, before a disappointing round 3 loss to Monica Niculescu. In Quebec City the week following the US Open, she lost in round 2 to Andrea Hlavackova as the 2nd seed.
Taking a small break, she reentered the tour in Beijing. She lost in the first round to Petkovic 7–6(5) 6–4. She followed this up with a semi-final appearance in Linz, Austria, losing to Dominika Cibulkova. The following week in the premier Moscow event, she took out 2nd seed Agnieszka Radwanska in round 2 6-4 4-6 6-4 before losing to Kaia Kanepi in the semi-final 6-7(4) 6-4 6-3.
To finish the year, Lucie was a part of the Czech Fed Cup team. Despite losing both her matches to the higher ranked Svetlana Kuznetsova and Anastacia Pavlyuchenkova, she became champion with the Czech team winning 3 rubbers to 2.
, which ended on October 12, 2008.
, German
and English
. She was in a relationship with fellow Czech tennis player Tomáš Berdych
until they broke in 2011.
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
tennis player. She was born in Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...
.
Šafářová has won four WTA
Women's Tennis Association
The Women's Tennis Association , founded in 1973 by Billie Jean King, is the principal organizing body of Women's Professional Tennis. It governs the WTA Tour which is the worldwide professional tennis tour for women. Its counterpart organization in the men's professional game is the Association of...
tour singles titles and reached the quarterfinals of the 2007 Australian Open
2007 Australian Open - Women's Singles
-Seeds:# Maria Sharapova # Amélie Mauresmo # Svetlana Kuznetsova # Kim Clijsters # Nadia Petrova # Martina Hingis # Elena Dementieva ...
, upsetting defending champion Amélie Mauresmo
Amélie Mauresmo
Amélie Simone Mauresmo ; is a French former professional tennis player, and a former World No. 1. Mauresmo won two Grand Slam singles titles at the Australian Open and at Wimbledon....
en-route. She has reached ten singles finals: Estoril
Estoril
Estoril is a seaside resort and civil parish of the Portuguese municipality of Cascais, Lisboa District. The Estoril coast is close to Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. It starts in Carcavelos, 15 kilometres from Lisbon, and stretches as far as Guincho, often known as Costa de Estoril-Sintra or...
(clay), 's-Hertogenbosch (grass), Forest Hills
Forest Hills, Queens
Forest Hills is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, United States.-Neighborhood:The neighborhood is home to upper-middle class residents, of whom the wealthier residents often live in the neighborhood's Forest Hills Gardens area...
(hardcourt) in 2005; Gold Coast
Gold Coast, Queensland
Gold Coast is a coastal city of Australia located in South East Queensland, 94km south of the state capital Brisbane. With a population approximately 540,000 in 2010, it is the second most populous city in the state, the sixth most populous city in the country, and also the most populous...
(hardcourt) in 2006; Open GDF Suez, Paris (carpet) in 2007; Forest Hills
Forest Hills, Queens
Forest Hills is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, United States.-Neighborhood:The neighborhood is home to upper-middle class residents, of whom the wealthier residents often live in the neighborhood's Forest Hills Gardens area...
in 2008; Bell Challenge
Bell Challenge
The Bell Challenge is a WTA Tour Tier III tennis tournament held in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada since 1993. The tournament is played on indoor hardcourts....
, Quebec City in 2009; Open GDF Suez, Paris (indoors) in 2010 and the BMW Malaysian Open, Kuala Lumpur and Danish Open, Copenhagen both in 2011. She is ranked World No. 27 as of 10 October 2011.
Playing style
Šafářová plays left-handed with a two-handed backhand, and possesses a high topspin forehand similar to that of male tennis star Rafael NadalRafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
. Her timing off the ground allows her to project groundstrokes with power and she is quick to spot opportunities to take the initiative. Šafářová is notorious for having a volatile return, capable of hitting clean winners as well as unforced errors. Her preferred surface is clay
Clay court
A clay court is one of the four different types of tennis court. Clay courts are made of crushed shale, stone or brick. The red clay is slower than the green, or Har-Tru "American" clay. The French Open uses clay courts, making it unique among the Grand Slam tournaments.Clay courts are more common...
.
2005 and 2006
Šafářová won in Portugal, but lost in the Netherlands to fellow Czech tennis player Klara KoukalováKlára Koukalová
Klára Zakopalová is a Czech professional female tennis player. She was born and still lives in Prague, the capital.-Career:In her career, Zakopalová has reached eight singles finals and won two, both in 2005: on grass in Rosmalen and in September in Portorož on hard court.In January 2006, she...
, 3–6, 6–2, 6–2. In August, she won her second tournament over Sania Mirza
Sania Mirza
Sania Mirza is a professional Indian tennis player. She began her tennis career in 2003 and is well known for her powerful forehand ground strokes. She is the first ever Indian to break into the top 30 WTA rankings...
in the final.
Šafářová started off 2006 with a straight sets victory in the final of the Gold Coast
Gold Coast, Queensland
Gold Coast is a coastal city of Australia located in South East Queensland, 94km south of the state capital Brisbane. With a population approximately 540,000 in 2010, it is the second most populous city in the state, the sixth most populous city in the country, and also the most populous...
tournament, upsetting world No. 6 Patty Schnyder
Patty Schnyder
Patty Schnyder is a retired Swiss professional tennis player. She played on the WTA tour from 1993 to 2011 and is a former World No. 7. She defeated several World No...
in the semifinal, en route to the title. Also in 2006, she made her first Tier II semifinal at Amelia Island
Amelia Island
Amelia Island is one of the southernmost of the Sea Islands, a chain of barrier islands that stretches along the east coast of the United States from South Carolina to Florida. It is long and approximately 4 miles wide at its widest point. Amelia Island is situated off the coast in Nassau County,...
, upsetting Nicole Vaidišová
Nicole Vaidišová
Nicole Vaidišová is a retired Czech tennis player.Vaidišová was an Australian Open and French Open semifinalist and also reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Vaidišová started playing tennis when she was six years old, enrolling to train at Nick Bollettieri's tennis academy in Bradenton,...
in the round of 16. She later lost to eventual champion Nadia Petrova
Nadia Petrova
Nadezhda Viktorovna Petrova is a Russian professional tennis player.Overall, she has won 28 WTA Titles, ten in singles and eighteen in doubles. In singles, Petrova has reached a career high ranking of World No. 3 in May 2006 and has reached the semi-finals of the French Open in 2003 and 2005...
. Šafářová then made another semifinal, this time at the Tier IV Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
. She was later defeated by 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...
.On August 19 she defeated Ana Ivanavic at the Rogers Cup in Toronto.
2007
At the start of 2007, instead of defending her Gold Coast title, Šafářová played the Hopman Cup, representing the Czech Republic. Due to not defending the points at that tournament, she came into the first Slam of the year ranked No. 70 and unseeded. Yet, Šafářová made headlines at the 2007 Australian Open2007 Australian Open
The 2007 Australian Open was a Grand Slam tennis tournament held in Melbourne, Australia from 15 January until 28 January 2007.The total prize pool was set at exactly A$20 million, with the winners of both the men's and women's singles competition each receiving A$1,281,000. Over 500 players...
when she stunned the defending champion and No. 2 seed Amélie Mauresmo
Amélie Mauresmo
Amélie Simone Mauresmo ; is a French former professional tennis player, and a former World No. 1. Mauresmo won two Grand Slam singles titles at the Australian Open and at Wimbledon....
in the fourth round, 6–4, 6–3. She then lost to fellow Czech Nicole Vaidišová
Nicole Vaidišová
Nicole Vaidišová is a retired Czech tennis player.Vaidišová was an Australian Open and French Open semifinalist and also reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Vaidišová started playing tennis when she was six years old, enrolling to train at Nick Bollettieri's tennis academy in Bradenton,...
, 6–1, 6–4, in the quarterfinals. After the Australian Open, her ranking rose from No. 70 to No. 31.
Šafářová continued her good start to 2007 at the Open Gaz de France in Paris. She reached the final, defeating Tsvetana Pironkova
Tsvetana Pironkova
Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova is a female Bulgarian tennis player. She was born and lives in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Pironkova is right-handed and plays with a two-handed backhand....
in three sets and Nicole Vaidišová, Svetlana Kuznetsova
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Svetlana Aleksandrovna Kuznetsova ; born June 27, 1985) is a Russian professional tennis player and as of October 10, 2011 ranked No. 21 in the WTA singles and No. 90 in the doubles ranking. Kuznetsova has appeared in four singles Grand Slam finals, winning two, and has also appeared in six doubles...
and Justine Henin, all in straight sets. However, she failed against Nadia Petrova
Nadia Petrova
Nadezhda Viktorovna Petrova is a Russian professional tennis player.Overall, she has won 28 WTA Titles, ten in singles and eighteen in doubles. In singles, Petrova has reached a career high ranking of World No. 3 in May 2006 and has reached the semi-finals of the French Open in 2003 and 2005...
(4–6, 6–1, 6–4). She pulled out of her next event in Antwerp due to a shoulder injury.
Šafářová lost in R3 of both Indian Wells and Miami to 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 ....
and Serena Williams
Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on...
, respectively. She defeated 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...
, 7–6, 4–6, 6–3, in the Czech Republic vs. Slovak Republic Fed Cup encounter. Šafářová then lost in the SF of Tier IV Estoril to Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka is a Belarusian professional tennis player. Her career high and current ranking is world no. 3, which she first achieved on 12 September 2011. She became the highest-ranked Belarusian player ever, surpassing Natasha Zvereva by two spots....
, 6–4, 6–0.
At Roland Garros
French Open (tennis)
The French Open |Roland Garros]]) is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between late May and early June in Paris, France, at the Stade Roland Garros. It is the premier clay court tennis tournament in the world and the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments – the other three are...
, Šafářová defeated Mauresmo again, this time in the third round of Roland Garros
French Open (tennis)
The French Open |Roland Garros]]) is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between late May and early June in Paris, France, at the Stade Roland Garros. It is the premier clay court tennis tournament in the world and the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments – the other three are...
. She won, 6–3, 7–6(3). It was the second time in a row that Šafářová had beaten Mauresmo in a Grand Slam, after winning their only previous encounter in January at the Australian Open. In the next round, Šafářová lost in three sets to Anna Chakvetadze
Anna Chakvetadze
Anna Djambulilovna Chakvetadze is a Russian professional tennis player . On September 10, 2007, she reached her career-high professional singles ranking of World No. 5. She has won eight WTA Singles Titles and appeared in the 2007 US Open semifinals. As of July 4, 2011, Chakvetadze is ranked World...
.
As the #25 seed, Šafářová defeated Zuzana Ondrášková
Zuzana Ondrášková
Zuzana Ondrášková is a professional female tennis player from the Czech Republic. On 9 February 2004 she reached her career-high singles ranking of World No...
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...
, followed by a win over Eleni Daniilidou
Eleni Daniilidou
Eleni Daniilidou is a Greek tennis player born in Chania, on the island of Crete.As of 2011, she has won five WTA singles titles and three doubles titles. In 2003, she reached the Australian Open mixed doubles final. Her highest singles ranking has been 14th...
in three sets. However, she lost to #3 seed (and world #3 ranked) Jelena Janković
Jelena Janković
Jelena Janković is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from Serbia. She reached the final of the 2008 US Open and won the 2007 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles title. Janković is ranked world no...
in round 3, also in three sets, after coming within two points of another Grand Slam upset. After several long rallies and winners, the match was described as the best WTA match of 2007 up to that point and the best women's Wimbledon match in many years.
Šafářová entered the 2007 US Open as the #20 seed, defeating Jessica Moore in the first round and Andrea Petkovic
Andrea Petkovic
Andrea Petkovic is a professional German tennis player of Serbian origin. She is the highest ranked German tennis player. She lives in Griesheim near Darmstadt, Germany....
in the second round. She fell to Marion Bartoli
Marion Bartoli
Marion Bartoli is a French professional tennis player and the current French no. 1. She has won seven Women's Tennis Association singles titles and three doubles titles. She was also a runner-up at the 2007 Wimbledon Championships....
in the third round. Closing out the 2007 Grand Slams, she placed third round or better in all, and quarterfinals in the Australian Open.
2008
At the beginning of 2008, Šafářová once again decided to enter the Perth Hopman CupHopman Cup
The Hopman Cup is an annual international team tennis tournament held in Perth, Western Australia in early January each year, which plays mixed teams on a country by country basis...
. She was ranked No. 23 took on the World 56 Alicia Molik
Alicia Molik
Alicia Molik is a Australian professional female tennis player. She reached a career high singles rank of number 8 and also won a bronze medal for Australia at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Molik also reached a career high doubles ranking of number 6, and won two grand slam doubles titles, at the...
. The Czechs lost the match, 7–5, 6–2, followed by a loss with her partner on and off the court, Tomáš Berdych
Tomáš Berdych
Tomáš Berdych is a professional tennis player from the Czech Republic. His most notable achievements are reaching the final of the 2010 Wimbledon Championships, and the semifinals of the 2010 French Open. He defeated the Croatian player Ivan Ljubičić in five sets to win the Paris Masters in 2005...
, in mixed Doubles. She then competed against Serena Williams
Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on...
, who represented the United States. Šafářová lost the first set, 6–0. She managed to come back to win the second set, 6–2, but lost the final set, 7–5. Šafářová and Berdych lost the first set of the mixed doubles, 6–0. They eventually had to leave the tournament, due to Berdych's health concerns.
Šafářová's second competition of the year was the Medibank International. In round one, she faced Australia's Alicia Molik
Alicia Molik
Alicia Molik is a Australian professional female tennis player. She reached a career high singles rank of number 8 and also won a bronze medal for Australia at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Molik also reached a career high doubles ranking of number 6, and won two grand slam doubles titles, at the...
. Šafářová won the first set, 7–6. In the second set, Molik was up, 6–5, but Šafářová was able to force a tiebreaker. Both had set points and match points throughout the tiebreaker, but Šafářová was able to come out on top, 12–10, leaving the final score, 7–6, 7–6. She subsequently pulled out of the second round against world No. 1 Justine Henin.
Šafářová entered 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...
as the number 22 seed. In the first round, she faced Catalina Castaño
Catalina Castaño
Catalina Castaño Alvarez is a professional female Colombian tennis player. On July 10, 2006, Catalina reached her career-high singles ranking: World No. 35. Since November 2006, she is the highest ranked South American female tennis player...
of Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, losing, 1–6, 4–6, in 71 minutes. Later it was revealed that a gluteal strain was plaguing Šafářová during the match. She sustained the injury from her first round encounter against Molik at the 2008 Sydney Medibank International.
Competing at the Pacific Life Open in the United States, Šafářová, seeded number 26, lost, 6–7, 6–2, 4–6, in the second round to American Ashley Harkleroad
Ashley Harkleroad
Ashley Harkleroad , is an American tennis player. Born in Rossville, Georgia, Harkleroad reached a career-high ranking of No. 39 on June 9, 2003. Her career prize money to date is $1,022,094...
. Following that, Šafářová played the Sony Ericcson Open, where she lost, 2–6, 1–6, in the third round to the number 4 seed Jelena Janković
Jelena Janković
Jelena Janković is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from Serbia. She reached the final of the 2008 US Open and won the 2007 Wimbledon Mixed Doubles title. Janković is ranked world no...
.
2009
Šafářová began the year with a quarterfinal showing at the international hardcourt event in Brisbane. She defeated the Australians Isabella HollandIsabella Holland
Isabella Holland is an Australian professional tennis player. Her preferred surfaces are clay and hardcourt....
and Samantha Stosur
Samantha Stosur
Samantha "Sam" Jane Stosur is an Australian professional tennis player. She won the 2011 US Open singles title and was a finalist at the 2010 French Open. Stosur is ranked World No. 6 and her career high in singles is World No. 4, achieved on 21 February 2011. She is a former world No...
before being defeated by second-seeded Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka is a Belarusian professional tennis player. Her career high and current ranking is world no. 3, which she first achieved on 12 September 2011. She became the highest-ranked Belarusian player ever, surpassing Natasha Zvereva by two spots....
of Belarus 7–6(5), 6–4. After failing to qualify for the premier event in Sydney, Šafářová reached the third round of 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...
en route defeating Sybille Bammer
Sybille Bammer
Sybille Bammer is a former professional female tennis player from Austria. Her career high ranking is No. 19, achieved on 17 December 2007....
and Marina Erakovic
Marina Erakovic
Marina Erakovic is a New Zealand professional tennis player of Croatian background. Her career high in Women's Tennis Association doubles ranking is World No. 43, achieved on 27 October 2008, and in singles it is No. 49, achieved on 7 July 2008. As of 21 November 2011, she is World No...
before losing to Marion Bartoli
Marion Bartoli
Marion Bartoli is a French professional tennis player and the current French no. 1. She has won seven Women's Tennis Association singles titles and three doubles titles. She was also a runner-up at the 2007 Wimbledon Championships....
3–6, 6–2, 6–1.
2010
Šafářová started the 2010 season by reaching the quarter-finals of the 2010 Brisbane International2010 Brisbane International
The 2010 Brisbane International was a joint ATP and WTA tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 2nd edition of the tournament and was played at the Queensland Tennis Centre in Tennyson, Brisbane. The centre court, Pat Rafter Arena is named in honour of Australian tennis hero...
before losing to eventual champion Kim Clijsters
Kim Clijsters
Kim Antonie Lode Clijsters is a Belgian professional tennis player. As of 7 November 2011, Clijsters is ranked No. 13 in singles. Clijsters is a former World No. 1 in both singles and doubles....
6–1, 0–6, 6–4.
She then suffered disappointing first round losses. Firstly at the 2010 Moorilla Hobart International
2010 Moorilla Hobart International
The 2010 Moorilla Hobart International was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 17th edition of the event and is part of the WTA International tournaments of the 2010 WTA Tour...
, retiring against Kateryna Bondarenko
Kateryna Bondarenko
Kateryna Volodymyrivna Bondarenko is a professional female tennis player from Ukraine and a doubles champion at Australian Open 2008.The younger sister of professional tennis players Valeria and Alona Bondarenko, she was born in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union. She was...
at 2–6, 7–6(4), 2–3 and secondly 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....
, losing to 6th seed 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...
2–6, 2–6.
Šafářová made her first final of the year 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 by defeating Flavia Pennetta
Flavia Pennetta
Flavia Pennetta is an Italian professional tennis player. She became Italy's first top 10 female singles player on 17 August 2009 and also the first ever Italian Tennis player to be ranked No.1 in Doubles on 28 February 2011. As of 10 October 2011, Pennetta is ranked World No. 18 in singles and...
in the semi-finals 4–6, 6–3, 6–4. She won the first set but could not hold on, falling 7–6, 1–6, 4–6 to top seed Elena Dementieva
Elena Dementieva
Elena Viatcheslavovna Dementieva is a retired Russian professional tennis player. Dementieva is most notable for winning the singles gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She won 16 WTA singles titles and reached the finals of the 2004 French Open and 2004 US Open. Dementieva achieved a...
in the final.
Šafářová then suffered 2 more first round losses at the 2010 Monterrey Open
2010 Monterrey Open
The 2010 Monterrey Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the second edition of the Monterrey Open and was categorized as an International tournament on the 2009 WTA Tour. It took place at the Sierra Madre Tennis Club in Monterrey, Mexico, from March 1 through March 7,...
, losing to Julie Coin
Julie Coin
Julie Coin is a professional French tennis player. Coin recorded the largest victory of her career by defeating the world's #1 ranked female singles player, and #1 seed, Ana Ivanović at the 2008 US Open. Her career high singles ranking is World No. 60, achieved on 27 July 2009. Her career high...
7–5, 4–6, 4–6, and the 2010 BNP Paribas Open
2010 BNP Paribas Open
The 2010 BNP Paribas Open was a tennis tournament played at Indian Wells, California in March 2010. It was the 36th edition of the event, known this year as the BNP Paribas Open, and is classified as an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event on the 2010 ATP World Tour and a Premier Mandatory event on...
at Indian Wells, losing to Julia Görges
Julia Görges
Julia Görges is a professional tennis player from Germany. Görges reached career-high WTA singles ranking of No. 16 on 6 June 2011 and a doubles ranking of 31 on 6 June 2011...
5–7, 6–3, 3–6.
At the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open
2010 Sony Ericsson Open
The 2010 Sony Ericsson Open , was a tennis tournament for men and women held from March 22 to April 4, 2010. It was the 26th edition of the Miami Masters event and is played on outdoor hard courts at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park in Key Biscayne, Florida, located near Miami...
, Šafářová was unseeded and won her first round match, defeating Kaia Kanepi
Kaia Kanepi
Kaia Kanepi is an Estonian professional tennis player. Her career-high ranking is world no. 16 reached on 14 February 2011....
6–7(1), 6–4, 6–3 and then defeated María José Martínez Sánchez
María José Martínez Sánchez
María José Martínez Sánchez is a Spanish professional tennis player. In singles, she has won five WTA singles titles, the 2009 Copa Sony Ericsson Colsanitas, the 2009 Swedish Open, the Premier 5 event, 2010 Internazionali BNL d'Italia, the 2011 Gastein Ladies and the 2011 Hansol Korea Open. She...
in the second round 4–6, 7–6(3), 6–2 after being down match points at 5–2 in the second set. She will then fell to 4th seed Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka
Victoria Azarenka is a Belarusian professional tennis player. Her career high and current ranking is world no. 3, which she first achieved on 12 September 2011. She became the highest-ranked Belarusian player ever, surpassing Natasha Zvereva by two spots....
.
At the 2010 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
2010 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
The 2010 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix was a tennis tournament played on indoor clay courts. It was the 33rd edition of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, and was part of the Premier tournaments of the 2010 WTA Tour. It took place at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart, Germany, from April 24 through May 2, 2010...
, Šafářová upset World No2 and top seed Caroline Wozniacki
Caroline Wozniacki
Caroline Wozniacki is a Danish professional tennis player. She is the current world no. 1 on the WTA Tour. As of 7 November 2011, she has held this position for 56 weeks...
in the second round. She then fell, in three sets, to qualifier Anna Lapushchenkova
Anna Lapushchenkova
Anna Lapushchenkova is a Russian professional tennis player, since 2003.-Career Summary:Lapushchenkova began competing occasionally on the ITF women's circuit in October 2002, shortly before her sixteenth birthday...
in the quarterfinals.
Šafářová upset World No. 9 Agnieszka Radwańska
Agnieszka Radwanska
Agnieszka Radwańska is a WTA Tour Polish tennis player.Her career high singles ranking is World No. 8, which she achieved on 22 February 2010. As of 24 October 2011, she is ranked World No. 8. In 2007, Radwańska became the first Polish player in history to claim a WTA Tour singles title when she...
in the third round of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia but lost to eventual champion María José Martínez Sánchez
María José Martínez Sánchez
María José Martínez Sánchez is a Spanish professional tennis player. In singles, she has won five WTA singles titles, the 2009 Copa Sony Ericsson Colsanitas, the 2009 Swedish Open, the Premier 5 event, 2010 Internazionali BNL d'Italia, the 2011 Gastein Ladies and the 2011 Hansol Korea Open. She...
7–6 6–4 in the quarterfinals.
Šafářová upset World No. 12 Maria Sharapova
Maria Sharapova
Maria Yuryevna Sharapova ,. is a Russian professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. A US resident since 1994, Sharapova has won 24 WTA singles titles, including three Grand Slam singles titles at the 2004 Wimbledon, 2006 US Open and 2008 Australian Open...
in the first round of the Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open. She then defeated Olga Govortsova
Olga Govortsova
Olga Govortsova is a professional Belarusian tennis player. As of May 10, 2010 her highest singles ranking on the WTA is World Number 35, which she achieved on June 23, 2008.-Career:...
and Alexandra Dulgheru
Alexandra Dulgheru
Alexandra Dulgheru is a Romanian professional tennis player. She achieved a singles career high of World No. 26 on April 11, 2011. Her career high in doubles was World No. 47 on March 21, 2011.She is coached by Gabriel Urpi.-Biography:...
to advance to the quarterfinals where she beat World No. 18 Nadia Petrova
Nadia Petrova
Nadezhda Viktorovna Petrova is a Russian professional tennis player.Overall, she has won 28 WTA Titles, ten in singles and eighteen in doubles. In singles, Petrova has reached a career high ranking of World No. 3 in May 2006 and has reached the semi-finals of the French Open in 2003 and 2005...
. She retired from a thigh injury while trailing Aravane Rezaï
Aravane Rezaï
Aravane Rezaï is an Iranian-French tennis player born in Saint-Étienne, France to Iranian parents. She is the current French No. 5 in women's tennis. Rezaï took up tennis after a childhood stint as her older brother's ball girl...
1–6 in the semifinals.
Šafářová is seeded 24th at the 2010 French Open
2010 French Open
The 2010 French Open was a tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It was the 109th edition of the French Open, and the second Grand Slam event of the year...
. She defeated 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 the first round but was defeated by Polona Hercog
Polona Hercog
Polona Hercog is a Slovenian tennis player. Her highest ranking is No. 35 in singles and No. 56 in doubles. Hercog has won two WTA Tour doubles title and one singles title. She also enjoyed success on the ITF Circuit, winning nine singles and five doubles titles...
6–1, 6–2 in the second round.
2011
Šafářová attended the 2011 Brisbane International2011 Brisbane International
The 2011 Brisbane International was a joint ATP and WTA tennis tournament, played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 3rd edition of the tournament and took place at the Queensland Tennis Centre in Tennyson, Brisbane. It was held from 2 to 9 January...
and made it all the way to the quarterfinals with tough matches from Akgul Amanmuradova
Akgul Amanmuradova
Akgul Amanmuradova is a professional female tennis player from Uzbekistan.In 2005, she reached her first ever WTA singles final in Tashkent, the capital of her home country. In the final she lost to 16-year old Michaëlla Krajicek of the Netherlands...
and 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 between before losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Anastasia Sergeyevna Pavlyuchenkova is a Russian professional tennis player and a multiple junior Grand Slam champion. Her career-high rank of World No. 13 was achieved on 4 July 2011. From July 2007 to September 2009 she was coached at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in France...
6–2, 6–7(4), 6–3.
As the 31st seed at the 2011 Australian Open
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 were held...
, Šafářová struggled through her first two rounds, defeating Shuai Zhang
Zhang Shuai (tennis)
Zhang Shuai is a Chinese professional female tennis player. , she is the fourth-highest ranked women's singles player from China, at World number 90.-Career Summary:...
7–5 4–6 6–1 in the first round, and Klára Zakopalová 6–3 6–7(2) 7–5 in the second. In the third round, she lost in two sets to World #2 Vera Zvonareva
Vera Zvonareva
Vera Zvonareva is a professional tennis player from Russia. She was introduced to tennis at the age of six and turned professional in 2000. Her career high is World No. 2 by the WTA, and she is currently ranked as the World No. 7. Zvonarёva has won twelve WTA Tour singles titles and reached the...
6–4 7–6(9) having had set point in the second set.
Following the Australian Open, Šafářová defeated 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...
of Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
in the 2011 Fed Cup
2011 Fed Cup
The 2011 Fed Cup is the 49th edition of the most important tournament between national teams in women's tennis...
, but retired in her second rubber against Jana Čepelová
Jana Čepelová
Jana Čepelová is a professional Slovak tennis player. Her highest WTA singles ranking is World No. 277, which she reached on 22 August 2011. Čepelová's best tennis achievement to date is by winning the girls doubles event at the 2010 Australian Open partnering Chantal Škamlová...
.
Her next tournament was the 2011 Open GDF Suez
2011 Open GDF Suez
The 2011 Open GDF Suez was a women's professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the 19th edition of the Open GDF Suez and was a Premier tournament on the 2011 WTA Tour...
where she fell to a resurgent 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 the first round 4–6 6–3 6–4. A week later at the 2011 Dubai Tennis Championships
2011 Dubai Tennis Championships
The 2011 Dubai Tennis Championships was a 500 Series event on the 2011 ATP World Tour and a Premier 5 event on the 2011 WTA Tour. The tournament was known as the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships for sponsorship reasons...
, Šafářová once again lost in the first round, this time to fellow Czech Klára Zakopalová 6–2 6–2. Her performance at the 2011 Qatar Ladies Open
2011 Qatar Ladies Open
The 2011 Qatar Ladies Open was a professional tennis tournament played on hard courts. It was the ninth edition of the tournament and the first since 2008 which was part of the 2011 WTA Tour...
was more positive, as she defeated World #10 Agnieszka Radwańska
Agnieszka Radwanska
Agnieszka Radwańska is a WTA Tour Polish tennis player.Her career high singles ranking is World No. 8, which she achieved on 22 February 2010. As of 24 October 2011, she is ranked World No. 8. In 2007, Radwańska became the first Polish player in history to claim a WTA Tour singles title when she...
7–6(3) 6–3 before falling in 3 sets in the second round to Flavia Pennetta
Flavia Pennetta
Flavia Pennetta is an Italian professional tennis player. She became Italy's first top 10 female singles player on 17 August 2009 and also the first ever Italian Tennis player to be ranked No.1 in Doubles on 28 February 2011. As of 10 October 2011, Pennetta is ranked World No. 18 in singles and...
.
Šafářová had her best result in 2011 at the 2011 Malaysian Open
2011 Malaysian Open
----The 2011 BMW Malaysian Open was a tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It was the second edition of the Malaysian Open and was an International tournament on the 2011 WTA Tour. This was also be the first edition of the tournament to be sponsored by BMW...
, where she reached the final and held championship points against an in-form 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...
but succumbed 2–6 7–6(9) 6–4 having held two match points in the second set tiebreaker.
She reached the 2nd round of Indian Wells, beating Kristina Barrois in round 1 7–6(9) 6–7(5) 6–0, serving a WTA season high 18 aces, before losing a close match to 21 seed Petkovic 7–6(8) 7–5. The following week as 31st seed, she had a bye in round 1 of Miami before beating Patty Schnyder 6–2 6–4 in round 2. She then lost to 4th seed Sam Stosur 6–0 7–6(1) in round 3.
Šafářová was forced to pull out of the Czech Fed Cup tie against Belgium the following week due to a left thigh problem. She attempted to play Stuttgart, but lost 6–1 6–4 to Barrois. She then pulled out of Barcelona with the same leg injury.
Her next tournament was the premier Madrid event. She defeated Spanish player Anabel Medina-Garrigues 6–2 2–6 7–6(3), coming back from 0–3 and match point down in the third set to win. She followed this with a 6–4 4–6 7–5 win over 7th seed Jelena Jankovic in round 2, and a 6–3 6–3 win over Gajdosova in round 3, making this the second consecutive year she has reached the Madrid Quarterfinal. She lost a hard-fought match to 4th seed Azarenka 6–3 3–6 6–2 in the Quarterfinal.
In Rome the following week, she began with a 7–5 6–2 win over Kimiko Date-Krumm. In the 2nd round, she fell to Jankovic 6–0 6–3.
Unseeded at the French Open, she opened with a 6–1 6–1 win over Kirsten Flipkens. In round 2, she lead 6–2 4–2 against 17th seeded German Julia Görges, but eventually succumbed 2–6 7–5 6–2. In the doubles event she and Michaella Krajicek opened with a win over Miami champions A.Radwanska/Hantuchova 6–7(5) 6–3 6–2. In round 2, they defeated Pauline Parmentier/Kristina Mladenovic 2–6 7–6(3) 6–0 before falling to 5th seeded Madrid Champions Azarenka/Kirilenko 7–5 6–3. This marked her best doubles result at the French Open.
As the fourth seed in Copenhagen, she faced a series of tough three set wins, never winning the first set. Beating Konta, Krajicek, Zhang and Martic (after trailing 6–1 4–0), she lost the final to home favourite and world number 1 Caroline Wozniacki 6–1 6–4. She then travelled to Eastbourne, where she lost in the opening round to eventual champion Marion Bartoli 6–3 3–6 7–6(7) despite holding match point.
In wimbledon, Safarova was seeded 31. She defeated fellow Czech Lucie Hradecka 2–6 6–3 6–3 in round 1; her first win at Wimbledon since 2007. She was defeated by another Czech, Zakopalova in round 2 6–0 6–7(3) 6–4. She next played on clay in Bastad, but was taken out by Vesna Dolonts 6–3 6–4 in round 1.
She pulled out of tournaments in Baku and San Diego before returning to the tour in Toronto. Following wins over Polona Hercog and Simona Halep, she took out 8th seeded Francesca Schiavone 6–3 6–3 to reach her 2nd Toronto Quarterfinal. She lost this match to eventual champion Serena Williams 4–6 6–3 6–2. In Cincinnati the following week she defeated Zakopalova 6–2 6–2, but lost her 2nd round to 5th seed Li Na 6–3 6–4.
Seeded 27 at the US Open, she began by defeating Magdalena Rybarikova 2–6 6–3 6–2, signifiying her first US Open win since 2007. She then defeated American Wildcard Madison Keys 3–6 7–5 6–4, before a disappointing round 3 loss to Monica Niculescu. In Quebec City the week following the US Open, she lost in round 2 to Andrea Hlavackova as the 2nd seed.
Taking a small break, she reentered the tour in Beijing. She lost in the first round to Petkovic 7–6(5) 6–4. She followed this up with a semi-final appearance in Linz, Austria, losing to Dominika Cibulkova. The following week in the premier Moscow event, she took out 2nd seed Agnieszka Radwanska in round 2 6-4 4-6 6-4 before losing to Kaia Kanepi in the semi-final 6-7(4) 6-4 6-3.
To finish the year, Lucie was a part of the Czech Fed Cup team. Despite losing both her matches to the higher ranked Svetlana Kuznetsova and Anastacia Pavlyuchenkova, she became champion with the Czech team winning 3 rubbers to 2.
Singles: 10 (4–6)
|
|
| Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
| Winner | 1. | May 1, 2005 | Estoril Estoril Open The Estoril Open is an ATP and WTA clay court tournament held in Jamor, Oeiras, Portugal . The men's tournament was created in 1990 and since its inception, every champion except 2004 champion Juan Ignacio Chela and 2009–2010 champion Albert Montañés has been in the Top 10 of the ATP rankings,... , Portugal |
Clay |  Li NaLi Na (tennis) Li Na , goes first before the equivalent of a first name in some other nations. Her name off court in China is Li Na. When listed on the , she is known as Na Li. However, in the match, the commentators call her Li Na, and when her full name is listed in text on court, it is also written as Li Na.;... |
6–7(4), 6–4, 6–3 |
| Runner-up | 1. | June 18, 2005 | 's-Hertogenbosch Ordina Open The Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, now sponsored by UNICEF and called the UNICEF Open, is a tennis tournament on the ATP Tour and WTA Tour held in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands.-Singles:-Doubles:-Singles:-Doubles:-External links:*... , Netherlands |
Grass |  Klára Zakopalová |
6–3, 2–6, 2–6 |
| Winner | 2. | August 20, 2005 | Forest Hills, United States | Hard |  Sania MirzaSania Mirza Sania Mirza is a professional Indian tennis player. She began her tennis career in 2003 and is well known for her powerful forehand ground strokes. She is the first ever Indian to break into the top 30 WTA rankings... |
3–6, 7–5, 6–4 |
| Winner | 3. | January 7, 2006 | Gold Coast, Australia | Hard |  Flavia PennettaFlavia Pennetta Flavia Pennetta is an Italian professional tennis player. She became Italy's first top 10 female singles player on 17 August 2009 and also the first ever Italian Tennis player to be ranked No.1 in Doubles on 28 February 2011. As of 10 October 2011, Pennetta is ranked World No. 18 in singles and... |
6–3, 6–4 |
| Runner-up | 2. | February 5, 2007 | Paris, France | Carpet (i) |  Nadia PetrovaNadia Petrova Nadezhda Viktorovna Petrova is a Russian professional tennis player.Overall, she has won 28 WTA Titles, ten in singles and eighteen in doubles. In singles, Petrova has reached a career high ranking of World No. 3 in May 2006 and has reached the semi-finals of the French Open in 2003 and 2005... |
6–4, 1–6, 4–6 |
| Winner | 4. | August 23, 2008 | Forest Hills, New York, USA | Hard |  Peng ShuaiPeng Shuai Peng Shuai is a Chinese professional female tennis player. She won a gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games, defeating Akgul Amanmuradova in the final... |
6–4, 6–2 |
| Runner-up | 3. | September 20, 2009 | Quebec City Bell Challenge The Bell Challenge is a WTA Tour Tier III tennis tournament held in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada since 1993. The tournament is played on indoor hardcourts.... , Canada |
Carpet |  Melinda CzinkMelinda Czink Melinda Czink is a Hungarian professional female tennis player. On September 21, 2009 Czink reached her career-high singles ranking of World No. 37.... |
6–4, 3–6, 5–7 |
| Runner-up | 4. | February 14, 2010 | Paris, France | Hard (i) | Elena Dementieva Elena Dementieva Elena Viatcheslavovna Dementieva is a retired Russian professional tennis player. Dementieva is most notable for winning the singles gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She won 16 WTA singles titles and reached the finals of the 2004 French Open and 2004 US Open. Dementieva achieved a... |
7–6(5), 1–6, 4–6 |
| Runner-up | 5. | March 6, 2011 | Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Open (tennis) The Malaysian Open is a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It is currently part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the Association of Tennis Professionals World Tour. It will be held annually in late September, early October at the Bukit Jalil Sports Complex in Kuala... , Malaysia |
Hard |  Jelena DokićJelena 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... |
6–2, 6–7(9), 4–6 |
| Runner-up | 6. | June 11, 2011 | Copenhagen E-Boks Danish Open The Danish Open is a professional women's tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts in Farum, Denmark north of Copenhagen. The event is affiliated with the Women's Tennis Association , and is an International-level tournament on the WTA Tour... , Denmark |
Hard (i) |  Caroline WozniackiCaroline Wozniacki Caroline Wozniacki is a Danish professional tennis player. She is the current world no. 1 on the WTA Tour. As of 7 November 2011, she has held this position for 56 weeks... |
6–1, 6–4 |
Singles performance timeline
To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. This table is current through Kremlin CupKremlin Cup
The Kremlin Cup is a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It is currently part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the ATP Tour and is a Premier Tournament on the WTA Tour...
, which ended on October 12, 2008.
| Tournament | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | W–L | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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... |
LQ 2005 Australian Open - Women's Singles Defending champion Justine Henin was not competing, and thus did not defend her title. Instead, seventh-seeded Serena Williams of the United States defeated top-seeded Lindsay Davenport, also of the United States, 2–6, 6–3, 6–0, to win the Women's Singles title at the 2005 Australian... |
1R 2006 Australian Open - Women's Singles Serena Williams was the defending champion, but lost in the third round to Daniela Hantuchová.Amélie Mauresmo, the third seed, ultimately won the tournament, her first major championship. Her finals opponent, eighth-seeded Justine Henin-Hardenne, retired down 2–0 in the second set, already down a... |
QF 2007 Australian Open - Women's Singles -Seeds:# Maria Sharapova # Amélie Mauresmo # Svetlana Kuznetsova # Kim Clijsters # Nadia Petrova # Martina Hingis # Elena Dementieva ... |
1R 2008 Australian Open - Women's Singles Serena Williams was the defending champion, but lost in the quarterfinals to Jelena Janković.Maria Sharapova won in the final 7–5, 6–3, against Ana Ivanović to win her third Grand Slam title and her first at the Australian Open. She was also the first Russian woman to win this tournament... |
3R 2009 Australian Open - Women's Singles Maria Sharapova was the defending champion, but chose not to participate this year, due to a shoulder injury.Serena Williams won in the final 6–0, 6–3, against Dinara Safina.-Seeds:# Jelena Janković ... |
1R | 3R | 8–6 | ||||||||||||
| French Open | 1R 2005 French Open - Women's Singles Anastasia Myskina was the defending champion, but lost in the first round to Maria Sánchez Lorenzo. Justine Henin-Hardenne claimed the title, defeating home player Mary Pierce in the final, 6–1, 6–1... |
1R 2006 French Open - Women's Singles Justine Henin-Hardenne was the defending champion, and she defended her title by beating Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final, 6–4, 6–4.-Schedule:-Seeds:# Amélie Mauresmo # Kim Clijsters # Nadia Petrova ... |
4R 2007 French Open - Women's Singles The two-time defending champion was Justine Henin. She captured her 4th and 3rd consecutive French Open title after defeating Ana Ivanović of Serbia 6-1, 6-2 in the championship match... |
2R 2008 French Open - Women's Singles Justine Henin was the defending champion, but retired from the sport on May 14, 2008.Ana Ivanović won in the final 6–4, 6–3, against Dinara Safina. This is Ivanovic's Third Grand Slam Final, Second French Open Final, and her First Grand Slam Singles Title... |
2R | 2R | 2R | 7–7 | ||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | 1R 2005 Wimbledon Championships - Women's Singles Maria Sharapova was the defending champion, but she was defeated by Venus Williams in the semifinals.Williams won the title, defeating compatriot and World No... |
A | 3R 2007 Wimbledon Championships - Women's Singles Amélie Mauresmo was the defending champion but was knocked out in the fourth round by Nicole Vaidišová.23rd seed Venus Williams defeated Marion Bartoli in the final, 6–4, 6–1... |
1R 2008 Wimbledon Championships - Women's Singles Venus Williams was the defending champion, and won in the final 7–5, 6–4, against her sister Serena Williams.-Seeds:# Ana Ivanović # Jelena Janković # Maria Sharapova ... |
1R | 1R | 2R | 3–5 | ||||||||||||
| US Open | 1R | 2R | 3R | 1R | 1R 2009 US Open - Women's Singles Serena Williams was the defending champion, but lost in the semifinals to Kim Clijsters.Clijsters won in the final, defeating Caroline Wozniacki to win her 2nd US Open title... |
1R | 3R | 5–7 | ||||||||||||
| Win–Loss | 0–3 | 1–3 | 11–4 | 1–4 | 3–4 | 1–4 | 6–4 | 23–26 | ||||||||||||
| WTA Premier Mandatory Tournaments | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Indian Wells Indian Wells Masters The Indian Wells Masters is an annual tennis tournament held in Indian Wells, California.... |
A | 3R | 3R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 2R | 3–6 | ||||||||||||
| Miami Miami Masters The Miami Masters is an annual tennis tournament for men and women held in Key Biscayne, Miami, Florida. It is an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event on the men's tour and a Premier Mandatory event on the women's tour and is played on hard courts at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park... |
A | 2R | 3R | 3R | 2R | 3R | 3R | 6–6 | ||||||||||||
| Madrid Madrid Masters There are two sporting events named the Madrid Masters:*Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open — a men's and women's tennis tournament*Madrid Masters... |
Not Held | 3R | SF | QF | 9–3 | |||||||||||||||
| Beijing China Open (tennis) The China Open is an annual professional tennis tournament held in Beijing, China. The men's singles and doubles events were first held in 1993, the year in which the Qatar Open and Dubai Tennis Championships were also introduced to the men's tour, as the ATP opened a series of new tournaments in... |
Not Tier I | 2R | 1R | A | 1–2 | |||||||||||||||
| WTA Premier 5 Tournaments | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Dubai Dubai Tennis Championships The Dubai Tennis Championships is a professional tennis tournament owned and organized by Dubai Duty Free and held annually in Dubai, United Arab... |
Not Tier I | A | A | 1R | 0–1 | |||||||||||||||
| Rome Rome Masters The Italian Open is an annual tennis tournament held in Rome, Italy. It is the most prestigious red clay tennis tournament in the world after the French Open, with the men's competition being an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour, and the women's... |
A | 2R | A | 1R | 2R | QF | 2R | 6–5 | ||||||||||||
| Cincinnati | Not Tier I | 2R | 1R | 2R | 2–3 | |||||||||||||||
| Montréal/Toronto Canada Masters The Canada Masters , currently sponsored as the Rogers Cup, is an annual tennis tournament held in Canada. The men's competition is a Masters 1000 event on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour. The women's competition is a Premier 5 tournament on the Women's Tennis Association tour... |
1R | 2R | 2R | A | QF | 1R | QF | 8–6 | ||||||||||||
| Tokyo Toray Pan Pacific Open The is a WTA Tour affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, held every year since 1984 on in Tokyo, Japan. It is classified on the WTA Tour as a Tier I tournament since 1993. The event has traditionally been played on indoor carpet at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, but the 2008 event... |
A | A | A | A | 3R | 2R | 3–2 | |||||||||||||
| Former WTA Tier I Tournaments (currently neither Premier Mandatory nor Premier 5 events) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Doha Qatar Total Open The Qatar Ladies Open , known as the Qatar Total Open for sponsorship reasons, is tennis tournament held in Doha, Qatar. Held since 2001, this WTA Tour event was a Tier I-tournament in 2008, and was played on outdoor hardcourts. Total S.A. was the main tournament sponsor... |
Not Tier I | 1R | Not Held | 2R | 1–2 | |||||||||||||||
| Berlin Qatar Telecom German Open The German Open, sponsored from 2006 through 2008 as the Qatar Telecom German Open, was a WTA Tour affiliated professional tennis tournament for women played in Berlin, Germany. Held since 1896, it was one of the oldest tournaments for women... |
A | A | Not Held | 3R | 2R | 3–2 | ||||||||||||||
| Zurich Zurich Open The Zurich Open was a WTA Tour affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, formerly held every winter in Zurich, Switzerland. It was classified on the WTA Tour as a Tier I tournament from 1993 until 2007. In its final year, 2008, it was downgraded to a Tier II event.The Open was held at... |
Q | A | A | NTI | Not Held | 0–0 | ||||||||||||||
| Charleston Family Circle Cup The Family Circle Cup is a WTA Tour affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, held every year since 1973. The tournament is currently played on the green clay courts at the Daniel Island Tennis Center in Charleston, South Carolina, USA... |
A | 3R | A | A | NM5 | 2–1 | ||||||||||||||
| Moscow Kremlin Cup The Kremlin Cup is a professional tennis tournament played on indoor hard courts. It is currently part of the ATP World Tour 250 series of the ATP Tour and is a Premier Tournament on the WTA Tour... |
Q | A | A | 0–0 | ||||||||||||||||
| San Diego | A | 1R | 2R | Not Held | NM5 | 1–2 | ||||||||||||||
| Tournaments Won | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||||||||||||
| Year End Ranking | 50 | 41 | 24 | 63 | 40 | 33 | 25 | |||||||||||||
Personal
Šafářová speaks three languages, CzechCzech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. She was in a relationship with fellow Czech tennis player Tomáš Berdych
Tomáš Berdych
Tomáš Berdych is a professional tennis player from the Czech Republic. His most notable achievements are reaching the final of the 2010 Wimbledon Championships, and the semifinals of the 2010 French Open. He defeated the Croatian player Ivan Ljubičić in five sets to win the Paris Masters in 2005...
until they broke in 2011.