Preview: 2006 Zurich Open Main Draw
Posted by Aaress Lawless on Oct 16, 2006 | Print
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October 16-22, 2006
Tier I
Zurich, Switzerland
2005 Results: (1) Lindsay Davenport d. (6) Patty Schnyder 7-6 (5), 6-3
The final Tier I tournament of the 2006 season starts today in Zurich, Switzerland and the Zurich Open will be the last big chance for many of the players to improve their season-ending ranking. Amelie Mauresmo is the top seed at the tournament, but all eyes will be on Switzerland’s Martina Hingis, playing professionally in Zurich for the first time since winning the title in 2000.
Maria Sharapova is the second seed at this event, but no word is known yet on the extent of the hip/foot injury that forced her out of the Kremlin Cup last week. Three additional members of the top ten are entered into the draw - Svetlana Kuznetsova, Elena Dementieva, and Patty Schnyder.
As a Tier I event, the Zurich Open has a main draw of twenty-eight singles players and sixteen doubles teams vying for $1,340,000 (USD).
Seeded Players
1.Amelie Mauresmo
2. Maria Sharapova
3. Svetlana Kuznetsova
4. Elena Dementieva
5. Martina Hingis
6. Patty Schnyder
7. Nicole Vaidisova
8. Francesca Schiavone
A Quick Look at the Singles Draw
Top Quarter
Amelie Mauresmo did her best last week at the Kremlin Cup, but was knocked out in the quarterfinals by Nicole Vaidisova. Mauresmo is playing with a right shoulder strain, and two three-set matches in Moscow hardly helped her fitness. She will open her pursuit of a fifth title this season against Samantha Stosur or a qualifier. Mauresmo’s never had any problem beating Stosur in the past, and the top seed should have a clear road to the semifinal for a meeting with either Svetlana Kuznetsova or Martina Hingis.
Second Quarter
Svetlana Kuznetsova received a first round bye along with Mauresmo, Sharapova, and Dementieva, but her second round match will quite possibly be against Jelena Jankovic. Jelena knocked the 2004 US Open champion out of Flushing Meadows in September, but Kuznetsova repaid the favor by ousting Jankovic in the quarterfinals of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix only a few weeks ago. Fifth seed Martina Hingis is at the bottom of the second quarter and will open against Germany’s Anna-Lena Groenefeld.
Third Quarter
The third quarter is packed with talented youngsters including Tatiana Golovin, Nicole Vaidisova, and Maria Kirilenko. Fourth seed Elena Dementieva will play her first match against either Katarina Srebotnik or Mary Pierce, but judging Pierce’s overall performance this fall, it will probably be Srebotnik. Vaidisova vs. Golovin in the first round will be a key match to watch, and I’m picking Tatiana to pull the upset over the seventh seed.
Bottom Quarter
Everyone’s curious to see how Maria Sharapova will be performing, especially after her withdrawal from Moscow. The race for the year end No. 1 ranking is heating up, and Sharapova will need to play her best in Zurich if she wants to stay in contention with Amelie Mauresmo and Justine Henin-Hardenne. Sharapova’s fellow Russian Anastasia Myskina was rumored to have ended her 2006 season because of a foot injury, but she is back, playing her first tennis since losing in the first round of the US Open.
Zurich Open Information Online
Official Website
Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Tournament Profile
Main Draw
U.S. Television Listings
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