Two more women have booked berths into the prestigious season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships.
The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour announced Friday that Venus Williams and Victoria Azarenka have qualified for the tournament in Doha, Qatar.
“I am pleased to have qualified for the Sony Ericsson Championships and I look forward to defending my title,” said Venus Williams. “Qualifying for the year-end tournament is always a goal I set for myself at the beginning of the season and I am excited to have an opportunity yet again to compete with the best players in the world.”
Defending champion Williams, qualifying for the ninth time in her career, and first time qualifier Azarenka, will join Dinara Safina, Serena Williams, Elena Dementieva, Caroline Wozniacki, Svetlana Kuznetsova and the doubles teams of Cara Black/Liezel Huber, Venus Williams/Serena Williams and Nuria Llagostera Vives/Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, all of whom have previously qualified and are headed to Doha.
“I am thrilled to have an opportunity to go to Doha for the Sony Ericsson Championships,” said Azarenka. “Winning my first Tour title and reaching the Top 10 for the first time in my career has really made my year and I couldn’t think of a better place to finish it than in Doha. Having an opportunity to travel to the year-end Championships is an accomplishment I am very proud of.”
The world’s top eight singles players and top four doubles teams from the 2009 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season will compete for the coveted Sony Ericsson Championships title and a share of the record Championships prize money of $4.55 million.
[...] Additional info: Venus Williams has also qualified for the doubles competition at the 2009 Sony Ericsson Championships. (source: On the Baseline) [...]
Hey looks like the Afro is back. Many years ago a teenager might refer to such a hairstyle by saying, she has “a natural.”
I really hope Vera Zvonarëva can take the last remaining place, and go one better than last year!
In order to qualify for Doha, Vera has to overtake Jelena Jankovic in the Race.