Sabine Lisicki

Sabine Katharina Lisicki (German pronunciation: [zaˈbiːnɛ lɪˈzɪki]); born 22 September 1989) is a German professional tennis player. She turned professional in 2006 an her breakthrough came in 2009 when she reached the quarterfinals o the Wimbledon Championships an wan her first WTA title, the Faimily Circle Cup, against Caroline Wozniacki. In Mairch 2010, she suffered an ankle injury at the Indian Wells Masters that kept her oot o competeetion for five month an saw her faw oot o the tap 200.

Sabine Lisicki

Fou name	Sabine Katharina Lisicki
Kintra	Germany
Residence	Bradenton, Florida, Unitit States
Born	(1989-09-22) 22 September 1989 Troisdorf, Wast Germany
Hicht	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Turned pro	2006
Plays	Richt-haundit (twa-haundit backhaund)
Prize money	$6,424,542
Singles
Career record	331–252
Career titles	4 WTA, 2 ITF
Heichest rankin	No. 12 (21 Mey 2012)
Current rankin	No. 127 (3 July 2017)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open	4R (2012)
French Open	3R (2013, 2015)
Wimbledon	F (2013)
US Open	4R (2011, 2015)
Ither toornaments
Olympic Gemmes	3R (2012)
Doubles
Career record	81–58
Career titles	4 WTA, 0 ITF
Heichest rankin	35 (9 April 2012)
Current rankin	No. 251 (3 Julie 2017)
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open	2R (2016)
French Open	3R (2013)
Wimbledon	F (2011)
US Open	QF (2012)
Ither Doubles toornaments
Olympic Games	2R (2012)
Mixed Doubles
Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results
Australian Open	1R (2013)
Wimbledon	3R (2017)
Ither Mixed Doubles tournaments
Olympic Gemmes	SF – 4t place (2012)
Team competeetions
Fed Cup	F (2014), Record 10–7
Hopman Cup	4–6
Last updatit on: 23 Mairch 2015.

She reboondit in 2011 an wan the Aegon Classic afore enterin the Wimbledon Championships as a wildcard an gangin on tae reach the semifinals, whaur she lost tae Maria Sharapova. In daein sae she acame anly the seicont woman in Wimbledon history tae mak it tae the semifinals while enterin the toornament as a wildcard. She follaeed that twa month later bi winnin her third WTA toornament, the Texas Open. In 2012, she achieved her career-heichest ranking, 12t, an again reached the quarterfinals o the Wimbledon Championships. Again, in 2012 she suffered frae anither ankle injury that preventit her frae havin better results on tour. Lisicki reached the final o the 2013 Wimbledon Championships, losin tae Marion Bartoli.

In doubles, Lisicki wan the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in 2011 wi Samantha Stosur an in 2013 wi Mona Barthel. She an aa reached the doubles final at Wimbledon in 2011 wi Stosur an came fowert in the mixed doubles at the 2012 Lunnon Olympics wi Christopher Kas.

Early life

Lisicki's parents emigrated tae West Germany frae Poland in 1979; her faither, Dr. Richard Lisicki, is o German an Pols strynd an her mither, Elisabeth, o Pols. Thay came tae Germany as "Spätaussiedler", descended frae German ceetizens who lived in the former eastern territories of Germany which haed acome pairt of Poland after World War II. In a 2009 interview wi the German newspaper Die Welt, her faither put emphasis on Lisicki bein German: "Sabine is a German – not only because of her birth here [in Germany]." Lisicki wis born in Troisdorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, in 1989. Her faither, who introduced her tae the sport at the age o seiven, haes a doctorate in sport science an is her coach. Her mither is a painter specialising in ceramics.

Career

Early career

Syne 2004, Lisicki haes trained at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Bradenton, Florida, whaur she is sponsored an managed bi IMG. She is coached bi her faither, who studied sport science in Wrocław an Cologne. Early in her career, Lisicki coud nae flee tae tournaments acause o a lack o funding. She haed tae be driven across Europe in a car bi her parents sae that she coud attend tournaments. Lisicki said: "My parents did everything possible to let me play tennis. That's what I appreciated so much. My dad has worked from 8 in the morning til 9 in the evening to make it possible so I can play tennis. We had to cancel tournaments because we couldn't afford to go there."

Lisicki competit in her first WTA Main Draw match when she wis gien a wildcard tae play in the 2006 Berlin Open. She played Mara Santangelo in the first roond an lost in three sets, 6-3 2-6 1-6.

Lisicki haed a successfu year in 2007 on the ITF circuit an climbed frae world nummer 497 tae nummer 198 in the WTA rankings. She won twa titles, ane in Jersey an the ither in Toronto. She defeatit tap-seed Katie O'Brien on 2 August 2007 at the Odlum Brown Vancouver Open.

In 2006, Lisicki competit at the 2006 Sunfeast Open – Singles Qualifying in Kolkata, whaur she defeatit Ragini Vimal in the first roond, but lost in the final qualifying roond tae Sanaa Bhambri.

2008

At the 2008 Australian Open, Lisicki's first Grand Slam tournament, she defeatit the nummer 16-seedit player, Dinara Safina, as well as Mariya Koryttseva tae reach the third roond as a qualifier. She lost her third roond match tae Caroline Wozniacki. In the first roond o the Fed Cup against the United States, Lisicki defeatit Lindsay Davenport in straucht sets. Lisicki next reached the fowert roond o the Miami 2008 Sony Ericsson Open, a Tier I event, whaur she defeatit saxt seedit Anna Chakvetadze in straucht sets, but wis defeatit in the next roond bi Elena Dementieva.

At the 2008 Wimbledon Championships, Lisicki lost in the first roond tae the 2007 runner-up, nummer 11 seed Marion Bartoli. In October, Lisicki reached her first WTA final at the Tashkent Open, whaur she lost in three sets tae fellae teenager Sorana Cîrstea o Romanie.

2009: Breakthrough year

Lisicki stairtit her year at the Hopman Cup in Perth whaur she advanced tae the third roond afore losin tae Dominika Cibulková in straucht sets. At the Australian Open, Lisicki defeatit the 30t seed Aleksandra Wozniak in the openin roond afore losin tae Samantha Stosur in straucht sets. She then teuk pairt in Germany's 3–2 win ower Switzerland in thair Fed Cup World Group II tie, defeatin Timea Bacsinszky but losin tae Patty Schnyder.

At the Cellular South Cup in Memphis, Lisicki reached the semifinals, defeatin nummer 3 seed Lucie Šafářová on the wey afore losin tae eventual winner Victoria Azarenka. Lisicki then teuk pairt in the first Premier Mandatory tournament o the year in North Americae. At the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, she lost in the first roond tae Elena Vesnina. At the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, she lost in the seicont roond tae 26t seed Iveta Benešová.

Lisicki at the 2009 Toray Pan Pacific Open.

During the clay-court saison, Lisicki lost in the seicont roond o the MPS Group Championships in Ponte Vedra Beach tae eventual finalist an nummer 5 seed Aleksandra Wozniak. On the green clay at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, Lisicki won her first WTA Tour title wioot dropping a set, defeatin the 5t seed Caroline Wozniacki in the final. She haed previously defeatit 2nt seedit Venus Williams in the third roond an nummer 6 seed Marion Bartoli in the semifinals. She then teuk pairt in Germany's Fed Cup World Group play-off win against China. She defeatit world nummer 16 Zheng Jie in the first singles match, an pairtnered wi Anna-Lena Grönefeld tae win the decisive doubles match.

Lisicki advanced tae the seicont roond o the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart afore losin tae third-seedit Jelena Janković in straucht sets. She then advanced tae the quarterfinals at the Estoril Open in Portugal whaur she lost tae compatriot Anna-Lena Grönefeld, retiring when 6–2 doun. At the French Open, Lisicki lost tae Lucie Šafářová in the first roond.

On her first match on gress at the Aegon International in Eastbourne, Lisicki lost tae Samantha Stosur in the first roond. In doubles, Lisicki an her pairtner Ana Ivanovic lost in the first roond tae Cara Black an Liezel Huber.

Lisicki played her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the 2009 Wimbledon Championships, whaur she wis beaten bi world nummer 1 Dinara Safina. Tae reach the quarterfinal, she haed defeatit Anna Chakvetadze in the first roond, Patricia Mayr in the seicont, the 2009 French Open champion an nummer 5 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in the third roond, an ninth seed Caroline Wozniacki in the fowert.

Seedit 23rd, Lisicki advanced tae the seicont roond at the 2009 US Open, but lost tae qualifier Anastasia Rodionova. On Rodionova's match pynt, Lisicki slipped while going tae return a backhaund an injured her left ankle. She left the court in a wheelchair as Rodionova advanced tae the third roond. Lisicki later reportit that an MRI showed no tears. The injury wis a sprain, an Lisicki returned tae her base in Florida for rehabilitation.

Lisicki returned tae the tour at the Toray Pan Pacific Open at the end o September, whaur she reached the seicont roond, but lost in three sets tae seivent seed Jelena Janković.

In October, Lisicki reached the final o the Luxembourg Open, but lost tae Timea Bacsinszky o Switzerland. On her wey tae the final she beat Iveta Benešová, Polona Hercog, Patty Schnyder an Shahar Pe'er.

Lisicki qualified for the Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions. She lost her first roond robin match tae Aravane Rezaï, but won her seicont roond robin match against Melinda Czink.

2010: Injuries and struggles

Lisicki stairtit the 2010 saison bi playin at the Hopman Cup for Germany. She won her singles ties against Elena Dementieva an Laura Robson but lost tae Yaroslava Shvedova. Pairtnerin wi Philipp Kohlschreiber, thay lost aw thair doubles matches, sae Germany did nae proceed tae the finals.

Lisicki at the 2010 US Open

Lisicki then travelled tae Melbourne tae compete in the Australian Open whaur she wis the 21st seed. Houiver, she wis defeatit in the seicont roond bi Alberta Brianti in three sets. Her first tournament after the Australian Open wis the Pattaya Open in Bangkok whaur she wis the seicont seed. Houiver, she lost her seicont roond match tae home player Tamarine Tanasugarn. She then went tae Dubai tae compete in the Dubai Tennis Championships. She lost her seicont roond match against Venus Williams. Her next twa tournaments war at Indian Wells an Miami. In baith tournaments, Lisicki retired in the seicont roond acause o an ankle injury. The injury sidelined her for five month, an she withdrew frae tournaments at Ponte Vedra an Charleston. She an aa missed The French Open an Wimbledon. Lisicki haed tae learn how tae walk again an faced suggestions that she should retire rather than risk further injury. She later said: "I always believed. Always. No matter what happened. I can still remember when the doctor told me that I have to be on crutches the next six weeks. That period made me such a much stronger person and player. I know anything is possible after learning how to walk again. I love the sport so much and I miss it when I cannot be out there on the court. It just gives me the belief to overcome anything."

Coming intae the 2010 US Open ranked world nummer 96, Lisicki advanced tae the seicont roond afore losin tae 7t seed an eventual finalist Vera Zvonareva. Efter the US Open, Lisicki failed tae qualify for the Luxembourg Open causin her ranking tae faw tae nummer 179 in the world rankings.

2011: Return to form

Lisicki stairtit the 2011 saison at the ASB Classic in Auckland. She lost tae Yanina Wickmayer in three sets in the seicont roond. In the Australian Open, Lisicki played the qualifying tournament an lost in the seicont roond tae Vesna Manasieva. Efter losin at the 2011 BNP Paribas Open tae Sorana Cîrstea in the qualifying roonds in Mairch, Lisicki fell doun the world rankings tae nummer 218. She lifted her form an reached the third roond at the 2011 Sony Ericsson Open, whaur she wis defeatit bi Maria Sharapova.

Lisicki at the 2011 Wimbledon Championships.

At the 2011 Family Circle Cup, Lisicki reached the third roond, but lost tae Sania Mirza in twa sets. At the 2011 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, Lisicki lost in the quarterfinals against her compatriot Julia Görges, eventual champion o the tournament. In doubles, Lisicki pairtnered wi former world no. 1 doubles player Samantha Stosur tae win her first ever career doubles title. At the 2011 French Open, Lisicki advanced tae the seicont roond against the nummer three seed, Vera Zvonareva. Lisicki haed a match pynt at 5–2 o the third set, but she lost the pynt an eventually the match. Afterwards, she lay on the court, sobbing, an wis taken off on a stretcher due tae injury.

At the 2011 Aegon Classic, Lisicki reached the final whaur she defeatit Daniela Hantuchová tae win her seicont WTA Tour title. At the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, Lisicki received a wildcard tae enter the tournament, advancing tae the semifinals o a major for the first time, an beatin third seed an recent French Open champion Li Na in the seicont roond. She wis eliminated bi Maria Sharapova in straucht sets after leadin the first set 3–0. This wis the first time in 12 years that a German woman (syne Steffi Graf reached the Wimbledon finals in 1999) haed reached the semifinal stage o a Grand Slam. Lisicki wis the seicont wild-card entry tae reach the women's semifinals in Wimbledon history. In doubles, Lisicki pairtnered wi Samantha Stosur an lost in the final.

At the 2011 Bank of the West Classic, Lisicki beat 4t seed an doubles pairtner Samantha Stosur an 5t seed Agnieszka Radwańska, but fell tae Serena Williams in the semifinals. At 2011 Western & Southern Open Lisicki lost tae Shahar Pe'er in the first roond. Lisicki then traveled tae Dallas tae compete in the inaugural 2011 Texas Tennis Open as the 5t seed. Efter advancing tae the semifinals wi an easy win ower qualifier Kateryna Bondarenko, she crushed 8t seed Irina-Camelia Begu tae advance tae the final. Lisicki won her third title, defeatin qualifier Aravane Rezaï, haein dropped no mair nor three gemmes each match o the wey tae her victory. She moved tae a new career-heich rank o world nummer 18 on 29 August. Seedit 22nt at the 2011 US Open, she easily advanced tae the seicont roond wi a straucht-sets win ower Alona Bondarenko. She wis scheduled tae play Venus Williams in the seicont roond, but Williams withdrew afore it stairtit due tae her recent diagnosis o Sjögren's syndrome. Lisicki dispatched Irina Falconi tae advance tae the fowert roond for the first time, afore ultimately bein defeatit bi seicont seed Vera Zvonareva. At the China Open Liscki defeatit Zheng Saisai in straucht sets but withdrew frae her seicont roond match against Kaia Kanepi.

Lisicki wis named the WTA comeback player o the year in November.

2012: Continued success and injuries

Lisicki's first tournament in 2012 wis the 2012 ASB Classic Tournament whaur she wis the nummer 1 seed. In the first roond, she defeatit Virginie Razzano. In the seicont roond, she defeatit Mona Barthel. In the quarterfinal, she faced Angelique Kerber, the 2011 US Open semifinalist, an wis losin 4–6, afore retiring, due tae a back injury, in the seicont set at a score o 3–4. In doubles, she entered wi Cheenese player Peng Shuai an thay won thair first roond match against Sara Errani an Roberta Vinci. Baith the Italians wad go on tae the Australian Open in fower weeks time. In the seicont roond, thay pulled oot due tae the injury picked up bi Lisicki in the quarterfinal o the singles tournament against Angelique Kerber.

Lisicki next entered the 2012 Apia International Sydney whaur she wis unseedit. Afore the first roond o the tournament began, she pulled oot wi her recent back injury an gae her place tae Lucky Loser, Alexandra Dulgheru.

Lisicki next competit in the Australian Open whaur she wis the fowerteent seed. In the first roond, she faced Stefanie Vögele an beat her in three sets. In the seicont roond, she defeatit Shahar Pe'er. In the third roond, she beat eighteenth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova. She wis defeatit bi Roushie Maria Sharapova. Lisicki teuk the first set, winnin sax consecutive gemmes after bein doun 0–3, but wis unable tae match Sharapova in the follaein twa sets.

At the 2012 Fed Cup, Lisicki played for Germany alongside Julia Görges, Anna-Lena Grönefeld an Angelique Kerber. She stairtit off the meetin atween Germany an the Czech Republic bi facing Iveta Benešová, a match in which she lost. In her seicont match, she faced Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitová an an aa lost. Germany lost the meetin bi a score o 1–4.

Lisicki at the 2012 BNP Paribas Open.

Lisicki's next tournament wis supposed tae be the 2012 Open GDF Suez whaur she wis tae be the fift seed. She pulled oot afore the tournament began wi a viral illness.

Lisicki then competit in the 2012 Qatar Ladies Open whaur she wis the ninth seed. In the first roond she met compatriot Angelique Kerber an lost in three sets tae continue a losin streak datin back tae the fowert roond o the Australian Open. In doubles, she wis the fowert seed alang wi Roushie Maria Kirilenko. Thay received a bye intae the seicont roond whaur thay met Andreja Klepač an Alicja Rosolska, beatin them in a third set tie-break. In the third roond thay met fift seeds Nuria Llagostera Vives an Anastasia Rodionova. Thay lost the first set 4–6, an in the seicont set, Llagostera Vives an Rodionova teuk an early 3–1 lead, but Lisicki an Kirilenko war able tae even the score bi winnin the follaein twa gemmes. The twa teams swapped a break o serve tae bring the score tae 4–4. The teams held serve an brocht the set tae a tiebreak. Lisicki an Kirilenko won 7–3 tae level the score at ane set each. Thay lost the third set, an wi it, ultimately, the match.

Lisicki's next tournament wis the 2012 Dubai Tennis Championships, whaur she wis supposed tae face fift seed Agnieszka Radwańska in the first roond. Houiver, after seicont seed Petra Kvitová withdrew, she became the ninth seed an received Kvitová's bye intae the seicont roond. Thare she met Iveta Benešová, defeatin her in twa sets. In the quarterfinals she wis knocked oot bi Poland's Radwańska.

Lisicki's next competeetion wis the 2012 Indian Wells tournament, whaur she wis the eleventh seed. She received a bye intae the seicont roond, whaur she faced Spaniard Lourdes Domínguez Lino, losin in twa sets. In doubles, she competit wi compatriot Julia Görges. Thay beat Americans Raquel Kops-Jones an Abigail Spears. The twa Germans next faced Czech pair an 2011 French Open champions Lucie Hradecká an Andrea Hlaváčková, losin in straucht sets.

Lisicki next went tae the 2012 Sony Ericsson Open, whaur she wis the twelfth seed. She got a bye tae the seicont roond whaur she faced Sofia Arvidsson. Victorious, she then faced Peng Shuai in the third roond. She won this match too an then faced Li Na in the fowert roond. Li defeatit Lisicki in three sets.

At the 2012 Family Circle Cup, Lisicki wis the saxt seed. She received a bye intae the seicont roond. Thare she faced lucky loser Andrea Hlaváčková, winnin in three. She faced qualifier Yaroslava Shvedova in the third roond an won in straucht sets. In the quarterfinals, she faced Serena Williams. Behind 1–4 tae her opponent, Lisicki fell an injured her left ankle. She retired frae the match in tears, sending Serena intae the semis. In doubles, she paired wi 2012 Australian Open women's doubles champion Vera Zvonareva. Thay lost tae tap seeds Liezel Huber an Lisa Raymond.

As a result o the faw in her quarterfinal match, Lisicki wis forced tae the sideline at the Fed Cup World Group Play-off tie against Australia. She wis an aa forced tae pull oot o the 2012 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, frae which she wis defendin a quarterfinal spot in singles an the doubles title which she won wi Samantha Stosur. Lisicki an aa missed the 2012 Mutua Madrid Open, a Premier Mandatory tournament.

Efter nearly a month off the tour, Lisicki returned as the twelfth seed in the 2012 Internazionali BNL d'Italia. She faced Marina Erakovic in the first roond, whaur she lost. Traivelin next tae her home kintra for the 2012 Internationaux de Strasbourg, whaur she wis the tap seed, Lisicki again experienced a first roond upset, losin tae Pauline Parmentier.

Lisicki then traveled tae Paris tae play the seicont Grand Slam o the year, the French Open, whaur she wis the twelfth seed. On the reid clay o Roland Garros, Lisicki lost tae American Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

Lisicki knocked oot former world no. 1 an French Open champion Maria Sharapova in the 4t roond of the 2012 Wimbledon Championships.

Lisicki stairtit her summer gress court saison bi defendin her title in the 2012 Aegon Classic. As the seicont seed she received a bye intae the seicont roond, whaur she lost tae Urszula Radwańska. This set Lisicki up wi a five-match losin streak going intae the 2012 Wimbledon Championships. In the first roond she beat unseedit Petra Martić, breaking her losin streak an putting her intae the seicont roond, whaur she faced Serbian qualifier Bojana Jovanovski. Lisicki won the match in three sets tae set up a third roond tie wi Sloane Stephens, whaur she again faced a tight match, pulling throu in the third set. In the fowert roond she beat tap seed Maria Sharapova, tae whom she haed lost in the semifinals the previous year. This merked the third year that Lisicki haed beaten the reigning French Open champion in Wimbledon, haein an aa beaten Li Na in 2011 an Svetlana Kuznetsova in 2009. In the subsequent quarterfinals, Lisicki ance again met fellae German Angelique Kerber. Haein lost the previous fower meetins, Lisicki proceeded tae lose the first set 3–6. Lisicki rallied in the seicont set tae tak it in a tiebreak; in this seicont set Lisicki saved twa match pynts. Some observers felt Kerber wis visibly frustrated^{[citation needit]} during the stairt o the third set, but Lisicki proved ultimately unable tae tak the match. At ane pynt Lisicki wis serving for the match at 5–3, but Kerber went on the tak the third set, an the match, dropping Lisicki back doun tae a world ranking o 18.

Lisicki entered the 2012 Mercury Insurance Open as the fift seed but pulled oot wi an abdominal injury. She went straucht back tae Lunnon tae prepare for the 2012 Summer Olympics. She entered singles whaur she wis seedit fifteenth, the doubles wi Angelique Kerber whaur thay war seedit fift an the mixed doubles wi Christopher Kas whaur thay war unseedit. In the singles, she beat Ons Jabeur an Yaroslava Shvedova in the first an seicont roonds respectively. She lost tae Maria Sharapova in the third roond despite winnin the first set an leadin 4–2 in the seicont. In doubles, Lisicki an Kerber beat Breetish pair Laura Robson an Heather Watson in the first roond after losin the first set whilst takin anly eleven pynts an going 4–2 doun in the seicont set. In the seicont roond thay lost tae Venus an Serena Williams. In mixed doubles, Lisicki an Kas beat seicont seeds Bob Bryan an Liezel Huber in the first roond, an Daniele Bracciali an Roberta Vinci in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, thay lost tae Andy Murray an Laura Robson. In the bronze medal match, thay lost tae third seeds Mike Bryan an Lisa Raymond.

Lisicki moved on tae the 2012 Rogers Cup in Montreal. She wis fifteenth seed in singles fawin in her openin match tae Carla Suárez Navarro. In doubles she made it tae the quarterfinals, pairtnerin wi Peng Shuai. Thay beat saxt seeds Iveta Benešová an Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová an Natalie Grandin an Vladimíra Uhlířová in the first an seicont roonds respectively. Thay war forced tae pull oot o the competeetion against tap seeds Lisa Raymond an Liezel Huber as a result o Lisicki sufferin an abdominal injury.

Lisicki entered the 2012 US Open as the 16t seed, but she wis upset in the first roond bi Romanie's Sorana Cîrstea. In doubles, Lisicki again pairtnered wi Peng Shuai. Thay beat Laura Robson an Shahar Pe'er in the first roond, twelfth seeds Anastasia Rodionova an Galina Voskoboeva in the seicont an saxt seeds Elena Vesnina an Ekaterina Makarova in the third. Thay lost tae eventual finalists Andrea Hlaváčková an Lucie Hradecká in the quarterfinals.

Lisicki's next tournament wis in Japan at the 2012 Toray Pan Pacific Open. In singles, she stairtit wi a first roond loss against Breetish qualifier Heather Watson. In doubles, she pairtnered wi world nummer 3, Lisa Raymond. Thay faced Monica Niculescu an Alicja Rosolska, baith o whom haed recently lost in WTA doubles finals. Lisicki an Raymond won the match an defeatit Darija Jurak an Katalin Marosi in the quarterfinals.

Lisicki next participated at the China Open, but she wis defeatit in the seicont roond bi the eventual champion Victoria Azarenka. She next moved tae Linz whaur she lost in the first roond tae Patricia Mayr-Achleitner. Lisicki finished her saison losin in the first roond o the 2012 Luxembourg Open tae Kirsten Flipkens o Belgium.

2013: First Grand Slam singles final

Lisicki stairtit 2013 wi the 2013 Brisbane International. She beat Lucie Šafářová in the first roond. She lost in the seicont roond tae world nummer 1, Victoria Azarenka. She pulled oot o the qualifying draw for the 2013 Apia International Sydney wi a virus.

Lisicki then competit in the 2013 Australian Open. In the first roond she faced Caroline Wozniacki an wis defeatit. She an aa competit in the mixed doubles wi Frederik Nielsen. Thay war knocked oot in the first roond bi the home favorites an eventual champions, Jarmila Gajdošová an Matthew Ebden.

Lisicki an Husarova during the 2013 French Open.

Lisicki then moved onto the 2013 PTT Pattaya Open. In the first roond she beat fellae German Tatjana Malek. She downed Alexandra Panova in the seicont roond an came back frae a set doun in the quarterfinals tae beat Marina Erakovic. In her first semifinal syne 2011, she beat Nina Bratchikova. In the final, she faced Maria Kirilenko, but lost in three sets.

Her next tournament wis in Memphis. As the third seed, she beat qualifier Madison Keys in the first roond an Melinda Czink in the seicont. In the quarterfinal, she beat aicht seed Kristina Mladenovic an beat seivent seed Magdaléna Rybáriková in the semifinal. In Lisicki's seicont final o the year, she faced Marina Erakovic frae New Zealand. Erakovic ran away wi the first set an Lisicki retired frae the final wi illness. This wis Erakovic's first WTA title.

Lisicki missed the 2013 BNP Paribas Open wi the same illness. She returned in time tae play at the 2013 Sony Open Tennis in Miami but lost in the first roond tae Simona Halep o Romanie.

Lisicki stairtit her clay court saison on the Green clay at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston. Lisicki claimed the title here in 2009. In the first roond she recorded her first ever dooble bagel (nae losin ony gemmes) in beatin Anna Tatishvili o Georgia. In the seicont roond, she lost frae a set up against Mallory Burdette.

Her next tournament wis on the reid clay in Katowice, Poland. As the seivent seed, she lost in the first roond tae Alexandra Cadanțu o Romanie. She then travelled tae Stuttgart for Germany's Fed Cup World Group Play-off tie against Serbia. Angelique Kerber an Mona Barthel war picked for singles against Ana Ivanovic an Bojana Jovanovski. Efter the fower singles matches, the score wis tied at 2 aw. Lisicki wis picked tae play the doubles rubber wi Anna-Lena Grönefeld against Vesna Dolonc an Aleksandra Krunić. The German pairing easily won tae secure Germany its place in the 2014 Fed Cup World Group. Lisicki stayed in Stuttgart tae compete in the 2013 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. In Singles, she beat qualifier Italian Nastassja Burnett. In the seicont roond, she beat Serbian Jelena Janković. She lost in the quarterfinals tae American qualifier Bethanie Mattek-Sands. In Doubles, she an compatriot Mona Barthel received a wild card tae play in the main draw. Thay war scheduled tae play world nummer ones Roberta Vinci an Sara Errani but thay pulled oot afore the tournament began. Instead, thay war drawn against alternates Jill Craybas an Megan Moulton-Levy. Lisicki an Barthel easily won, wi the loss o juist twa gemmes. Thay then faced Jelena Janković an Mirjana Lučić-Baroni, a match in which thay won in three sets. In the semifinals, the German pairing faced Darija Jurak an Katalin Marosi, defeatin them in straucht sets. In the final, Lisicki got revenge for her singles loss bi beatin Bethanie Mattek-Sands an her pairtner Sania Mirza. This wis Lisicki's seicont WTA doubles title, the first coming in Stuttgart in 2011. Lisicki an Barthel became the first aw-German pairing tae lift the trophy in Stuttgart.

Lisicki at the 2013 French Open.

Lisicki continued her clay saison in Madrid. In the first roond, she beat Sofia Arvidsson o Swaden. In the seicont roond, she defeatit fifteenth seed Dominika Cibulková. In the third roond she played world nummer 2 Maria Sharapova. Sharapova ultimately won in straucht sets, wi Lisicki putting up a fecht in the seicont set. Frae Madrid, Lisicki went tae Roum tae play at the Italian Open. In the first roond, she defeatit American qualifier Mallory Burdette, but lost tae aicht seed Petra Kvitová in the seicont roond.

Lisicki then went tae Paris for the seicont Grand Slam of the year. In Singles, she wis the 32nd seed. She defeatit Sofia Arvidsson in the first roond an pulled off a straucht sets win against Spaniard María Teresa Torró Flor in the seicont roond, reachin the third roond o the French Open for the first time in her career. Thare she wis defeatit bi fift seed an defendin finalist Sara Errani. In doubles, Lisicki pairtnered wi Slovak Janette Husárová. Thay came frae a set doun tae beat Bojana Jovanovski an Eva Hrdinová in the first roond. In the seicont roond, thay upset fifteenth seeds Chan Hao-ching o Taipei an Darija Jurak o Croatia. Thay faced defendin Champions Sara Errani an Roberta Vinci in the third roond, losin in straucht sets.

Lisicki stairtit her gress court saison bi playin in the 2013 Aegon Classic. As the fift seed, she received a bye intae the seicont roond whaur she defeatit Kristýna Plíšková. In the third roond, she beat Mirjana Lučić-Baroni. She lost tae Alison Riske in the quarterfinals. In the final set, Lisicki wis 4–5 doun an serving at 15–0 when Riske shouted "come on!" during a rally afore Lisicki haed returned the ball. Lisicki wis unhappy an wanted the umpire tae mak a hindrance caw, which wad hae gien her the pynt an put her 30–0 up. The umpire did nae agree wi her an neither did the tournament referee. Riske teuk the pynt an broke Lisicki tae win the match. At the Wimbledon Championships, Lisicki wis seedit 23rd. She beat Francesca Schiavone in the first roond, Elena Vesnina in the seicont roond an fowerteent seed Samantha Stosur in the third roond. In the fowert roond she faced first seed an reigning Wimbledon, US Open, an French Open champion Serena Williams. Lisicki won in three sets, merking the fowert time in her last fower participations that she knocked oot the reigning French Open champion at Wimbledon. Williams haed been on a 34-match winnin streak coming intae the match. Lisicki defeatit Kaia Kanepi o Estonie, reachin the Wimbledon semifinals for the seicont time in her career. She beat Agnieszka Radwańska in a three set semifinal in twa oors an eighteen minutes tae advance tae her first Grand Slam final, tharebi acomin the first German woman tae reach a major final syne Steffi Graf at Wimbledon in 1999, an the first German player o aither gender tae reach a Grand Slam singles final syne Rainer Schüttler at the 2003 Australian Open. Houiver, she lost in the final tae Fraunce's Marion Bartoli in straucht sets.

Her next tournament wis the 2013 Western & Southern Open, houiver she lost in her openin match in a tight three-setter against Jelena Janković. She then played the 2013 New Haven Open at Yale, beatin Kristina Mladenovic in the first roond afore losin tae Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the seicont.

She then played the 2013 US Open as the 16t seed, whaur she defeatit qualifier Vera Dushevina in the first roond. She then won her seicont match against Paula Ormaechea afore losin tae Ekaterina Makarova in roond three.

Lisicki missed maist o the Asian swing, but competit at the 2013 China Open as the 13t seed. She advanced tae the third roond after beatin Chanelle Scheepers an Venus Williams, afore losin tae home favourite Li Na. She then played the 2013 HP Open in Osaka, again beatin Scheepers in the first roond, but wis forced tae withdraw frae the tournament wi a left hip injury afore her seicont roond match.

Lisicki ended her 2013 saison on ahigh bi reachin the semi-finals o the Luxembourg Open. She beat Donna Vekić, Tereza Smitková an Karin Knapp in her openin three matches. She won the last set tae luve (6–0) in aw three o thir matches. In the semi-finals, she succumbed tae tap seed an eventual champion Caroline Wozniacki in straucht sets. She finished her year ranked as world nummer 15.

2014: Illness and injuries; fastest serve record, 4th WTA title

It wis confirmed in October 2013 that Lisicki wad begin her 2014 saison alongside Serena Williams an Victoria Azarenka at the 2014 Brisbane International. She advanced tae the seicont roond wi a win ower Magdaléna Rybáriková, but then withdrew frae the tournament due tae illness.

At the 2014 Australian Open it wis annoonced that Lisicki wad bring in Martina Hingis as a coach. Lisicki wis seedit 15t an began wi a confident straucht-sets victory ower Mirjana Lučić-Baroni, but wis upset in the seicont roond bi Monica Niculescu. At the PTT Pattaya Open, Lisicki struggled tae overcome Donna Vekić in the first roond in three sets. Efter the match, she admitted that it haed been awmaist impossible for her tae serve effectively due tae a right shoulder injury. She later withdrew frae the tournament.

Lisicki an Hingis at the 2014 Internazionali BNL d'Italia.

Lisicki then endured a poor run across the North American swing, losin in her first match in Indian Wells tae Aleksandra Wozniak o Canadae. In Indian Wells, Lisicki an aa competit in the doubles draw playin alongside coach Martina Hingis. Efter getting a wildcard intae the main draw, thay played seivent seeds Ashleigh Barty an Casey Dellacqua. At the Sony Open in Miami, Lisicki beat Nadia Petrova in her openin match. Houiver, she wis forced tae pull oot afore her third roond match against Kirsten Flipkens citing a bad flu. Despite pulling oot o the singles draw, Lisicki wis able tae tak a few days off tae recover afore she an Hingis stairtit thair campaign for the title. In the first roond, thay claimed thair first win thegither bi beatin saxt seeds Andrea Hlaváčková an Lucie Šafářová. In the seicont roond, Lisicki an Hingis convincingly defeatit wildcards Sorana Cîrstea an Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straucht sets. In thair quarterfinal match, the pair pulled off an impressive comeback win beatin Anabel Medina Garrigues an Yaroslava Shvedova despite losin the first set an facing match pynts against them in the seicont. In the semifinals, thay played fift seeds an Indian Wells finalists Cara Black an Sania Mirza an beat them in straucht sets. In thair first final in anly thair seicont tournament thegither, Lisicki an Hingis played seicont seeds Elena Vesnina an Ekaterina Makarova. Despite bein the hivy favourites for the title, Vesnina an Makrarova wad go on the lose the match in three sets. The win wis Lisicki's third doubles title an her first off the indoor clay o Stuttgart an Hingis' 38th doubles title an first syne 2007.

Lisicki looked tae cairy momentum frae the Miami title bi going tae Charleston an playin in the Family Circle Cup. She entered the tournament as the fowert seed an received a bye in the first roond o play. In the seicont roond she played Vania King an beat her in three sets. In the third roond, she played compatriot Andrea Petkovic for the first time in her career. Lisicki lost tae the eventual champion Petkovic, managing tae score anly ane gemme in the whole match. Lisicki did nae participate in Germany's Fed Cup semifinal victory ower Australia, muivin frae the outdoor green clay o Charleston tae the indoor reid clay o Stuttgart. She lost in the openin roond tae ninth seed Ana Ivanovic.

Lisicki then competit at the 2014 Mutua Madrid Open whaur she wis the 15t seed. She fell in the third roond tae Simona Halep in three sets. At Roum, she fell in her openin match tae Australian Samantha Stosur in straucht sets. Lisicki reached the seicont roond at Roland Garros whaur she retired against compatriot Mona Barthel after injuring her wrist.

In Juin, Lisicki split wi coach Hingis, citing "different concepts" as the reason. Lisicki wis the 19t seed at Wimbledon, but coud nae repeat her feat frae the previous year, anly managing tae reach the quarterfinals whaur she lost tae Simona Halep. Alang the wey, she defeatit Julia Glushko, Karolína Plíšková, Ana Ivanovic an Yaroslava Shvedova, fechtin throu a shoulder injury against the Kazakh.

Lisicki at the 2014 US Open.

In Julie, Lisicki slipped doun tae 30 in the world rankings. In her first roond match at the 2014 Bank of the West Classic against Ana Ivanovic, Lisicki set a world record serve for a female tennis player, clocked at 210.8 km/h (131.0 mph). Houiver, Lisicki lost the match in straucht sets tae her Serbian opponent. At the Rogers Cup in Montreal the follaein week, Lisicki defeatit former world nummer five Sara Errani in the first roond in straucht sets. Efter coming frae a set doun tae defeat Madison Keys in the next roond, she lost tae Agnieszka Radwańska in three sets. The follaein week in Cincinnati wis awmaist a repeat. In the seicont roond, Lisicki defeatit Sara Errani ance mair in a match that lasted three oors afore bein beaten bi Radwańska, anly managing tae win twa gemmes. Lisicki, the 26t seed, reached the third roond at the 2014 US Open whaur she lost tae Maria Sharapova. In September, Lisicki participated in Hong Kong as the tap seed after receiving a wildcard. She defeatit Monica Niculescu an Grace Min tae reach the qurterfinals. Then, she defeatit Zheng Saisai an Francesca Schiavone tae reach her first final o 2014. She won her 4t WTA title after defeatin Karolina Pliskova, her first singles title in mair nor 3 years. Lisicki received a wildcard at the 2014 Toray Pan Pacific Open but lost tae Aussie Casey Dellacqua in the first roond. At the 2014 Wuhan Open, Lisicki upset Lucie Safarova in the first roond afore fawin tae Elina Svitolina in the seicont roond despite leadin 5-0 in the first set. At the China Open, she reached the third roond for the seicont straucht year after defeatin Xu Shilin an Eugenie Bouchard. She then lost tae Ivanovic in straucht sets. Lisicki then played in Linz as the 5t seed. She acceptit a wildcard intae the event. She lost tae Karin Knapp in three sets in the first roond. The follaein week, Lisicki wis upset bi Denisa Allertova in the seicont roond at the 2014 BGL Luxembourg Open haein overcame Daniela Hantuchova in her openin match. Lisicki's last match o 2014 wis at the Fed Cup whaur Germany faced Czech Republic. She wis selected tae play the doubles tie alongside Anna-Lena Groenefeld. Thay defeatit the pair o Andrea Hlavackova an Lucie Hradecka. Lisicki ended the year at no. 27.

2015: First Premier Mandatory semifinal

Lisicki haed a rough stairt tae the year, losin in the first roonds at the Brisbane International (champion in doubles wi Hingis), the Apia International Sydney an the Australian Open, losin tae Yaroslava Shvedova, Carla Suárez Navarro, an Kristina Mladenovic respectively. She finally picked up her first win o the year in Dubai beatin Monica Niculescu afore bowing oot tae Ana Ivanovic. Lisicki wad then suffer mair first roond losses in Doha tae Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová an in Kuala Lumpur tae eventual finalist Alexandra Dulgheru.

Lisicki entered Indian Wells seedit 24t. She beat Roberta Vinci in the seicont roond. Prior tae this match Lisicki haed never won a match at the tournament. She continued winnin bi beatin Vinci's former doubles pairtner Sara Errani in the third roond an Caroline Garcia in the fowert roond tae advance tae the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals she beat the defendin champion Flavia Pennetta in a three set thriller, saving three match pynts tae advance tae the semifinals for the first time at a Premier Mandatory event. She lost tae Jelena Janković in the semifinals in three sets despite leadin bi a set an a break. Lisicki carried her good form ower tae Miami whaur she beat fellae countrywoman Julia Görges in the seicont roond an in the third roond beat Ana Ivanovic in straucht sets tae score her first tap ten win o the year. She breezed past Sara Errani in the fowert roond tae advance tae her seicont Premier Mandatory quarterfinal in a row. She lost tae eventual champion Serena Williams in the quarterfinals in three sets.

Lisicki then played for Germany in the semifinals against Roushie in the Fed Cup whaur she lost tae Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets despite haein match pynt in the seicont set. She an aa played in the doubles wi Andrea Petkovic but the pair lost tae Pavlyuchenkova an Elena Vesnina tae gie Roushie the win an a place in the final.

Lisicki began her clay saison in Stuttgart an wis handed her first career dooble bagel loss bi Zarina Diyas in the first roond. This followed wi anither first roond exit at the Mutua Madrid Open tae Coco Vandeweghe in three sets. Lisicki then played at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia whaur she beat Sloane Stephens in the first roond in straucht sets afore losin tae Timea Bacsinszky in the seicont roond in straucht sets. She then played at the Nürnberger Versicherungscup an lost in the seicont roond tae Lara Arruabarrena in three sets despite haein match pynt in the third set. Lisicki then played at the French Open as the 20t seed. She beat Mónica Puig in the first roond in straucht sets. In the seicont roond, after winnin the first set, her opponent Daria Gavrilova retired, allouin Lisicki tae advance tae the third roond, whaur she wis defeatit bi Lucie Šafářová in straucht sets.

Playing style

"Lisicki is a big, strong, hard-hitting player who reminds me of a boxer throwing punches from every single direction. The problem is some of the punches land in the right spot and some don't. But she's got great power, a strong serve, she works very hard and has a big-match mentality you can't always teach."

Nick Bollettieri

Lisicki is well kent for her powerful, aggressive gemme. An aggressive baseliner, she hits "heavy balls" wi topspin an pace. She haes a strang forehaund an backhaund, hitting balls wi power, depth an angles. She is nicknamed "Boom Boom" for her "huge serve and thumping groundstrokes". Germany Fed Cup team Captain Barbara Rittner haes compared her tae Steffi Graf, saying that she can "impose her game" an "plays with the same force" as Graf.

Serve

Lisicki haes amang the maist powerful serves on the WTA Tour. Describit variously as a "cannon" an a "howitzer", she is kent tae hit serves at speeds o ower 120 mph. Her fastest offeecial serve on the WTA Tour wis recorded at 210.8 km/h (131.0 mph). She haes been ranked seicont in aces count in 2013 anly behind Serena Williams an wis ranked fift in 2014. Lisicki is houiver crippled bi her inconsistent seicont serve, which is uisually aroond 70-80 MPH, an a heich Dooble Fault count.

Surfaces

Lisicki's favourite surface is gress an she haes haed the maist success on that surface. She uised tae "hate" playin on gress acause she is allergic tae it an haed a five-match losin streak on gress in 2009. She is nou on medication for her allergy an "loves" playin on it nou.

Personal life

Lisicki lives in Bradenton, Florida. She is fluent in German, Inglis an Pols. Her off-court interests include readin, muisic an athletics. Lisicki is a fan o the German national football team an o Bundesliga club Bayern Munich. She is gluten-intolerant.

Career statistics an Major finals

Main airticle: Sabine Lisicki career statistics

Grand Slam

Singles: 1 (0–1)

Ootcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent	Score
Runner-up	2013	Wimbledon	Gress	Marion Bartoli	1–6, 4–6

Doubles: 1 (0–1)

Ootcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Pairtner	Opponents	Score
Runner-up	2011	Wimbledon	Gress	Samantha Stosur	Květa Peschke Katarina Srebotnik	3–6, 1–6

Singles performance timeline

Anly Main Draw results in WTA Tour are considered. This table is current throu the 2013 Wimbledon Championships.

Toornament	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	SR	W–L
Grand Slam Tournaments
Australian Open	A	A	3R	2R	2R	LQ	4R	1R	0 / 5	7–5
French Open	A	A	2R	1R	A	2R	1R	3R	0 / 5	4–5
Wimbledon	A	A	1R	QF	A	SF	QF	F	0 / 5	19–5
US Open	A	A	2R	2R	2R	4R	1R		0 / 5	6–5
Win–Loss	0–0	0–0	4–4	6–4	2–2	9–3	7–4	8–3	0 / 20	36–20
Year-End Championship
WTA Tour Championships	A	A	A	A	A	A	A		0 / 0	0–0
Toornament o Champions	Nae Held			A	A	4t	A		0 / 1	1–1

Freemit airtins

• Sabine Lisicki at the Women's Tennis Association
• Sabine Lisicki at the Internaitional Tennis Federation
• Sabine Lisicki at the Fed Cup
• Offeecial wabsteid