2008 in tennis
Template:Year nav sports topic5
This page covers all the important events in the sport of tennis in 2008. Primarily, it provides the results of notable tournaments throughout the year on both the ATP and WTA Tours, the Davis Cup, the Fed Cup, and the Olympics.
News
January
- See: 2008 ATP Tour, 2008 WTA Tour
1 – World No. 3 Jelena Janković was forced to withdraw from her Hopman Cup tie against Tatiana Golovin, putting a question mark over whether she will be fit enough to play the Australian Open.
2 – Lindsay Davenport survived a second set scare to edge past Anabel Medina Garrigues, while Xavier Malisse and Mikhail Youzhny both won in the men's event in Chennai.
3 – Andy Murray, Nikolay Davydenko, Ivan Ljubičić and Stanislas Wawrinka all advanced into the Qatar Open semi-finals, while Rafael Nadal continued his run in Chennai. Over on the WTA, hometown wildcard Marina Erakovic stunned Vera Zvonareva in Auckland, while defending champion Dinara Safina wasted five match points to lose to Shahar Pe'er in Gold Coast.
4 – former world number one Martina Hingis was banned for two years when the verdict over her drugs case was reached. Hingis had dropped the bombshell in October that she had tested positive for cocaine, and retired immediately after.[1]
5 – Li Na defeated Victoria Azarenka to win the Gold Coast, while three-time Grand Slam champion Lindsay Davenport won her third tournament since her comeback in Auckland. On the ATP, Michaël Llodra beat Jarkko Nieminen to win Adelaide, Andy Murray won the Qatar Open and Rafael Nadal beat Carlos Moyà to reach the Chennai final. United States team Serena Williams and Mardy Fish defeated Serbia to win the 2008 Hopman Cup. Finally, Venus Williams beat Maria Sharapova 6–4, 6–3 to win the JB Group Classic, an exhibition tournament, in Hong Kong.
6 – World No. 2 Rafael Nadal was thrashed 6–0, 6–1 by Mikhail Youzhny in the Chennai Open final. Amélie Mauresmo announced her withdrawal from the following week's Medibank International tournament. Three time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten announced that he expected 2008 to be his final year of play.[2]
7 – Roger Federer withdrew from exhibition event the AAMI Kooyong Classic due to illness, while at the joint tournament in Sydney, Anna Chakvetadze, Elena Dementieva and defending men's champion James Blake all suffered shock defeats. Jelena Dokić won her first WTA main draw match in two years by defeating Martina Müller at Hobart.
8 – The ITF, ATP, WTA and organisers of all four slams announced that they would come together and review their anti-corruption policies, in light of recent events.[3] Former British police officers, Jeffrey Rees and Ben Gunn, who have helped stamp out corruption in cricket and horse racing, have been hired.
9 – Lleyton Hewitt suffered another blow in his preparations for the 2008 Australian Open, making a second early exit in as many weeks; this time in Sydney. Nicole Vaidišová earned a shock victory over third seeded Jelena Janković on the women's side.
10 – The women's final of the Medibank International took shape – Justine Henin defeated Ana Ivanovic in three sets, whilst Svetlana Kuznetsova completed a tight two set victory over Nicole Vaidišová.
11 – The singles draws for the Australian Open were announced. WTA chief Larry Scott released a statement highlighting the threat of organised crime, in particular, the Russian mafia, in the corruption of the sport.[4] Justine Henin defeated Svetlana Kuznetsova 4–6, 6–2, 6–4 to win the women's Medibank International tournament. Eleni Daniilidou won in Hobart.
12 – Dmitry Tursunov won the Medibank International 7–6(3), 7–6(4); ending Chris Guccione's dream run. Philipp Kohlschreiber triumphed in Auckland, defeating Juan Carlos Ferrero; and Andy Roddick won the Kooyong Classic exhibition, taking down Marcos Baghdatis.
13 – World No. 1 Roger Federer announced that he would play an exhibition match against Pete Sampras, to follow up the three in Asia during November 2007; this time at Madison Square Gardens, New York City. Outside of tournament play, it was reported that the Australian Open could be at risk due to Chinese ambitions of their own Grand Slam,[5] something that Roger Federer[6] and Serena Williams[7] have publicly spoken out against.
14 – The 2008 Australian Open begins, with the singles matches. Jelena Janković, the women's no. 3 seed, survived a first round scare against Tamira Paszek, saving five match points. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga sent men's no. 9 seed Andy Murray packing with a 7–5, 6–4, 0–6, 7–6 win.
15 – After the ATP match-fixing scandal, the WTA Tour announced that several female tennis players had been approached about throwing tennis matches. Sofia Arvidsson caused the first big upset on the women's side, knocking out tenth seed Marion Bartoli. Gustavo Kuerten announces that he will officially retire after the French Open.[8]
16 – Play at the Australian Open was disrupted for the second year in a row by crowd riots, between Cypriot and Greek supporters in the match between Fernando González and Konstantinos Economidis, forcing the police to intervene.[9] Maria Sharapova beat former winner Lindsay Davenport in the women's second round. In men's second round action, Tommy Robredo lost easily to Mardy Fish.
18 – Taiwanese player Hsieh Su-wei reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career, having never made it past the first round before. Home favourite Casey Dellacqua stunned 2006 champion Amélie Mauresmo 3–6, 6–4, 6–4. Andy Roddick lost in a five-set thriller, going down to Philipp Kohlschreiber 6–4, 3–6, 7–6, 6–7, 8–6.
19 – No. 2 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova was sent crashing out by Agnieszka Radwańska, while No. 6 seed Anna Chakvetadze lost to Maria Kirilenko in two shocking upsets in the women's draw. Roger Federer and Lleyton Hewitt wowed the Australian crowds, both pulling out two thrilling five set wins. Federer beat Janko Tipsarević 6–7, 7–6, 5–7, 6–1, 10–8, while Hewitt outlasted Marcos Baghdatis 4–6, 7–5, 7–5, 6–7, 6–3. Fernando González lost to Marin Čilić in four sets.
20 – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga reached his maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal with a win over eighth seed Richard Gasquet. Mikhail Youzhny upset fourth-seeded compatriot Nikolay Davydenko in an all-Russian clash. In the women's draw, the favourites all moved through with ease.
21 – The quarterfinal line-ups were set in both the men and women's draws, with Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Ana Ivanovic and Venus Williams being just a few of the eight players who moved through with wins.
22 – Maria Sharapova snapped world No. 1 Justine Henin's 32-match winning streak with a crushing 6–4, 6–0 defeat, while Jelena Janković stunned defending champion Serena Williams with a 6–3, 6–4 victory in the women's quarterfinals. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga continued his incredible run in the men's quarterfinals, beating Mikhail Youzhny to set up a meeting with No. 2 Rafael Nadal.
23 – Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic set up a men's semifinal clash, while Ana Ivanovic beat Venus Williams for the first time, to go on to meet Daniela Hantuchová, who beat Agnieszka Radwańska in straight sets.
24 – The women's final was set as Maria Sharapova beat Jelena Janković 6–3, 6–1; she will now meet Ana Ivanovic who came from losing the first eight games of the match to beat Daniela Hantuchová 0–6, 6–3, 6–4. In the men's play, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga reached his first Grand Slam final with a titanic upset over No. 2 seed Rafael Nadal 6–2, 6–3, 6–2.
25 – Sisters Alona and Kateryna Bondarenko won the women's doubles tournament by defeating Victoria Azarenka and Shahar Pe'er 2–6, 6–1, 6–4 in the final. Novak Djokovic beat world number one Roger Federer in straight sets to advance to his second Grand Slam final, where he will face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
26 – Maria Sharapova defeats Ana Ivanovic to win the 2008 Australian Open women's singles title.
27 – Novak Djokovic defeats Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to win the 2008 Australian Open men's singles title.
February
March
April
May
June
7 – 2007 finalist Ana Ivanovic beats Dinara Safina to win the French Open and with this win Ivanovic would become the new World No. 1
8 – Three time defending champion Rafael Nadal thrashes Three time runner-up Roger Federer 6–1, 6–3, 6–0 in the French Open Final to finish the most lopsided match of their long and storied rivalry. This is the first time since 1999 that Federer has lost a set 6–0
July
Rafael Nadal dethrones five time defending champion Roger Federer 6–4, 6–4, 6–7(5), 6–7(8), 9–7 in what many consider the greatest match of the decade. Nadal won his first Wimbledon title in near darkness after over four hours of play and over 2 hours of rain delay.
August
September
8 - US Open: Roger Federer wins the Men's Singles and Serena Williams wins the Women's Singles title.
14 - Fed Cup: Russia wins 4-0 over Spain
October
November
23 - Spain wins Davis Cup 3-1 over Argentina
ITF
Grand Slam events
- 2008 Australian Open (January 14 – January 27)
- Men's singles: Template:Flagicon Novak Djokovic def. Template:Flagicon Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 7–6(2)
- Women's singles: Template:Flagicon Maria Sharapova def. Template:Flagicon Ana Ivanovic, 7–5, 6–3
- Men's doubles: Template:Flagicon Jonathan Erlich & Template:Flagicon Andy Ram def. Template:Flagicon Arnaud Clément & Template:Flagicon Michaël Llodra, 7–5, 7–6(4)
- Women's doubles: Template:Flagicon Alona Bondarenko & Template:Flagicon Kateryna Bondarenko def. Template:Flagicon Victoria Azarenka & Template:Flagicon Shahar Pe'er, 2–6, 6–1, 6–4
- Mixed doubles: Template:Flagicon Sun Tiantian & Template:Flagicon Nenad Zimonjić def. Template:Flagicon Sania Mirza & Template:Flagicon Mahesh Bhupathi, 7–6(4), 6–4
- 2008 French Open (May 26 – June 8)
- Men's singles: Template:Flagicon Rafael Nadal def. Template:Flagicon Roger Federer, 6–1, 6–3, 6–0
- Women's singles: Template:Flagicon Ana Ivanovic def. Template:Flagicon Dinara Safina, 6–4, 6–3
- Men's doubles: Template:Flagicon Pablo Cuevas & Template:Flagicon Luis Horna def. Template:Flagicon Daniel Nestor & Template:Flagicon Nenad Zimonjić, 6–2, 6–3
- Women's doubles: Template:Flagicon Anabel Medina Garrigues & Template:Flagicon Virginia Ruano Pascual def. Template:Flagicon Casey Dellacqua & Template:Flagicon Francesca Schiavone, 2–6, 7–5, 6–4
- Mixed doubles: Template:Flagicon Victoria Azarenka & Template:Flagicon Bob Bryan def. Template:Flagicon Katarina Srebotnik & Template:Flagicon Nenad Zimonjić, 6–2, 7–6(4)
- 2008 Wimbledon Championships (June 24 – July 6)
- Men's singles: Template:Flagicon Rafael Nadal def. Template:Flagicon Roger Federer, 6–4, 6–4, 6–7(5), 6–7(8), 9–7
- Women's singles: Template:Flagicon Venus Williams def. Template:Flagicon Serena Williams, 7–5, 6–4
- Men's doubles: Template:Flagicon Daniel Nestor & Template:Flagicon Nenad Zimonjić def. Template:Flagicon Jonas Björkman & Template:Flagicon Kevin Ullyett, 7–6(12), 6–7(3), 6–3, 6–3
- Women's doubles: Template:Flagicon Serena Williams & Template:Flagicon Venus Williams def. Template:Flagicon Lisa Raymond & Template:Flagicon Samantha Stosur, 6–2, 6–2
- Mixed doubles: Template:Flagicon Bob Bryan & Template:Flagicon Samantha Stosur def. Template:Flagicon Mike Bryan & Template:Flagicon Katarina Srebotnik, 7–5, 6–4
- 2008 US Open (August 25 – September 7)
- Men's singles: Template:Flagicon Roger Federer def. Template:Flagicon Andy Murray, 6–2, 7–5, 6–2
- Women's singles: Template:Flagicon Serena Williams def. Template:Flagicon Jelena Janković, 6–4, 7–5
- Men's doubles: Template:Flagicon Bob Bryan & Template:Flagicon Mike Bryan def. Template:Flagicon Lukáš Dlouhý & Template:Flagicon Leander Paes, 7–6(5), 7–6(10)
- Women's doubles: Template:Flagicon Cara Black & Template:Flagicon Liezel Huber def. Template:Flagicon Lisa Raymond & Template:Flagicon Samantha Stosur, 6–3, 7–6(6)
- Mixed doubles: Template:Flagicon Cara Black & Template:Flagicon Leander Paes def. Template:Flagicon Liezel Huber & Template:Flagicon Jamie Murray, 7–6(6), 6–4
2008 Davis Cup
World Group Draw
- S-Seeded
- U-Unseeded
- * Choice of ground
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Final
| File:Flag of Argentina.svg Argentina 1 |
Estadio Polideportivo, Mar del Plata, Argentina November 21–23, 2008 hard (indoors) |
File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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World Group Playoffs
Date: 19–21 September
| Venue (surface) | Home Team | Score | Visiting Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antofagasta, Chile (clay) | File:Flag of Chile.svg Chile | 3–2 | File:Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia |
| Wimbledon, London, Great Britain (grass) | File:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Great Britain | 2–3 | File:Flag of Austria.svg Austria |
| Lausanne, Switzerland (indoor hard) | File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland | 4–1 | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium |
| Zadar, Croatia (indoor hard) | File:Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia | 4–1 | File:Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil |
| Ramat HaSharon, Israel (hard) | File:Flag of Israel.svg Israel | 4–1 | File:Flag of Peru.svg Peru |
| Apeldoorn, Netherlands (indoor clay) | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | 3–2 | File:Flag of South Korea.svg South Korea |
| Bucharest, Romania (clay) | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | 4–1 | File:Flag of India.svg India |
| Bratislava, Slovakia (indoor hard) | File:Flag of Slovakia.svg Slovakia | 1–4 | File:Flag of Serbia.svg Serbia |
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2008 Fed Cup
World Group Draw
- S-Seeded
- U-Unseeded
- * Choice of ground
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Final
| File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain 0 |
Club de Campo Villa de Madrid, Madrid, Spain 13–14 September 2008 Clay – Outdoors |
File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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World Group play-offs
Date: 26–27 April
| Venue (surface) | Home team | Score | Visiting team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ramat HaSharon, Israel (hard) | File:Flag of Israel.svg Israel | 2–3 | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic |
| Buenos Aires, Argentina (clay) | File:Flag of Argentina.svg Argentina | 3–2 | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany |
| Tokyo, Japan (indoor hard) | File:Flag of Japan.svg Japan | 1–4 | File:Flag of France.svg France |
| Olbia, Italy (clay) | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | 3–2 | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine |
2008 Hopman Cup
The Hopman Cup is the Official Mixed Team Competition of the ITF, played at the Burswood Entertainment Complex, in Perth, Australia. It is considered an exhibition competition as players do not gain ranking points for competing in the tournament. This year the USA's pairing of Mardy Fish and Serena Williams (who was replaced for the first group match by Meghann Shaughnessy) defeated Novak Djokovic and Jelena Janković of Serbia in the final. This was the 20th edition of the competition.
Group A
| Pos. | Country | W | L | Matches | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Template:Flagu | 3 | 0 | 7–2 | 15–8 |
| 2. | Template:Flagu | 2 | 1 | 6–3 | 13–7 |
| 3. | Script error: No such module "flag". | 1 | 2 | 3–6 | 9–14 |
| 4. | Template:Flagu | 0 | 3 | 2–7 | 7–15 |
Group B
| Pos. | Country | W | L | Matches | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Template:Flagu | 3 | 0 | 8–1 | 16–4 |
| 2. | Template:Flagu | 1 | 2 | 4–5 | 10–12 |
| 3. | Template:Flagu | 1 | 2 | 3–6 | 8–12 |
| 4. | Template:Flagu | 1 | 2 | 3–6 | 7–13 |
Final
2008 Beijing Olympics
- Men's singles: Template:Flagicon Rafael Nadal def. Template:Flagicon Fernando González, 6–3, 7–6(2), 6–3
- Bronze Medal: Template:Flagicon Novak Djokovic def. Template:Flagicon James Blake, 6–3, 7–6(4)
- Women's singles: Template:Flagicon Elena Dementieva def. Template:Flagicon Dinara Safina, 3–6, 7–5, 6–3
- Bronze Medal: Template:Flagicon Vera Zvonareva def Template:Flagicon Li Na, 6–0, 7–5
- Men's doubles: Template:Flagicon Roger Federer & Stanislas Wawrinka def. Template:Flagicon Simon Aspelin & Thomas Johansson, 6–3, 6–4, 6–7(4), 6–3
- Bronze Medal: Template:Flagicon Bob Bryan & Mike Bryan def. Template:Flagicon Arnaud Clément & Michaël Llodra, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4
- Women's doubles: Template:Flagicon Serena Williams & Venus Williams def. Template:Flagicon Anabel Medina Garrigues & Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6–2, 6–0
- Bronze Medal: Template:Flagicon Yan Zi & Zheng Jie def. Template:Flagicon Alona Bondarenko & Kateryna Bondarenko, 6–2, 6–2
2008 ATP Tour
Tennis Masters Cup
- Shanghai, P.R. China (November 9 – November 16)
- Singles: Template:Flagicon Novak Djokovic def. Template:Flagicon Nikolay Davydenko, 6–1, 7–5
- Doubles: Template:Flagicon Daniel Nestor & Template:Flagicon Nenad Zimonjić def. Template:Flagicon Bob Bryan & Template:Flagicon Mike Bryan, 7–6(3), 6–2
ATP Masters Series
2008 World Team Cup
Round Robin
- TP: Ties Played
- TW: Ties Won
- MW: Matches Won
- SW: Sets Won
| Blue Group | TP | TW | MW | SW |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | 3 | 2 | 6 | 12 |
| File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | 3 | 2 | 5 | 13 |
| File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 3 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | 3 | 1 | 4 | 9 |
| Red Group | TP | TW | MW | SW |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden | 3 | 3 | 8 | 16 |
| File:Flag of the United States.svg United States | 3 | 2 | 4 | 10 |
| File:Flag of Argentina.svg Argentina | 3 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | 3 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
Final
2008 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour
WTA Tour Championships
- Doha, Qatar (November 4 – November 9)
- Singles: Template:Flagicon Venus Williams def. Template:Flagicon Vera Zvonareva, 6–7(5), 6–0, 6–2
- Doubles: Template:Flagicon Cara Black & Template:Flagicon Liezel Huber def. Template:Flagicon Květa Peschke & Template:Flagicon Rennae Stubbs, 6–1, 7–5
WTA Tier 1 Series
Exhibition tournaments
AAMI Kooyong Classic
- Template:Flagicon Andy Roddick def. Template:Flagicon Marcos Baghdatis, 7–5, 6–3
JB Group Classic
- Template:Flagicon Venus Williams def. Template:Flagicon Maria Sharapova, 6–4, 6–3
Tradition-ICAP Liverpool International
- Men's Singles: Template:Flagicon Amer Delic def. Template:Flagicon Paul Capdeville, 6–7(3), 6–4, [10–7]
- Women's Singles: Template:Flagicon Caroline Wozniacki def. Template:Flagicon Ashley Harkleroad, 4–6, 6–4, [10–5]
Boodles Challenge
- Template:Flagicon Nicolas Kiefer def. Template:Flagicon Tommy Robredo, 6–3, 3–6, [13–11]
Retired
- May
- 14: Justine Henin (Belgium)
International Tennis Hall of Fame
- Class of 2008:
- Michael Chang, player
- Mark McCormack, contributor
- Gene Scott, contributor
See also
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- 2008 Australian Open
- 2008 French Open
- 2008 Wimbledon Championships
- 2008 US Open
- Tennis at the 2008 Summer Olympics
References
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External links
- Official website of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP)
- Official website of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA)
- Official website of the International Tennis Federation (ITF)
- Official website of 2008 Beijing Olympics (Tennis)
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