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Off-Court
Shahar was born in Jerusalem on May 1st, 1987. Shahar is the youngest out of three children. Her brother Shlomi is seven years older, and her sister Shani is four years older. Dovik, Shahar's father was born in South Africa in 1955 and came to Israel in 1961 with his mother and three brothers. Aliza, Shahar's mother was born in Jerusalem in 1955. They went to the same elementary school. Dovik had a crush on Aliza from the first grade, but Aliza was not interested.
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On-Court
This is a list of the memorable tournaments in my career that I am the most proud of. I've included some memories and impressions I have of different tournaments and matches.
Shahar was born in Jerusalem on May 1st, 1987. Shahar is the youngest out of three children. Her brother Shlomi is seven years older, and her sister Shani is four years older. Dovik, Shahar's father, was born in South Africa in 1955 and came to Israel in 1961 with his mother and three brothers. Aliza, Shahar's mother, was born in Jerusalem in 1955. They went to the same elementary school. Dovik had a crush on Aliza from the first grade, but Aliza was not interested. Dovik continued to pursue her, and by the time they got to high school, Aliza gave up and the two started dating. They got married in 1978. Both come from athletic backgrounds. In high school, Dovik was the swimming champion of Jerusalem and Aliza was a champion sprinter. Dovik is now the CEO of the online dictionary and translation software Babylon. Aliza is a retired sports teacher.
When Shahar was one year old, she moved with her family to Macabim. That same year, Dovik bought Shlomi a racquet. This was the family's first connection to tennis. Shlomi played seriously until the age of 13. Shani then started playing seriously at the age of 10 and stopped at 16. In her siblings' footsteps, Shahar started playing at the age of six and did not stop.
Shahar attended kindergarten and elementary school in Macabim and then moved to a school in Reut for junior high and high school. Shahar had strong connections with her teachers, in particular her kindergarten teacher, Miri Petel, who she visited often in her later years. Shahar led a busy life as a child. Starting from the age of seven, she had tennis practice three times a week in
the morning, and every day in the afternoon. She started this routine with Shani, but by the age of 10 she was doing it on her own.
ree times a week, Shahar would wake up at 5:30 am so her mother could drive her to Tel Aviv for her morning practice. She would have an hour of practice, and then go back to Macabim to get to school at 8:00. When school was over, her mother would pick her up, feed her lunch in the car, and take her straight to her afternoon practice in Tel Aviv for five hours. Shahar returned home every night at around 8:00 pm. While her days were extremely tiring, Shahar realized the importance of her education and was determined to finish school. She received a lot of help from all the faculty members in her school in order to reach this goal. She graduated high school in July 2005.
Israeli citizens have mandatory army service at the age of 18. Shahar and her family strongly believe in the importance of contributing and giving back to the country. Shahar realized the importance of carrying out this service and felt it was her duty as an Israeli citizen. In Israel, there is a special program for outstanding athletes where the army helps the athlete continue their career while still assigning them a job in the army. As a member of this program, Shahar, like every other Israeli woman, had a required two-year period in the army. She did basic training for three weeks, then got an office job in a small unit. Starting in October 2005, every time she was home in Israel, Shahar attended her job in the army. She completed her army service in October 2007.
For the complete list of all my matches, follow the links at the bottom of the page.
2001
"This was my first year playing ITF Junior tournaments. I was not even 14 years old, and my first ITF Junior tournament was in Bat Yam, in Israel."
Israel International Junior Championships, Bat Yam April 1-8
Lost second round vs. Broome, 2-6 2-6
The Saadia Rees ITF Junior Circuit Tournament, April 9-16
Lost third round vs. Blocker, 5-7 1-6
Israel women's championship
Won tournament against Savransky 6-0 6-1
"I was the youngest woman to ever win the Israeli Women's Championship. This was also my first match that was broadcasted on TV in Israel. It was really exciting for me. That same night I flew to Miami for the Orange Bowl."
Orange Bowl championship
Won tournament against Jenni-Lee Heisner 6-3 7-5
"Winning this tournament was a dream for me. I remember my brother coming to surprise me for the finals after he and his friend drove for 40 hours straight to get to Miami on time."
2002
"I started playing some ITF women's tournaments in Israel. This year I played both Juniors and women's ITF"
Juniors
Oslo Open, Norway, February 25-March 2
Won tournament
Israel ITF Junior Tournament 1, Bat Yam Israel, March 26-30
Israel International Junior Tournament 3, Beer Sheva Israel, April 9-13
10th International Junior Tournament of Frankfurt, Germany, June 11-1
Lost in semi-finals to Strycova, 3-6, 6-4, 5-7
"On my first G1 tournament, I reached the semi-finals. Even though I lost the match, I remember it because Strycova was ranked #1 in the juniors at the time. It was a very good match and I gained a lot of confidence from this tournament."
Leciva Czech Junior Open, Czech Republic, September 18-22
Lost in finals to Hlavackova, 3-6 5-7
Women's
"I only played three ITF tournaments this yearBut it was a good start."
$10,000 Tel Aviv, Israel, May 20-26
Lost in finals to Savransky, 5-7 6-1 4-6
"This was my first women's tournament. I got a wild card. The tournament was really exciting for me because it took place in the tennis center where I trained and grew up for the last six years."
2003
Australian Open Junior Championships, Australia, January 20-26
Lost in second round to Du, 1-6 6-3 3-6
"This was my first grand slam. Even though it was only juniors, it was very exciting for me. My cousin was traveling in Australia at the time and came in especially to see me."
Amata Cup, 23rd Thailand International, Thailand, March 24-30
Won tournament against Sheng-Nan, 6-4 3-6 7-5
"This was my first G1 title. I especially remember this match because I came back in the third set from 5-1 down."
Roland Garros, France, June 1-8
Lost in quarterfinals to Douchevina, 6-7 2-6
Junior Championships, Wimbledon, Great Britain, June 28-July 6
Lost in third round to Baker, 2-6 3-6
"This was the first time I was broadcasted on TV in Israel for a match I was playing outside Israel. I only found out about it after the
match. This made me even more upset about my loss."
The Israeli Junior team reached the semifinals of the teen world championship, making them the fourth in the world. This was the best result an Israeli tennis team had ever had.
"I had a very strong stretch from September until the end of the year, winning two tournaments and losing in the finals of three other tournaments."
$10,000 Presov, Slovak Republic, September 8-14
Lost in finals to Zemenova, 4-6 3-6
$10,000 Ramat Hasharon, Israel, November 10-16
Won tournament against Govortsova, 6-1 6-0
$10,000 Haifa, Israel, November 24-29
Won tournament against Govortsova, 6-1 6-7 6-3
2004
"This year I played in a combination of Juniors, Women's ITF and WTA tournaments.
"This was my best junior year. I won my only grand slam. I finished the year ranked #2 in the world. When I look back at this year's junior results, I see a lot of matches I played against girls that are now at the top of women's tennis. That only shows how deep and strong the juniors were at this time. (Ivanovic, Chakvetadze, Vaidisova, Duchevina, Bondarenko, etc.)"
Uncle Tobys Australia Hardcourt Championships, Australia, January 18-24
Lost in finals to Ivanovic, 1-6 2-6
Australia Open Junior Championships, Australia, January 26-February 1
Won tournament against Vaidisova, 6-1 6-4
"Winning the grand slam was a huge achievement. After the match I was thrilled. I think that every player's dream is to win a grand slam. Though I know it's not a women's grand slam, at that point, it was the biggest achievement in my career. I remember how excited everyone in Israel was. The support was very touching and motivating."
Roland Garros, France, May 30-June 6
Lost in quarterfinals to Bondarenko 5-7 3-6
Junior Championships, Wimbledon, Great Britain, June 26-July 4
Lost again in quarterfinals to Bondarenko, 3-6 6-3 1-6
US Open Junior Tennis Championships, US, September 5-12
Lost in semifinals to Kirkland 2-6 6-4 2-6
"This was my last junior tournament. I had really hoped to finish my junior career off with another grand slam title. Even so, I had a really good year. I was also really excited about playing only women's tournaments from then on."
Hyderabad, India, February 16-21
Lost in second round to Tanasugarn, 3-6 2-6
"This was my first WTA tournament. I was very happy about qualifying on my first try and even winning the first round. I remember that Mahesh Bhupathi's father gave me the wild card for the qualifying round."
$25,000 Bendigo, Australia, February 24-29
Won tournament against Viratprasert, 6-4 7-5
"I remember this tournament especially well because I won eight matches in a row, including three qualifying rounds. This was my first $25,000 title."
US Open Qualifying Draw, US, August 24-27
Lost in second round to Serra Zanetti 2-6 4-6
"This was my first grand slam women's tournament. Even though it was only a qualifying tournament, it was exciting to be playing at a grand slam women's event"
2005
"This was my first full season of only WTA tournaments. I had to play qualifying rounds in most of the tournaments in the first half of the year. I was happy with the results I had and with the steady progress of my ranking."
Auckland, New Zealand, January 8
Lost in quarterfinals to Katarina Srebotnik, 1-6 4-6
Miami, Florida, April 2
Lost in third round to Serena Williams, 3-6 3-6
"Miami is a tournament I remember very well. First of all, because of my loss to Serena. That was the first time I played in a big arena and it was very exciting. Second of all, in the second round I promised my mom I would win the match as a birthday present to her and I did, 7-5 in the third set. This was also my biggest win yet."
French Open, France, June 4
Lost in third round to Nadia Petrova, 3-6 1-6
"I had a bet with my coach Dedi that if I reached the third round I would have to buy him a cake we had seen in the beginning of the tournament. I did and the cake was so good."
US Open, New York, September 10
Lost in third round to Maria Vento-Kabchi, 5-7 6-4 3-6
2006
"This year was exciting for me because I won three WTA titles. I also had my first win over a top 10 player and reached the fourth round in a grand slam."
Canberra, Australia, January 13
Lost in semifinals to Annabel Medina Garrigues 7-6 5-7 4-6
"This match was almost four hours long and is ranked number five in the longest games in WTA history. What is even more amazing about this match is that it was on hardcourt. After the match, I had blisters all over my feet because the temperature was almost 40 degrees."
Pattaya Open, Thailand, February 12
Won tournament against Jelena Kostanic 6-3 6-1
"Pattaya is a place I really like because it's a very cool city with beautiful resorts and there are things to do here other than play tennis. I have also done pretty well in this city not only because it was my first women's WTA title but also because I won my first G1 Junior title here. Winning my first title was very exciting and motivated me for the rest of the year."
Prague, Czech Republic, May 14
Won tournament against Samantha Stosur 4-6 6-2 6-1
"Winning another title was of course another great experience for me. This was an especially memorable tournament because my brother and sister flew in to watch me in two finals-singles and doubles. They were only in Prague for 12 hours and my wins were all the more satisfying because we were experiencing them together."
Istanbul, Turkey, May 27
Won tournament against Anastasia Myskina 1-6 6-3 7-6
"I consider this tournament one of the best of my career because I beat very good players and I didn't even expect to win it. In the finals, Myskina and I had a very good match with a lot of tension that ended in a very close score. After the match, I remember running to the shower and getting ready so I wouldn't miss my flight to Paris."
French Open, France, June 10
Lost in fourth round to Martina Hingis, 3-6 6-2 3-6
"I still remember the excitement after winning the third round match against Dementieva. That was the first top ten win of my career.
The fourth round match against Hingis was a very good match that was spread over two days because after we were tied in sets 1-1 on the first day, we had to postpone the game because of darkness."
Montreal, Canada, August 20
Lost in quarterfinals to Chakvetadze 6-7 5-7
US Open, New York, September 9
Lost in fourth round to Justine Henin, 1-6 0-6
"The most memorable match was in the third round against Schiavone, where I was down 5-1 in the third set. I also saved five match points on the way to win 7-6. I had a lot of support from the Jewish and Israeli fans."
2007
"I will especially remember this year because of the amazing support I got from fans at the big tournaments (Australia Open, Miami, French Open, US Open). It was a great experience for me and it really means a lot to me and motivates me when there is a big crowd cheering me on."
Gold Coast, Australia, January 6
Lost in semifinals to Dinara Safina 6-4 6-7 1-6
Australia Open, Australia, January 27
Lost in quarterfinals to Serena Williams, 6-3 2-6 6-8
"I played my best tennis in the month I was in Australia. It started in Gold Coast where I had a very good tournament, even though I had a tough loss against Safina after leading by a set and 5-1 in the second set. At the Australia Open, I had the best group of fans I ever had. They helped me reach my first grand slam quarterfinals. On the way, I had my first top five win against Kuznetsova. The quarterfinals match was very close and intense. After the tournament, I heard there was hysteria in Israel over my matches and I was amazed how many people woke up in the middle of the night to watch my match."
Memphis, Tennessee, February 24
Lost in finals to Venus Williams 1-6 1-6
Indian Wells, California, March 17
Lost in quarterfinals to Daniela Hantuchova 2-6 7-5 6-7
Miami, Florida April 3
Lost in semifinals to Serena Williams 6-7 1-6
"This was one of my best tournaments. I received a lot of support from my fans and I had some good wins against very good players."
Lost in quarterfinals to Anna Chakvetadze 4-6 1-6
"While not playing my best tennis before this tournament, I was happy I could overcome it and play well, reaching the quarterfinals. I had a lot of support from the crowd throughout the tournament. I especially remember the third round match against Vaidisova. It was a night match, packed with people, in the center court and broadcasted all over the world. It was a high-level close match, and winning it was a highlight for me."
2008
"This was a fairly average year, in my opinion. I had good results, but nothing out of the ordinary. My most memorable match was against Safina in the third round of Wimbledon. The entire match was extremely
close, and it finished right before it turned completely dark outside. To my joy, I won 8-6 in the final set and was able to advance to the fourth round of a grand slam."
Wimbledon, July - fourth round - loss to Dementieva, 6-1, 6-2
2009
"I started out this year with a new coach, Pablo Giacopelli, with the goal of improving all aspects of my game and to be more aggressive. It was a very strange year. It started well, but then I lost my momentum as a result of not being allowed to play in Dubai. After that began another period of momentum, only to discover that I had a stress fracture in my foot. It was the first serious injury in my career. It took me over six months to fully recover. To my satisfaction, the year ended positively when I won two tournaments."
Guangzhou September - winner in final against Alberta Brittani 6-3,6-4.
"This was the first tournament I won after more than two years; it is the fourth tournament I have ever won. It was very important for my confidence, especially since I had gone through a tough time earlier in the year".
Tashkent, September - winner in final against Akgul Amanmuradova 6-3, 6-4.
"A week after the tournament in China, I came to Tashkent with a lot more confidence. My tennis had greatly improved, and this gave me the ability to win my second tournament in a row without losing a single set. These two tournaments provided me with full confidence in my tennis, enabled me to be qualified for the Master's Tournament in Bali (for small tournaments) and raised my world ranking.
2010
The year 2010 was a continuation of the capabilities I showed in 2009. I was extremely consistent throughout the whole year; I advanced to many semi-finals in the year's
biggest tournaments, and as proof, I qualified for the WTA Season Ending Championship as an alternate. The most exciting part of my year, and one of the most exciting of my whole career, was in Dubai. I was very happy that I was able to make an impact and that I was allowed to play there."
Hobart, January - lost in finals to Alona Bondarenko, 6-4 6-2.
Dubai, February - lost in semi-finals to Venus Williams, 6-1 6-4.
"Along with the fact that I had a great tournament and beat two top ten players, the victory against Wickmayer in the first round was one of the most exciting moments of my career. All of the stress around playing in Dubai and the desire to win, enabled me to play great tennis. Another victory here was against the number three ranked in the world, Wozniacki.
Stuttgart, April - lost in semi-finals to Justine Henin - 6-3 6-2
Madrid, May lost in semi-finals to Venus Williams, 6-3 6-0
Beijing, October lost in semi-finals to Wozniaki, 7-5 6-2
I finished this year with an advancement to the semi-finals of a large tournament. Unfortunately, in almost all of the big tournaments I lost in the semi-finals and did not advance to the finals. However it was a great year and i finished the year with the highest ranking in my career and for any Israeli tennis player ever - 13 in the world.
Junior results:
Women's results:
Fed Cup results:
