Angelique Kerber
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Angelique Kerber (; born 18 January 1988) is a German professional
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
player. She has been ranked as high as world No. 1, for a total of 34 weeks, and won three major titles at the
2016 Australian Open The 2016 Australian Open was a tennis tournament that took place at Melbourne Park between 18 and 31 January 2016. It was the 104th edition of the Australian Open, and the first Grand Slam tournament of the year. The tournament consisted of ev ...
, the 2016 US Open, and the
2018 Wimbledon Championships The 2018 Wimbledon Championships was a Grand Slam tennis tournament which took place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The main tournament began on Monday, 2 July 2018 and finished on Sunday, ...
. She is also an Olympic silver medalist and was the year-end world number one in 2016. Kerber made her professional debut in 2003 and began her rise to prominence upon reaching the semifinals of the 2011 US Open as the world No. 92. An accomplished left-handed player, Kerber's ranking cracked the top 5 in 2012, and she would eventually reach the world No. 1 ranking on 12 September 2016, becoming the 22nd and oldest player to achieve the top ranking. She has won 14 career singles titles, across all surfaces, including three major titles. She has also won a silver medal in women's singles representing
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
at the
2016 Rio Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...
.


Early life

Kerber was born on 18 January 1988 in Bremen to
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
parents Sławomir Kerber, from
Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...
, and Beata (née Rzeźnik), who is also her manager. She has one sister, Jessica. She grew up in
Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland ...
, where her family stayed in an apartment in a training academy where her parents work, and started playing tennis at age three, eventually joining the junior circuit. Although born right-handed, Kerber plays left-handed.


Career


2003–2011: Early career, maiden WTA final and US Open semifinals

Kerber made her first attempt to qualify for a WTA tournament in January 2005, at the Auckland Open, falling to Janette Husárová in the final round. She then recorded her
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
main draw debut year in 2007, at the French Open where she lost to
Elena Dementieva Elena Viacheslavovna Dementieva (, ; born 15 October 1981) is a Russian former professional tennis player. She won the singles gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, having previously won the silver medal at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. ...
in the opening round. Shortly after, she appeared in the main draw of a WTA tournament for the first time, in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
, where she made the third round, losing to fifth seed
Marion Bartoli Marion Bartoli (; born 2 October 1984) is a French former professional tennis player. Bartoli won the 2013 Wimbledon Championships singles title after previously being runner-up in 2007, and was a semifinalist at the 2011 French Open. She also ...
, who was the eventual runner-up at Wimbledon that year. The week after Birmingham, she reached her first main draw quarterfinal at the Rosmalen Open where she was beaten by eventual champion
Anna Chakvetadze Anna Djambuliovna Chakvetadze ( ; born 5 March 1987) is a Russian former professional tennis player. In her career, Chakvetadze won eight WTA Tour singles titles, the biggest being the 2006 Kremlin Cup. She booked her highest singles ranking o ...
, and then fell to Chakvetadze once more, in the first round of Wimbledon. At the US Open, Kerber drew
Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American inactive professional tennis player. Considered among the greatest tennis players of all time, she was ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for ...
in the first round and lost in straight sets. Kerber achieved her first top-100 season finish in 2007, at world No. 84. She also won eight titles on the ITF circuit from 2004 to 2007. Kerber attained her first Grand Slam victory in
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
at the Australian Open by defeating
Maret Ani Maret Ani (born 31 January 1982) is a retired tennis player from Estonia. At the start of 2006, she was the top-ranked player in Estonia, before losing that spot to Kaia Kanepi. Ani was a junior basketball champion, but devoted herself to tenni ...
, before losing to 25th seed
Francesca Schiavone Francesca Schiavone (; born 23 June 1980) is an Italian former professional tennis player. She turned professional in 1998 and won the 2010 French Open singles title, becoming the first Italian woman to win a Grand Slam event in singles. She w ...
. She also made the third round at Indian Wells where she lost to sixth seed Bartoli. Kerber did not progress much that year after that, besides winning a further two ITF titles. Her struggles would continue in 2009 as she managed just three wins in WTA main draws. She did qualify for the US Open that year, where she made the second round. She also won her 11th and final ITF title that year. She finished 2008 and 2009 respectively ranked barely outside the top 100, at No. 108 and No. 106, respectively. In 2010, Kerber qualified for the Australian Open where she reached her third round of a Grand Slam for the first time, losing to third seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in a close three-setter, from a set up. She then reached her maiden WTA final, in Bogota, finishing runner-up to home star
Mariana Duque Mariño Mariana Duque Mariño (; born 12 August 1989) is a Colombian retired tennis player. Having turned professional in 2005, she reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 66 in October 2015. Duque debuted on the ITF Junior Circuit in 2004 ...
, having upset top-seed
Gisela Dulko Gisela Dulko (; born 30 January 1985) is a retired Argentine tennis player. Although she enjoyed modest success in singles, reaching a career-high ranking of world No. 26 and winning four WTA titles, her speciality was doubles, where she achiev ...
in the semifinals. Kerber proceeded to reach two other quarterfinals that year, in
Fes Fez or Fes (; ar, فاس, fās; zgh, ⴼⵉⵣⴰⵣ, fizaz; french: Fès) is a city in northern inland Morocco and the capital of the Fès-Meknès administrative region. It is the second largest city in Morocco, with a population of 1.11 mi ...
and
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, and then made the third round of Wimbledon, after defeating
Sania Mirza Sania Mirza (; born 15 November 1986) is an Indian professional tennis player. A former doubles world No. 1, she has won six major titles – three in women's doubles and three in mixed doubles. From 2003 until her retirement from singles i ...
and upsetting 13th seed
Shahar Pe'er Shahar Pe'er ( he, שחר פאר, ; born ) is an Israeli retired tennis player. Pe'er won five singles and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as four singles and three doubles titles on the ITF circuit in her career. She reached ...
before losing to
Jarmila Groth Jarmila Wolfe (née Gajdošová, formerly Groth; born 26 April 1987) is a Slovak-Australian former tennis player. In her career, she won two singles titles and one doubles title on the WTA Tour, as well as 14 singles and ten doubles titles on ...
. At the end of the year, she made the third round in
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
where she lost to
Li Na Li Na (born 26 February 1982) is a Chinese former professional tennis player. She achieved a career-high WTA ranking of world No. 2 on 17 February 2014. Over the course of her career, Li won nine WTA Tour singles titles including two Grand ...
, and capped off her season with a semifinal run in
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
. She ended the year ranked No. 47. Kerber did not win back-to-back matches in the first seven months of 2011 except once, at her first tournament of the year, in Hobart. At Wimbledon, she lost to youngster
Laura Robson Laura Robson (born 21 January 1994) is a British former professional tennis player. She debuted on the ITF Junior Circuit in 2007, and a year later won the Junior Wimbledon championships at the age of 14. As a junior, she also twice reached t ...
in the first round. In
Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, the week before the US Open, she recorded a semifinal run, where she lost to
Aravane Rezaï Aravane Rezaï (; fa, ارغوان رضایی ''Arghavān-e Rezāyi'' , born 14 March 1987) is an Iranian–French tennis player. She has defeated many top players on the WTA Tour, such as Justine Henin, Venus Williams, Victoria Azarenk ...
. Kerber entered the US Open ranked world No. 92, and passed the first hurdle with a win in three sets over
Lauren Davis Lauren Davis (born October 9, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. Known for her aggressive backhand, speed, and clay-court strength, she won her first title on the WTA Tour at the Auckland Open and reached a career-high singles ra ...
in three sets. Next, she faced 12th seed
Agnieszka Radwańska Agnieszka Roma Radwańska (; born 6 March 1989) is a Polish former professional tennis player. She won 20 career singles WTA Tour titles, two doubles titles, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2 on 9 July 2012. Her achiev ...
and pulled off a shock three-set victory before going on to beat both
Alla Kudryavtseva Alla Alexandrovna Kudryavtseva (; born 3 November 1987) is a retired Russian tennis player. Kudryavtseva won one singles title and nine doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as two singles titles and 15 doubles titles on the ITF Women's Cir ...
and
Monica Niculescu Monica Niculescu (born 25 September 1987) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She has been ranked by the Women's Tennis Association as high as 28 in singles and 11 in doubles. Niculescu has won several titles: three singles and ten double ...
to reach her maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal. There, Kerber surprised multiple-time quarterfinalist here
Flavia Pennetta Flavia Pennetta (; born 25 February 1982) is an Italian former professional tennis player. She became Italy's first top-ten female singles player on 17 August 2009 and the first Italian to be ranked world No. 1 in doubles, on 28 February 2011. ...
in three sets to advance to the semifinal, where she lost to ninth seed and eventual champion
Samantha Stosur Samantha Jane Stosur ( ; born 30 March 1984) is an Australian professional tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 in doubles, a ranking which she first achieved on 6 February 2006 and held for 61 consecutive weeks. Also a former top ten s ...
in three sets. Kerber reached a new career-high ranking of world No. 34 after the tournament. She then qualified for the
Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-le ...
and reached the second round, losing to eventual champion Radwańska from a set up. After that, she reached the semifinals in
Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...
where she lost to eventual champion Bartoli. She finished the year as world No. 32, her second finish in a row in the top 50.


2012: Career breakthrough, Wimbledon semifinals, first title wins and rise to top 5

Kerber's first tournament of
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
was the Auckland Open where she reached the semifinals, falling to eventual runner-up Pennetta. At the Australian Open, Kerber was seeded at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time, and made the third round where she lost to fourth seed
Maria Sharapova Maria Yuryevna Sharapova ( , ; rus, Мари́я Ю́рьевна Шара́пова, p=mɐˈrʲijə ʂɐˈrapəvə, a=Maria_sharapova.ogg; born 19 April 1987) is a Russian former world No. 1 tennis player. She competed on the WTA Tour from 2 ...
. As a result, Kerber rose to a new career-high ranking of world No. 27. She then competed in her first
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
tie in almost five years, where Germany faced defending champions Czech Republic in the quarterfinals, and won her only rubber, defeating
Lucie Hradecká Lucie Hradecká (; born 21 May 1985) is a Czech former professional tennis player. A three-time Grand Slam doubles champion and 26-time WTA Tour doubles titlist, she reached her career-high doubles ranking of world No. 4 in October 2012. She was ...
in straight sets but the Germans lost the tie 1–3. At her next tournament was in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, Kerber lifted her maiden WTA singles title. After seeing off
Lucie Šafářová Lucie Šafářová (; born 4 February 1987) is a Czech former professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles, and No. 5 in singles. She is a five-time Grand Slam champion in doubles, having won the 2015 Australian Open, 2015 ...
and Niculescu to make the last eight, she upset top seed Sharapova in straight sets. Kerber then beat
Yanina Wickmayer Yanina Wickmayer (born 20 October 1989) is a Belgian professional tennis player. She reached the semifinals at the 2009 US Open, and a career-high WTA ranking of world No. 12, on 19 April 2010. In doubles, she achieved a career-high of world No. ...
in the last four, and faced second seed Bartoli in the final, seeing off the home player in three sets to win the title. She then suffered an early loss at the Qatar Open in hands of unseeded Bulgarian
Tsvetana Pironkova Tsvetana Kirilova Pironkova ( bg, Цветана Кирилова Пиронкова ; born 13 September 1987) is a Bulgarian professional tennis player. Considered to be one of the best grass court players of her generation, she has been not ...
in the second round. Kerber's continued her surge up the rankings through the coming three months, that culminated in her cracking the top 10 rankings for the first time in her career. She started with a semifinal appearance at the Indian Wells Open. Seeded 18th with a bye in the first round, she moved past three Americans in
Sloane Stephens Sloane Stephens (born March 20, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. She achieved a career-best ranking of world No. 3 after Wimbledon in 2018. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in to ...
,
Vania King Vania King (born February 3, 1989) is an American former tennis player. A former top-ten doubles player, King won both the Wimbledon and US Open women's doubles titles in 2010 with partner Yaroslava Shvedova, with whom she also reached the f ...
and
Christina McHale Christina Marietta McHale (born May 11, 1992) is an American former professional tennis player. Her highest-ever WTA rankings were No. 24 in singles and No. 35 in doubles. Known for an aggressive baseline game, McHale was recognized by ''The New ...
, the second one via a walkover. Kerber then upset eighth seed
Li Na Li Na (born 26 February 1982) is a Chinese former professional tennis player. She achieved a career-high WTA ranking of world No. 2 on 17 February 2014. Over the course of her career, Li won nine WTA Tour singles titles including two Grand ...
in the quarterfinals, but was stopped by world No. 1 and eventual champion
Victoria Azarenka Victória Fyódarauna Azárenka ( be, Вікторыя Фёдараўна Азаранка; Russian: Виктория Фёдоровна Азаренко; born 31 July 1989) is a Belarusian professional tennis player. Azarenka is a former w ...
in the last four. Her ranking improved to a career-high world No. 14 as a result. In Miami, Kerber was upset in her opener by
Zheng Jie Zheng Jie (born 5 July 1983) is a retired tennis player from China. In May 2009, she achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 15. Zheng is one of the most successful tennis players from China. She won four WTA singles titles – Ho ...
. Her next stop was indoors, at the Danish Open where she was the second seed. In her opener, she struggled past
Stéphanie Foretz Gacon Stéphanie is a feminine French feminine given name. Notable people with the name include: *Stéphanie, Hereditary Grand Duchess of Luxembourg (born 1984), Belgian noble; wife of Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg *Princess Stéphanie ...
and then defeated
Anne Keothavong Anne Viensouk Keothavong (born 16 September 1983) is a retired British tennis player. During her career, she won a total of 28 titles on the ITF Women's Circuit, and reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 48 (achieved on 23 Febru ...
and fellow German
Mona Barthel Mona Barthel (born 11 July 1990) is a German tennis player. Barthel has won four singles and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, one doubles title on the WTA Challenger Tour as well as five singles titles and one doubles title on the ITF Ci ...
. After that, she defeated third seed
Jelena Janković Jelena Janković ( sr-Cyrl, Јелена Јанковић, ; born 28 February 1985) is a Serbian former tennis player. A former world No. 1, Janković reached the top ranking before her career-best major performance, a runner-up finish at the ...
to reach her second final of the year. She won the title by defeating the top seed and defending champion
Caroline Wozniacki Caroline Wozniacki (; born 11 July 1990) is a Danish former professional tennis player. She was ranked world No. 1 in singles for a total of 71 weeks, including at the end of 2010 and 2011. She achieved the top ranking for the first time on 11 ...
in straight sets. Starting off her clay season on home soil, in Stuttgart, Kerber advanced to the quarterfinals with wins over
Roberta Vinci Roberta Vinci (; born 18 February 1983) is an Italian professional padel and former tennis player. In doubles tennis, she won five major tournaments and reached the world No. 1 position. She also reached a career-high ranking of world No. 7 i ...
and sixth seed Wozniacki, before losing to third seed
Petra Kvitová Petra Kvitová, OLY ( , ; born 8 March 1990) is a Czech professional tennis player. Known for her powerful left-handed groundstrokes and variety, Kvitová has won 29 career singles titles, including two major titles at Wimbledon in 2011 and ...
. After an early exit in
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
, Kerber advanced to the semifinals in
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after avenging her Stuttgart loss to Kvitová in the last eight, which ensured herself a rise to the top 10 rankings for the first time in her career. In the last four, she lost to Sharapova in straight sets. At the French Open, 10th-seeded Kerber amassed back-to-back wins here for the first time after beating
Zhang Shuai Zhang Shuai (; ; born 21 January 1989) is a Chinese professional tennis player. She is a two-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles, having won the 2019 Australian Open and the 2021 US Open, both alongside Samantha Stosur. Zhang als ...
and
Olga Govortsova Olga Alekseyevna Govortsova ( be, Вольга Аляксееўна Гаварцова (Volha Alyakseyeuna Havartsova); ; born 23 August 1988) is a Belarusian professional tennis player. On 23 June 2008, she achieved a career-high singles ranki ...
. She then beat 18th seed Pennetta in three sets before seeing off
Petra Martic Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to the mountain of Jab ...
in the fourth round to reach the quarterfinals, where she lost to eventual runner-up
Sara Errani Sara Errani (; born 29 April 1987) is an Italian professional tennis player. She is a former top five player in singles and former world No. 1 in doubles. With 9 singles titles and 27 doubles titles (including 5 Grand Slam doubles championship ...
. Kerber continued her steady rise of 2012 on grass, firstly by posting a runner-up appearance in
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
, losing to a close final to
Tamira Paszek Tamira Shelah Paszek (born 6 December 1990) is an Austrian tennis player. Paszek has won three singles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as four singles and four doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. She realized her greatest success so far ...
, having served for the championship in the deciding set and missing five match points. At the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...
, Kerber was seeded eighth. She advanced to the her second Grand Slam quarterfinal in a row, this time without losing set, by beating
Lucie Hradecká Lucie Hradecká (; born 21 May 1985) is a Czech former professional tennis player. A three-time Grand Slam doubles champion and 26-time WTA Tour doubles titlist, she reached her career-high doubles ranking of world No. 4 in October 2012. She was ...
, Ekaterina Makarova, 28th seed
Christina McHale Christina Marietta McHale (born May 11, 1992) is an American former professional tennis player. Her highest-ever WTA rankings were No. 24 in singles and No. 35 in doubles. Known for an aggressive baseline game, McHale was recognized by ''The New ...
and former world No. 1
Kim Clijsters Kim Antonie Lode Clijsters (; born 8 June 1983) is a Belgian former professional tennis player. Clijsters reached the world No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles, having held both rankings simultaneously in 2003. She won six major titles, ...
., the latter in 49 minutes. There, she defeated fellow German and 15th seed Sabine Lisicki in three sets, having been down a break in the third. In the semifinals, she lost to Agnieszka Radwańska. This was Kerber's then most recent equal-best Grand Slam result, for another three years until Australian Open in 2016. At the London Olympics, Kerber made her first appearance at this stage, and was seeded seventh. She defeated
Petra Cetkovská Petra Cetkovská (; born 8 February 1985) is a retired Czech tennis player. Having turned professional in 2000, she reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 25, on 18 June 2012. Over her career, Cetkovská defeated top-ten players Mar ...
and
Tímea Babos Tímea Babos (; born 10 May 1993) is a Hungarian professional tennis player who is a former world No. 1 in doubles. She is a four-time Grand Slam champion in women's doubles, having won the 2018 and 2020 Australian Opens, as well as the Fre ...
first two rounds, to set up a clash with
Venus Williams Venus Ebony Starr Williams (born June 17, 1980) is an American professional tennis player. A former world No. 1 in both singles and doubles, Williams has won seven Grand Slam singles titles, five at Wimbledon and two at the US Open. She is ...
. There, she beat the former world No. 1 in two tiebreak sets, to make the quarterfinals where she lost to top seed and eventual bronze medallist Victoria Azarenka in straight sets. In the other disciplines, Kerber partnered
Philipp Petzschner Philipp Petzschner (born 24 March 1984) is a retired German professional tennis player. He was known for his hard-hitting forehand and bursts of speed around the court. He reached a career-high doubles ranking of world No. 9, which he achieved in ...
in mixed doubles and Lisicki in women's doubles, falling in the first and second rounds, respectively. Competing at the Canadian Open to open her
US Open Series The US Open Series is the name given by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to a series of North American professional tennis tournaments leading up to and including the US Open. It is part of the "North American hard court season". Emira ...
campaign, Kerber lost early but bounced back at the Cincinnati Open with another strong result. First, she beat Babos and
Andrea Hlaváčková Andrea is a given name which is common worldwide for both males and females, cognate to Andreas, Andrej and Andrew. Origin of the name The name derives from the Greek word ἀνήρ (''anēr''), genitive ἀνδρός (''andrós''), that re ...
to reach the quarterfinals, where she defeated Serena Williams for the first time, winning in straight sets, thus snapping Williams's 19-match winning streak. She continued with a win over Kvitová in the semifinals, to book a spot in her first Premier 5 final, but lost Li from a set up. At the US Open, sixth-seeded Kerber won a close match against Venus Williams in the second round en route to the fourth round, but failed to defend her semifinal points from a year ago when she lost to eventual semifinalist Errani. Kerber's next tournament was the
Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-le ...
where she made it to the semifinals before losing to defending champion Radwańska. She also reached the quarterfinals of the China Open, but fell to eventual runner-up Sharapova. Her breakthrough season ensured herself qualification for her maiden appearance at the
WTA Tour Championships WTA may refer to: Organizations * Washington Trails Association * Whatcom Transportation Authority *Waskahegan Trail Association, the management board for the Waskahegan Trail *Water Transit Authority, former name of the San Francisco Bay Area Wa ...
. She also hit the world's top 5 rankings for the first time in her career, at world No. 5, entering the week of the season-ending championships, where she was seeded fifth. There, however, she exited the tournament in the round robin stage, without winning any matches, the losses coming in the hands of Serena Williams, Azarenka and Li. Nevertheless, Kerber ended the 2012 season at world No. 5, with 60 wins amassed throughout the season.


2013–2014: Continued success and steady ranking in top 10

Kerber began 2013 at the
Brisbane International The Brisbane International established in 2009 is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hardcourts in Brisbane, Queensland in Australia. It is a WTA Premier tournament of the WTA Tour and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 seri ...
where she was seeded fourth, and made the quarterfinals where she was stopped by eventual runner-up
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova Anastasia Sergeyevna "Nastia" Pavlyuchenkova (russian: Анастаси́я "Настя" Серге́евна Павлюче́нкова; born 3 July 1991) is an inactive Russian professional tennis player. A junior prodigy, Pavlyuchenkova won ...
. Seeded second in Sydney, Kerber made the last four but lost to another eventual runner-up once more, this time in
Dominika Cibulková Dominika Cibulková (; born 6 May 1989) is a Slovak former professional tennis player. She is the 2016 WTA Finals champion, becoming the fourth player (after Serena Williams in 2001, Maria Sharapova in 2004 and Petra Kvitová in 2011) to win ...
. She then reached the fourth round of the Australian Open, completing the set of second-week appearances at all four Grand Slams. Along the way, she defeated
Elina Svitolina Elina Mykhailivna Svitolina ( uk, Еліна Михайлівна Світоліна, ; born 12 September 1994) is a Ukrainian professional tennis player. She reached career-high rankings of world No. 3 in singles and 108 in doubles. Svitolina ...
, Lucie Hradecká, and wildcard
Madison Keys Madison Keys (born February 17, 1995) is an American professional tennis player. She has been ranked as high as world No. 7 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), a ranking she first achieved in October 2016. Keys has played in one Grand Sla ...
. She was subsequently defeated by 19th seed
Ekaterina Makarova Ekaterina Valeryevna Makarova ( rus, Екатери́на Вале́рьевна Мака́рова; ; born 7 June 1988) is a Russian former professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles, and world No. 8 in singles. She ...
after struggling with a back injury. After a dry winless spell in the Middle East, Kerber bounced back with a second consecutive semifinal result at the Indian Wells Open, where she was stopped by eighth seed Caroline Wozniacki in three sets, despite having won the first set. Like the previous year, an early exit in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...
followed suit, this time to
Sorana Cîrstea Sorana Mihaela Cîrstea (; born 7 April 1990) is a Romanian professional tennis player. In singles, she achieved a career-high ranking of world No. 21 on 12 August 2013. In doubles, her career-high ranking is No. 35, which she reached on 9 March ...
. Kerber then reached her first final of 2013 in Monterrey where she was the top seed but lost to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets. Kerber posted strong results on clay in 2013. Firstly, on
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
, she helped Germany regain its place in the World Group by winning her rubber against
Bojana Jovanovski Bojana may refer to Places * Bojana (river), a river in Albania and Montenegro * Ada Bojana / Bojana Island Name * Bojana (given name), a Slavic given name * People ** Bojana Atanasovska ** Bojana Bobusic ** Bojana Jovanovski ** Bojana Novakovic * ...
, the German eventually winning the tie 3–2. She then recorded a run to the semifinals in Stuttgart, going one round better than the previous year, where she fell in three sets to defending champion Maria Sharapova. At the
Madrid Open There are three sporting events known as the Madrid Open: * Madrid Open (golf) The Madrid Open was an annual men's golf tournament which was held in and around the Spanish capital Madrid from 1968 to 2007, apart from a seven-year gap from 1994 to ...
, sixth-seeded Kerber moved into the quarterfinals here for the first time after defeating top-40 opposition in
Hsieh Su-wei Hsieh Su-wei ( ;''Xiè 謝淑薇Shūwēi'' in Chinese mainland. Taiwanese Mandarin: ; in Standard Mandarin of Chinese mainland. born 4 January 1986) is an inactive Taiwanese professional tennis player. She has won three singles titles and 30 ...
,
Alizé Cornet Alizé Cornet (; born 22 January 1990) is a French professional tennis player. Cornet has won six singles and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as three singles and three doubles titles on the ITF Circuit. On 16 February 2009, she r ...
and Svetlana Kuznetsova. There, she lost to Ana Ivanovic in straight sets. At the French Open, Kerber reached the fourth round for the second year in a row but did not go further this time as she was beaten by former champion Kuznetsova in three sets. She did not enjoy much success on grass next, however, as she failed to post back-to-back wins in her tournament appearances on the surface, falling at the second hurdles of both
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
and Wimbledon, to Makarova and
Kaia Kanepi Kaia Kanepi (; born 10 June 1985) is an Estonian professional tennis player. She achieved her career-high ranking of world No. 15 on 20 August 2012 and has won four singles titles on the WTA Tour. Described as a 'resident Grand Slam upset speci ...
, respectively. Having failed to defend her semifinal result at Wimbledon from the year, Kerber fell to world No. 9 in the rankings after the tournament's conclusion. After posting a quarterfinal at the Washington Open, Kerber made her only appearance of the
US Open Series The US Open Series is the name given by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to a series of North American professional tennis tournaments leading up to and including the US Open. It is part of the "North American hard court season". Emira ...
in
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
but lost in third round to Li Na, in a rematch of last year's championship match. At the US Open, eighth seed Kerber posted her third fourth-round result at the Grand Slams this year, and second in a row here, after defeating Hradecká,
Eugenie Bouchard Eugenie "Genie" Bouchard (; french: Eugénie Bouchard, ; born February 25, 1994) is a Canadian tennis player. At the 2014 Wimbledon Championships, she became the first Canadian-born player representing Canada to reach the final of a Grand Slam t ...
and 25th seed Kanepi but then lost to 18th seed
Carla Suárez Navarro Carla Suárez Navarro (; born 3 September 1988, in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. A former top 10 singles player, she reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 6 on 29 February 2016, and a b ...
this time. During the Asian swing, Kerber's form improved as she reached her second final of 2013, at the
Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-le ...
, having defeated Ivanovic, Wozniacki and Radwańska en route, but there, she lost to Petra Kvitová in three sets. The following week at the China Open, she reached the quarterfinals where she lost to Radwańska, and then advanced into her third final of the season, at the
Linz Open The Linz Open, currently sponsored by Generali Gruppe, is a women's tennis tournament held in Linz, Austria. It is played on indoor hardcourts. The inaugural event took place in 1987 in Wels, Austria and was organized by the ITF as a $10,000 tou ...
. There, Kerber scored her third career title, and third indoors, as she defeated two-time champion Ivanovic, thus and filling up the last spot at the
WTA Tour Championships WTA may refer to: Organizations * Washington Trails Association * Whatcom Transportation Authority *Waskahegan Trail Association, the management board for the Waskahegan Trail *Water Transit Authority, former name of the San Francisco Bay Area Wa ...
. In her second outing at the Championships, Kerber failed to get past the round robin stage, once more, with losses to Serena Williams and Kvitová. However, she did record her maiden victory at this stage by defeating Radwańska, in her second round robin match. Kerber would finish the year as world No. 9. Kerber began
2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
the same way she did in 2013, logging in quarterfinal or better results in both
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
and Sydney, going one round better in the latter this time around by making the final but there, she was stunned by qualifier Tsvetana Pironkova in straight sets. She made the fourth round of the Australian Open once more, falling to 28th seed Flavia Pennetta in three sets this time around. At the Open GdF Suez, former champion Kerber made the quarterfinals where she lost to eventual champion Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. In
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
quarterfinal play against Slovakia, Kerber contributed to the German team's victory by winning both her singles rubbers, over Dominika Cibulková and Daniela Hantuchová. At the Qatar Open, Kerber sailed into her first quarterfinal in the Middle East with wins over
Karolína Plíšková Karolína Hrdličková (née Plíšková; ; born 21 March 1992) is a Czech professional tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 in singles, reaching the top of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) rankings on 17 July 2017 and holding the posi ...
and
Klára Koukalová Klára Koukalová (formerly Zakopalová; born 24 February 1982) is a retired Czech tennis player. She was born and still lives in Prague. Having turned professional in 1999, she reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 20, on 15 April ...
. She subsequently moved into her second final of 2014 with wins over qualifier
Petra Cetkovská Petra Cetkovská (; born 8 February 1985) is a retired Czech tennis player. Having turned professional in 2000, she reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 25, on 18 June 2012. Over her career, Cetkovská defeated top-ten players Mar ...
and fifth seed Jelena Janković. There, she lost to
Simona Halep Simona Halep (; born 27 September 1991) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles twice between 2017 and 2019, for a total of 64 weeks, which ranks eleventh in the history of the Women's Tennis Assoc ...
in straight sets. After a two-match losing streak across
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
and Indian Wells, fifth-seeded Kerber made her first quarterfinal showing in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...
, where she lost to defending champion Serena Williams in straight sets. In April, Kerber helped put her country in the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
final, with Germany taking on Australia in the last four, by winning both her singles rubbers, against Samantha Stosur and
Casey Dellacqua Casey Dellacqua ( ; born 11 February 1985) is a retired Australian professional tennis player and current commentator. Her best singles results on the WTA Tour have been semifinal appearances at the 2012 Texas Tennis Open and 2014 Birmingham ...
. However, she then endured a three-match losing streak to begin her season on clay, snapping it on home soil in
Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
with a quarterfinal appearance, where she was beaten by Plíšková. At the French Open, Kerber made the last 16 for the second year running, falling to rising star and 18th-seeded Bouchard this time around. On grass, Kerber enjoyed better results this year, starting off with her second appearance in the championship match at the
Eastbourne International The Eastbourne International is a tennis tournament on the WTA Tour and the ATP Tour held at the Devonshire Park Lawn Tennis Club, Eastbourne, United Kingdom. Held since 1974, it is classified as a WTA 500 series on the WTA Tour and an ATP Tour 2 ...
but finished runner-up once more, her third of 2014, this time to youngster Madison Keys in three sets. At Wimbledon, Kerber was seeded ninth and entered the second week for the fourth Grand Slam tournament running, with victories over the likes of defeated
Urszula Radwańska Urszula Radwańska (; born 7 December 1990) is a Polish professional tennis player. Radwańska has won one doubles title on the WTA Tour, as well as seven singles and ten doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. On 8 October 2012, she reached ...
,
Heather Watson Heather Miriam Watson (born 19 May 1992) is a British professional tennis player. A former British No. 1, Watson has won nine titles over her career, including the mixed-doubles title at the 2016 Wimbledon Championships partnering Henri K ...
, and previous year's semifinalist
Kirsten Flipkens Kirsten "Flipper" Flipkens (; born 10 January 1986) is a Belgian professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of No. 13 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Flipkens has won one singles title on the WTA Tour, winning the 2012 T ...
. In the round of 16, she prevailed over reigning French Open champion and fifth seed Sharapova in three sets to move into the her second last eight showing here. There, she lost to eventual runner-up Bouchard in straight sets. Kerber opened her
US Open Series The US Open Series is the name given by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to a series of North American professional tennis tournaments leading up to and including the US Open. It is part of the "North American hard court season". Emira ...
campaign in Stanford where she was the third seed. She defeated
Coco Vandeweghe Colleen "CoCo" Vandeweghe ( ) (born Colleen Mullarkey; December 6, 1991) is an American professional tennis player. A former Junior US Open champion and top 10 singles player, she has also won two WTA titles, both at the Rosmalen Grass Court C ...
in three sets in her opener, to reach quarterfinals where she saw off
Garbiñe Muguruza Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco (; born 8 October 1993) is a Spanish-Venezuelan professional tennis player. She has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 1 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), and a career-high doubles ranking of world No. ...
. A win over
Varvara Lepchenko Varvara (Cyrillic: Варвара; el, Βαρβάρα, ''Varvára''), a variant of " Barbara", may refer to: Places *Varvara, Azerbaijan * Varvara, Prozor, on the Rama river, Bosnia and Herzegovina * Varvara, Burgas Province, Bulgaria * Varvara ...
, where she had to save a match point, put her in her fourth final of the year, but she had to settle for the runner-up position again, for the fourth time in 2014 when she lost to Serena Williams. After a string of early exits in
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
and
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
, Kerber made the third round of the US Open with wins over Russian qualifiers,
Ksenia Pervak Ksenia Yuryevna Pervak (russian: Ксения Юрьевна Первак; born 27 May 1991) is a retired tennis player from Russia. Pervak won one singles title on the WTA Tour, as well as nine singles and three doubles titles on the ITF Circ ...
and Alla Kudryavtseva, but lost to unseeded youngster
Belinda Bencic Belinda Bencic ( sk, Belinda Benčičová, ; born 10 March 1997) is a Swiss professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of No. 4 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) which she achieved in February 2020. Bencic has won six singl ...
. Kerber posted deep runs in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
and the inaugural
Wuhan Open The Wuhan Open (currently sponsored by Dongfeng Motor) is a tennis tournament held in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China and organized for female professional tennis players. It is one of the WTA 1000 tournaments on the WTA Tour and made its debut in t ...
the following month, reaching the semifinals and quarterfinals, respectively. In her final tournament of the season, Kerber made the third round of the China Open where she lost to Svetlana Kuznetsova. Kerber did not qualify for the
WTA Finals The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships or WTA Championships) is a tournament of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) played annually at the end of the season. The event is uniquely reserved for players at the top of the WTA ...
in 2014 but entered the tournament as an alternate, and would finish the season ranked world No. 10. Kerber finished the year by representing Germany in the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
final, where the team took on the Czech Republic. After dropping her first match to Lucie Šafářová, she came up against Petra Kvitová. There, Kerber dropped the first set tiebreak, and then avoided a bagel down 0–3 in the second set by coming back to win it 6–4. She came up short in the decider, however, as Kvitová launched her comeback from 1–4 down to win it 6–4, ensuring the Czech team an unassailable 3–0, and the title.


2015: Four WTA titles

Kerber started her year of 2015 by posting deep runs in both
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
and 2015 Apia International Sydney, with quarterfinal and semifinal results, respectively. However, at the Australian Open, she crashed out in the opening round to Irina-Camelia Begu, and it was the first time Kerber lost at the first hurdle of a Grand Slam tournament since Wimbledon in 2011. Representing Germany in the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
quarterfinals where the Germans faced Australia, Kerber scored a win out of her two matches played, over Samantha Stosur, but the 2014 runner-ups would progress by winning the tie 4–1. Her form however did not improve further across the months of February and March as she netted just two wins across five tournaments played, and by the start of April, she had fallen out of the top 10, for the first time since May 2012. At the
Charleston Open The Credit One Charleston Open, formerly known as the Volvo Car Open and the Family Circle Cup, is a WTA Tour-affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, held every year since 1973. It is the oldest professional all-women's tournament in ...
, fifth seed Kerber overcame a 4–2 third-set deficit to defeat
Evgeniya Rodina Evgeniya Sergeyevna Rodina (russian: Евгения Сергеевна Родина, born 4 February 1989) is a Russian tennis player. On 6 May 2019, she achieved a career-high singles ranking of 67. Rodina has won 13 singles titles on the ITF ...
in her opening match, and then cruised past
Lara Arruabarrena Lara Arruabarrena Vecino (; born 20 March 1992) is a former professional tennis player from Spain. On 3 July 2017, she reached a career-high WTA singles ranking of 52, and her best doubles ranking is world No. 28, set on 22 February 2016. Arr ...
to reach the last eight. Her run continued with a win over Begu in two tight sets, followed by another straight-set victory, over fellow German and defending champion
Andrea Petkovic Andrea Petkovic (, ; born 9 September 1987) is a German former professional tennis player. Born in Tuzla, SFR Yugoslavia, to Serbian father Zoran and Bosniak mother Amira, she moved to Germany at six months old and turned professional in 2006 a ...
, to advance to her first final of 2015. There, Kerber faced seventh seed
Madison Keys Madison Keys (born February 17, 1995) is an American professional tennis player. She has been ranked as high as world No. 7 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), a ranking she first achieved in October 2016. Keys has played in one Grand Sla ...
and she fought back from a 4–1 deficit in the third set to claim her fourth WTA title and her first since the fall of 2013, besides it being her first tournament triumph on clay. In the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
semifinals, where Germany faced Russia, Kerber won her only rubber played, against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets, dropping just one game. The win, however, was not enough as Germany lost the deciding doubles match. Kerber was unseeded in Stuttgart to open her season on red clay, and defeated
Alexa Glatch Alexa Glatch (born September 10, 1989) is an American professional tennis player. Junior career She started playing tennis at the age of five. As a junior player, she won the prestigious Easter Bowl title in the Girls-14s and Girls-18s divisions ...
in straight sets, before upsetting three-time defending champion Maria Sharapova in three sets. In the quarterfinals, she saw off Ekaterina Makarova, before beating
Madison Brengle Madison Brengle (born April 3, 1990) is an American professional tennis player. Her biggest success she had in early 2015, reaching her first WTA Tour final in January, followed by a fourth round major event appearance at the Australian Open. ...
to reach her second final of the year. There, she fought back from a set and 5–3 down to prevail over Caroline Wozniacki, thus scoring her fifth career title, also her first on home soil, which saw her extend her winning streak on clay to 11 matches. That streak, however, expired in the hands of Stosur in the opening round of
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
. At the Italian Open, Kerber reached the second round after defeating Alizé Cornet but lost to Begu once more. After a semifinal run in
Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
, Kerber exited the French Open in the third round from a set up, in the hands of Garbiñe Muguruza. On grass, Kerber had a bright start, by lifting the title at the Birmimgham Classic where she was the fourth seed. En route, she advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Tsvetana Pironkova and Jelena Janković. She then beat
Kateřina Siniaková Kateřina Siniaková (; ; born 10 May 1996) is a Czech professional tennis player who is the current world No. 1 in doubles. She is a six-time Grand Slam champion in doubles, having won the 2018 and 2021 French Opens, 2018 and 2022 Wimbledon ...
in straight sets to set up an all-German semifinal where she faced Sabine Lisicki, their first meeting since Wimbledon in 2012. Kerber won in straight sets and subsequently advanced to her third final of the season where she defeated Karolina Plíšková in a tight three-setter for her sixth career title, her first on grass. This marked the first time Kerber had won more than two titles in a season. At the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...
, Kerber advanced to the third round where she crossed paths with Muguruza once more, and lost to the eventual runner-up in three sets. Kicking off her
US Open Series The US Open Series is the name given by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to a series of North American professional tennis tournaments leading up to and including the US Open. It is part of the "North American hard court season". Emira ...
campaign in Stanford, fifth-seeded Kerber defended her runner-up result from a year ago by beating
Daria Gavrilova Daria Saville (née Gavrilova, born 5 March 1994) is an Australian professional tennis player. She represented Russia until 2015, before emigrating to Australia. She competed under her maiden name until her marriage to Luke Saville in 20 ...
and Ana Konjuh to make the last eight where she edged past second seed Agnieszka Radwańska in a three-set marathon to reach the last four. She then beat Elina Svitolina to make the final where she met Plíšková, and defeated the Czech in three sets once again, this time to lift her seventh career title, and became the only player to win titles across all surfaces in 2015. Kerber did not enjoy better results on American hard courts in her following tournaments with early losses in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
and
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
. At the US Open, she was the 11th seed came up short in the third round again, this time in a three-set defeat to 20th seed and two-time runner-up Victoria Azarenka in an epic encounter. Kerber bounced back with stronger results in the Asian swing, starting off with a quarterfinal showing in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
where she lost to Wozniacki in three sets. At the
Wuhan Open The Wuhan Open (currently sponsored by Dongfeng Motor) is a tennis tournament held in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China and organized for female professional tennis players. It is one of the WTA 1000 tournaments on the WTA Tour and made its debut in t ...
, Kerber reached the last eight after dispatching Jelena Janković and
Camila Giorgi Camila Giorgi (; born 30 December 1991) is an Italian professional tennis player. She has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 26, achieved on 22 October 2018. She is the current Italian No. 2, after Martina Trevisan. After winning her fi ...
, before moving past Coco Vandeweghe via retirement. In the semifinals, she lost to Muguruza once again, this time in straight sets. At the China Open next, Kerber advanced to the last eight where she lost to Radwańska in straight sets. Kerber would then reach her fifth final of the year at the Hong Kong Open but finished runner-up for the first time this season, falling to Janković in three sets. It was announced on 21 October that Kerber had qualified for the
WTA Finals The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships or WTA Championships) is a tournament of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) played annually at the end of the season. The event is uniquely reserved for players at the top of the WTA ...
, marking her third appearance here. As the sixth seed, she was drawn into the same group with Muguruza and fellow left-handed players Petra Kvitová and Lucie Šafářová. She exited in the round-robin stage, managing just one win that came over Petra Kvitová. Having spent patches of 2015 out of the top 10, Kerber eventually concluded the season as world No. 10, maintaining her season finish from 2014.


2016: Australian Open & US Open champion, Olympic Silver and world No. 1

Kerber began the year at the
Brisbane International The Brisbane International established in 2009 is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hardcourts in Brisbane, Queensland in Australia. It is a WTA Premier tournament of the WTA Tour and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 seri ...
, posting a runner-up result, with wins over Camila Giorgi, Madison Brengle, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Carla Suárez Navarro en route to the final, where she lost to former champion Victoria Azarenka. In Sydney, Kerber defeated
Elina Svitolina Elina Mykhailivna Svitolina ( uk, Еліна Михайлівна Світоліна, ; born 12 September 1994) is a Ukrainian professional tennis player. She reached career-high rankings of world No. 3 in singles and 108 in doubles. Svitolina ...
in the opening round but then withdrew with an illness. Kerber was the seventh seed at the Australian Open and defeated Misaki Doi in the first round, having been a match point down. She then scored a triplet of straight-set wins over
Alexandra Dulgheru Alexandra Dulgheru (; born 30 May 1989) is a professional tennis player from Romania. On 11 April 2011, she achieved her career-high singles ranking of world No. 26. Her best ranking in doubles is No. 41, reached on 4 July 2011. She is coached b ...
, Brengle, and compatriot
Annika Beck Annika Beck (; born 16 February 1994) is a German former professional tennis player. She started playing tennis at the age of four when introduced to the game by her parents. A baseliner whose favorite shot is forehand, and favorite surface is ...
to reach her first quarterfinal in Melbourne, completing the sweep of quarterfinal appearances at all four Grand Slams in the process. In the quarterfinals, she avenged her Brisbane loss by defeating two-time champion Victoria Azarenka in straight sets, her first win against the Belarusian, to advance to the third Grand Slam semifinal of her career, her first since Wimbledon in 2012. There, Kerber defeated Grand Slam semifinal debutante
Johanna Konta Johanna Konta (born 17 May 1991) is a British former professional tennis player, having represented Australia until 2012. She won four singles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as 11 singles and four doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit. The ...
in straight sets to reach her maiden Grand Slam final. She defeated defending champion and world No. 1, Serena Williams, earning her first Grand Slam title and becoming the first German to do so since 1999. Besides becoming the first player to win a Grand Slam having been down match point in the first round, she also recorded her best ranking to date as world No. 2 following the achievement, surpassing her prior career-high of No. 5 set that she had set in 2012. Representing Germany in the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
quarterfinals where the Germans faced the Swiss team, Kerber went 1–1 in her singles matches, with Germany losing the tie in the end. Kerber then endured a dry spell across the
Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...
and Indian Wells Opens, dropping both her openers. However, she bounced back with a run to the semifinals in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...
where she was stopped by eventual champion Victoria Azarenka. At the
Charleston Open The Credit One Charleston Open, formerly known as the Volvo Car Open and the Family Circle Cup, is a WTA Tour-affiliated professional tennis tournament for women, held every year since 1973. It is the oldest professional all-women's tournament in ...
, top seed and defending champion Kerber sailed into her consecutive semifinal but this time, retired to eventual champion
Sloane Stephens Sloane Stephens (born March 20, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. She achieved a career-best ranking of world No. 3 after Wimbledon in 2018. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in to ...
due to a viral illness. In the Fed Cup World Group Play-offs, the German team faced Romania and Kerber duly emerged victorious in her both her singles rubbers, over Irina-Camelia Begu and Simona Halep, losing only four games to the latter, and also her first ever win over her, to keep Germany in the World Group as the team would win the tie 4–1. Kerber was the defending champion in Stuttgart, and successfully defended a title for the first time in her career. After a first-round bye, she beat Beck, Carla Suárez Navarro, and Petra Kvitová to reach the final. There she faced compatriot and qualifier
Laura Siegemund Laura Natalie Siegemund (born 4 March 1988, in Filderstadt) is a German professional tennis player. She is a two-time Grand Slam champion, having won the 2020 US Open in women's doubles with Vera Zvonareva, as well as the 2016 US Open in mi ...
and won ten games in a row from 2–4 down in the first set to defeat Siegemund and score her second title of the year and ninth of her career. Another losing streak ensued to close her clay season, however, which includes a loss to
Kiki Bertens Kiki Bertens (; born 10 December 1991) is a Dutch former professional tennis player. Her career-high WTA singles ranking was world No. 4, which she reached on 13 May 2019, becoming the highest ranked Dutch female player ever. Her career-high do ...
at the French Open, Bertens then becoming an eventual semifinalist herself. Prior to Wimbledon, Kerber attempted to defend her title at the Birmingham Classic and sailed into the last eight where she met Suárez Navarro once again but lost to Spaniard. At Wimbledon, fourth-seeded Kerber did not drop a set, with wins over Laura Robson, Varvara Lepchenko, Carina Witthöft, Doi and fifth seed Halep, en route to her second semifinal here. There, she moved past former champion Venus Williams to reach the final, where she was defeated by Serena Williams, in a rematch of their Australian Open championship encounter earlier in the year, in straight sets. After Wimbledon, Kerber played at the
Swedish Open Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
where she withdrew before her second round match due to an injury. She then reached her first quarterfinal at the Canadian Open with three-set wins over
Mirjana Lučić-Baroni Mirjana Lučić-Baroni (; ; born 9 March 1982) is a Croatian former professional tennis player. She enjoyed a meteoric rise on the WTA Tour in the late 1990s, during which she set several "youngest-ever" records. She captured the women's doubles ...
and Svitolina. She then beat
Daria Kasatkina Daria Sergeyevna Kasatkina (born 7 May 1997) is a Russian professional tennis player. She is currently the Russian No. 1 player in singles. She made her top-ten debut in the WTA rankings towards the end of the 2018 season and has been ranked ...
to make the last four when lost to eventual champion Halep. At the Olympics, Kerber defeated Mariana Duque-Mariño, Eugenie Bouchard, Samantha Stosur to record her second Olympic quarterfinal appearance. Two more wins, over Konta and Madison Keys, saw Kerber book her spot in the gold medal match, where she was defeated by surprise finalist
Monica Puig Monica Puig Marchán, (born September 27, 1993) is a Puerto Rican former professional tennis player. She is the first Puerto Rican in history to win a gold medal at the Olympics while representing Puerto Rico, having done so in 2016 at th ...
of Puerto Rico in three sets. Kerber's strong summer continued at the Cincinnati Open where she had her first opportunity to dethrone Serena Williams as the world No. 1 but needs to win the title to do so. Kerber did make the final where she faced 15th seed Karolína Plíšková but lost in straight sets. Nevertheless, Kerber's strong results throughout the year thus far ensured herself qualification for the
WTA Finals The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships or WTA Championships) is a tournament of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) played annually at the end of the season. The event is uniquely reserved for players at the top of the WTA ...
, which was announced on 22 August following the conclusion of the Cincinnati tournament. At the US Open, Kerber beat the likes of
Polona Hercog Polona Hercog (, born 20 January 1991) is a Slovenian professional tennis player. Her career-high WTA rankings are 35 in singles and 56 in doubles. She has won five titles on the WTA Tour, three in singles and two in doubles. Hercog also enjoye ...
, Lucic-Baroni,
CiCi Bellis Catherine Cartan "CiCi" Bellis (born April 8, 1999) is an American former tennis player. In early 2018, she was the second youngest player in the top 100 of the WTA rankings. Bellis has a career-high of 35, which she achieved in August 2017. She ...
and 14th seed Petra Kvitová to make the quarterfinals here for the first time since her semifinal run back in 2011. She continued with wins over eighth seed and 2015 runner-up
Roberta Vinci Roberta Vinci (; born 18 February 1983) is an Italian professional padel and former tennis player. In doubles tennis, she won five major tournaments and reached the world No. 1 position. She also reached a career-high ranking of world No. 7 i ...
, and a resurgent Caroline Wozniacki to reach her third Grand Slam final. Her win over Wozniacki, in the semifinals, combined with Serena Williams' defeat to 10th seed Plíšková in the same round meant that Kerber would unseat Serena Williams as the world No. 1 when the new rankings were released on 12 September the following week. In the championship match, Kerber gained her revenge over Plíšková by prevailing over the Czech in three sets to claim her second Grand Slam title, the 10th title overall of her career. At the
Wuhan Open The Wuhan Open (currently sponsored by Dongfeng Motor) is a tennis tournament held in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China and organized for female professional tennis players. It is one of the WTA 1000 tournaments on the WTA Tour and made its debut in t ...
, her first tournament since claiming the world No. 1 ranking, Kerber reached the third round where she fell short to Kvitová in a 3-hour-long match. She then fell in the same round at the China Open, this time to Svitolina. Her penultimate tournament appearance of 2016 came at the Hong Kong Open where she lost in the quarterfinals to Daria Gavrilova. On 17 October 2016, Serena Williams pulled out of the
WTA Finals The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships or WTA Championships) is a tournament of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) played annually at the end of the season. The event is uniquely reserved for players at the top of the WTA ...
in Singapore due to a shoulder injury, and that withdrawal secured Kerber's spot at the summit of the WTA rankings for the rest of the year, including the year-end No. 1 ranking, another first in Kerber's career. As the top seed of the Tour Finals, Kerber was drawn in the same group alongside Halep, Keys, and Dominika Cibulková. She won all of her round robin matches, scoring back-to-back wins here for the first time in her career as well, en route to her first semifinal here. She then defeated defending champion Agnieszka Radwańska in straight sets to reach the final where she faced Cibulková once again that week, to whom she lost in straight sets.


2017: Struggles with form and out of top 20

At the start of the
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...
season, Kerber competed at the
Brisbane International The Brisbane International established in 2009 is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hardcourts in Brisbane, Queensland in Australia. It is a WTA Premier tournament of the WTA Tour and was part of the ATP World Tour 250 seri ...
as the top seed, and won her opening match against
Ashleigh Barty Ashleigh is the feminine form of the Old English name Ashley, which means "dweller near the ash tree forest". It is most common in the United States and United Kingdom. Notable people B *Ashleigh Ball (born 1983), Canadian voice actress * Ashle ...
in three sets but then lost to Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals. The following week in Sydney, she dropped opening match to Daria Kasatkina. As the top-seeded player and defending champion at the Australian Open, Kerber overcame a mid-match lapse to see off
Lesia Tsurenko Lesia Viktorivna Tsurenko ( uk, Леся Вікторівна Цуренко; born 30 May 1989) is a Ukrainian tennis player. Tsurenko has won four singles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as six singles and eight doubles tournaments on the IT ...
in the first round, where she squandered a match point in the second set. Kerber then defeated compatriot Carina Witthöft in the second round and Kristýna Plíšková in the third round. In the fourth round, Kerber lost to eventual semifinalist Coco Vandeweghe in straight sets. Serena Williams, who lost to Kerber in the championship match here 12 months ago, won the tournament this time and amassed enough points to take back the top ranking from Kerber. After a winless showing in
Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the count ...
, Kerber made the last four in
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
where she lost to eventual champion Svitolina. The following month, in Indian Wells, Kerber reached the round of 16 where she lost to another eventual champion, this time in
Elena Vesnina Elena Sergeyevna Vesnina (born 1 August 1986) is a Russian former professional tennis player and a former world No. 1 in doubles. She is a four-time Grand Slam champion, having won the 2013 French Open, 2014 US Open, and 2017 Wimbledon Cha ...
, but it was enough for Kerber to regain the world No. 1 ranking owing to Serena Williams' withdrawal from the event. This was then followed by a quarterfinal appearance in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...
where she lost to Venus Williams, and then a runner-up showing in Monterrey, where in a rematch of the 2013 final, Kerber fell short to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets. Kerber's season on clay began with her ranking at world No. 2, and a loss in her opener in Stuttgart to eventual runner-up Kristina Mladenovic. At the
Madrid Open There are three sporting events known as the Madrid Open: * Madrid Open (golf) The Madrid Open was an annual men's golf tournament which was held in and around the Spanish capital Madrid from 1968 to 2007, apart from a seven-year gap from 1994 to ...
, Kerber won back-to-back wins to reach the third round where she retired against Eugenie Bouchard with a back issue, but returned to world No. 1 after the tournament's conclusion nevertheless. At the French Open, Kerber became the first female top seed in history to be ousted in the first round here, falling in straight sets to Ekaterina Makarova. However, she fared better as the season moved to grass courts, by making the quarterfinals in
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
where she was defeated by Johanna Konta. At Wimbledon, Kerber made the second week, falling in the round of 16 to the eventual champion Garbiñe Muguruza in three sets. Due to Kerber's early exit and Simona Halep's loss to Konta in the quarterfinals, Karolína Plíšková became the new No. 1 after the tournament. Across the
US Open Series The US Open Series is the name given by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to a series of North American professional tennis tournaments leading up to and including the US Open. It is part of the "North American hard court season". Emira ...
, Kerber's struggles in 2017 continued as she netted just one victory across three tournament appearances in the North American hard court summer, which includes a first-round loss to
Naomi Osaka is a Japanese professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and is the first Asian player to hold the top ranking in singles. Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam singles champio ...
at the US Open, where she was the defending champion. With this loss Kerber dropped out of the top 10. The following month, at the
Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-le ...
, Kerber recorded her best result since Monterrey back in April, as she took revenge on Osaka and then defeated Kasatkina and Plíšková, before falling in the last four to Pavlyuchenkova. The said win over Plíšková in Tokyo was Kerber's best win by ranking since the 2016 WTA Finals. She would go on to score just one more win for the rest of the year, however, in the first round of the China Open where she beat Osaka once again. After dropping both her two matches in the group stage at
WTA Elite Trophy The WTA Elite Trophy is the second-tier year-end professional women's tennis tournament on the WTA Tour. It is the successor event of the different format WTA Tournament of Champions, which took place from 2009–14. The Elite Trophy takes place ...
, to Pavlyuchenkova and Barty, Kerber dropped out of top 20 for the first time since 2012, and finished the year ranked world No. 21. Shortly after, on 16 November 2017, Kerber announced that she had parted ways with longtime coach
Torben Beltz Torben Beltz (born 27 November 1976) is a German tennis coach. Beltz is best known for having coached Angelique Kerber during her successful 2016 Australian Open and 2016 US Open campaigns. Coaching career Beltz first started working with Angel ...
and has hired
Wim Fissette Wim Fissette (born 22 March 1980) is a Belgian tennis coach and former professional player. He has worked with former Women's Tennis Association (WTA) world number ones Victoria Azarenka, Kim Clijsters, Simona Halep, Angelique Kerber, and Naomi ...
as new coach.


2018: Wimbledon champion, resurgence and return to world No. 2

Kerber started her
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the Unit ...
season with a first ever appearance at the
Hopman Cup The Hopman Cup is an international eight-team indoor hardcourt tennis tournament that played mixed-gender teams on a country-by-country basis.It was held in Perth, Western Australia each year from 1989 to 2019, before being replaced on the calen ...
, where she partnered with Alexander Zverev. She went undefeated in her singles matches and helped the team cruise into the final where they lost to Switzerland. Kerber followed up that performance with her first title in more than a year, at the Sydney International next. To make the final, she edged past Lucie Šafářová and Venus Williams, saving a match point against the former, to make the quarterfinals where she beat Dominika Cibulková. She set up a championship match with home star Ashleigh Barty after moving past Camila Giorgi. There, she beat the Aussie in straight sets for her 11th career title. At the Australian Open, 21st-seeded Kerber moved into the fourth round with wins over
Anna-Lena Friedsam Anna-Lena Friedsam (born 1 February 1994) is a German tennis player. She has won three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, one WTA 125 singles title as well as 12 singles and three doubles titles on the ITF Circuit in her career. She played also ...
,
Donna Vekić Donna Vekić (; born 28 June 1996) is a Croatian professional tennis player and businesswoman. She has won three singles titles on the WTA Tour – at the 2014 Malaysian Open, at the 2017 Nottingham Open, and the 2021 Courmayeur Ladies Open. ...
and former world No. 1 Maria Sharapova, all in straight sets and dropping no more than four games a set. There, she saw off
Hsieh Su-wei Hsieh Su-wei ( ;''Xiè 謝淑薇Shūwēi'' in Chinese mainland. Taiwanese Mandarin: ; in Standard Mandarin of Chinese mainland. born 4 January 1986) is an inactive Taiwanese professional tennis player. She has won three singles titles and 30 ...
in three sets to move into her second quarterfinal here, where she swept aside Madison Keys. In the semifinal, a clash against world No. 1, Simona Halep, both had two match points in the third set but neither were converted. The match then ended 9–7 in the third set, with Halep prevailing. Following her strong Australian summer, Kerber returned to the top 10 once again, ranked world No. 9. Kerber then made the last eight at the Qatar Open where she lost to world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki in three-sets. The following week in
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
, she lost to Elina Svitolina in the semifinals for the second year in a row, that being her fifth consecutive loss as well. At the Indian Wells Open, 10th seed Kerber beat Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, avenging her defeat to the latter here a year ago, to reach the last 16 where she beat
Caroline Garcia Caroline Garcia (, born 16 October 1993) is a French professional tennis player. She has been ranked in the top 5 in both singles at world No. 4 and in doubles at world No. 2. Garcia is the 2022 WTA Finals singles champion. She is also a two- ...
. She lost in the quarterfinals to Daria Kasatkina. Kerber carried on her good form through the Miami Open by sailing into the quarterfinals, defeating Johanna Larsson,
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova Anastasia Sergeyevna "Nastia" Pavlyuchenkova (russian: Анастаси́я "Настя" Серге́евна Павлюче́нкова; born 3 July 1991) is an inactive Russian professional tennis player. A junior prodigy, Pavlyuchenkova won ...
and
Wang Yafan Wang Yafan (; ; born 30 April 1994) is a Chinese tennis player. In her career, she has won one singles title and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as four doubles titles on WTA 125 tournaments, plus eleven singles and six doubles ...
en route, where she was stopped by eventual champion
Sloane Stephens Sloane Stephens (born March 20, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. She achieved a career-best ranking of world No. 3 after Wimbledon in 2018. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in to ...
, thus ensuring the latter her top-10 debut. In the
Fed Cup The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
semifinal tie against Czech Republic, Kerber dropped both her matches, to Karolína Plíšková and Petra Kvitová. both of her matches she lost in straight sets, the latter defeat ensuring the Czechs a spot in the final. She gained her revenge over Kvitová at first hurdle of the Stuttgart tournament the week after, before retiring against
Anett Kontaveit Anett Kontaveit (; born 24 December 1995) is an Estonian professional tennis player. She has been ranked as high as world No. 2 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), which she first achieved on 6 June 2022, making her the highest-ranked Eston ...
in the following round. She was forced to skip the tournament in
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
as a result, but bounced back at the Italian Open by making the last eight here for the second time, her first since 2012, but fell victim to eventual champion Svitolina, for the sixth time running. At the French Open, 12th seed Kerber snapped her losing streak here by defeating compatriot Mona Barthel in the first round. After seeing off
Ana Bogdan Ana Bogdan (born 25 November 1992) is a Romanian professional tennis player. Having made her tour debut in 2007, she peaked at No. 46 in the WTA rankings in October 2022. Bogdan had a successful junior career, reaching world No. 2 on 5 January ...
, Kerber took down 18th seed
Kiki Bertens Kiki Bertens (; born 10 December 1991) is a Dutch former professional tennis player. Her career-high WTA singles ranking was world No. 4, which she reached on 13 May 2019, becoming the highest ranked Dutch female player ever. Her career-high do ...
, who had defeated her in the first round here two years ago, and then saw off seventh seed Caroline Garcia to make her second quarterfinal here, her first since 2012. In the quarterfinal, Kerber lost to top-ranked player and eventual champion Simona Halep from a set up. Nevertheless, the result is Kerber's equal-best result here, after her 2012 quarterfinal run. Kerber started the grass court swing as the second seed in Mallorca, where she lost in the first round to
Alison Riske Alison Riske-Amritraj (née Riske; born July 3, 1990) is an American professional tennis player. She reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 in November 2019 and won her first WTA Tour title in October 2014 at the Tianjin Open. ...
. In
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
, she made the semifinals, falling to eventual champion Caroline Wozniacki, Kerber entered Wimbledon as the 11th seed. She defeated 2010 finalist
Vera Zvonareva Vera Igorevna Zvonareva ( rus, Вера Игоревна Звонарёва, p=ˈvʲɛrə ˈiɡərʲɪvnə zvənɐˈrʲɵvə, a=Vera zvonareva.ogg; born 7 September 1984) is a Russian professional tennis player. She was introduced to tennis at ...
and 2017 junior champion
Claire Liu Claire Liu (born May 25, 2000) is an American tennis player. On 24th October 2022, she reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 60. In 2017, she was the world No. 1 in the junior rankings, after winning the Wimbledon girls' sing ...
to reach the third round where she moved past 18th seed Naomi Osaka. She then saw off unseeded Belinda Bencic to make the last eight by when she was the highest seed left in the draw. There, she avenged her loss in Indian Wells earlier in the year to Daria Kasatkina, needing seven match points to seal the revenge and then defeated 12th seed
Jeļena Ostapenko Jeļena Ostapenko (born 8 June 1997), also known as Aļona Ostapenko, is a Latvian professional tennis player. She has career-high WTA rankings of world No. 5 in singles, achieved on 19 March 2018, and world No. 9 in doubles, reached on 22 Augus ...
to reach her second Wimbledon final. There, in a rematch of the 2016 final, she turned the tides this time around by taking down 25th seed Serena Williams in straight sets for her third Grand Slam title. With this victory, Kerber found herself one Grand Slam tournament shy of the Career Grand Slam, and also returned to world No. 4 in the rankings. Kerber did not enjoy the same success moving to the
US Open Series The US Open Series is the name given by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to a series of North American professional tennis tournaments leading up to and including the US Open. It is part of the "North American hard court season". Emira ...
, suffering a trio of early losses. First, at the Canadian Open, fourth seed Kerber lost her opener to Alizé Cornet in straight sets. At the Cincinnati Masters, Kerber lost in the third round to Keys. This culminated in third-round defeat in the hands of 29th seed Cibulková at the US Open despite having led by a set. However, her strong results in the preceding months of the year ensured her a spot at the
WTA Finals The WTA Finals (formerly known as the WTA Tour Championships or WTA Championships) is a tournament of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) played annually at the end of the season. The event is uniquely reserved for players at the top of the WTA ...
, sealing her qualification on 10 September. The Asian swing in 2018 was another uneventful outing for Kerber as she lost in the third round of both
Wuhan Wuhan (, ; ; ) is the capital of Hubei Province in the People's Republic of China. It is the largest city in Hubei and the most populous city in Central China, with a population of over eleven million, the ninth-most populous Chinese city an ...
and
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
, to Barty and Zhang Shuai, respectively. In her fifth appearance at the season-ending WTA Finals, the final edition to be held in Singapore, Kerber was drawn into the same group as Osaka, Stephens and Bertens. There, she got her sole win of the tournament over the former, defeating the Japanese player in three sets. Kerber subsequently concluded 2018 as world No. 2, her second-best finish to a season. In November, Kerber announced a new partnership with
Rainer Schüttler Rainer Schüttler (; born 25 April 1976) is a German former professional tennis player. Schüttler was the runner-up at the 2003 Australian Open and a semifinalist at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships. He won an Olympic silver medal in doubles ...
as her new coach, having split with Fisette a month prior.


2019–2020: Inconsistencies and out of top 20

Kerber kicked off the
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
season with her second appearance at the
Hopman Cup The Hopman Cup is an international eight-team indoor hardcourt tennis tournament that played mixed-gender teams on a country-by-country basis.It was held in Perth, Western Australia each year from 1989 to 2019, before being replaced on the calen ...
, alongside Alexander Zverev once again; they lost in the final to Switzerland in a rematch of last year's final. In Sydney, Kerber failed in her title defence bid with a loss to eventual champion Petra Kvitová in the quarterfinals. At the Australian Open, second-seeded Kerber moved into the last 16 with straight-set wins over the likes of Polona Hercog,
Beatriz Haddad Maia Beatriz Haddad Maia (born 30 May 1996) is a Brazilian professional tennis player. On 22 August 2022, she reached a career-high in the WTA rankings in singles at No. 15. Haddad Maia has won two singles and four doubles titles on the WTA Tour, on ...
(gaining her 100th Grand Slam match win) and Kimberly Birrell, only to be upset by eventual semifinalist Danielle Collins in straight sets. The following month, Kerber made the semifinals at the Qatar Open where she lost to eventual champion
Elise Mertens Elise Mertens (; born 17 November 1995) is a Belgian professional tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 in doubles. Mertens is a three-time Grand Slam champion in doubles, having won the 2019 US Open and 2021 Australian Open partnering ...
. At the
Dubai Tennis Championships The Dubai Tennis Championships or Dubai Open (also known as the ''Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships'' for sponsorship reasons) (formerly known for sponsorship reasons as the ''Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships'' and the ''Dubai Duty Free Men's ...
, Kerber lost in the third round to eventual semifinalist Hsieh Su-wei in three sets. At the Indian Wells Open, Kerber reached a Premier Mandatory final for the first time in her career, which is also her first at the Premier Mandatory or Premier 5 stage since
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
in 2016. En route to the final, she defeated
Yulia Putintseva Yulia Antonovna Putintseva ( rus, Ю́лия Анто́новна Пути́нцева; , ''puh-TEEN-tseh-vah''; born 7 January 1995) is a Russian-born Kazakhstani professional tennis player. She is a three-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist (twic ...
to begin, and followed up with two three-set wins over
Natalia Vikhlyantseva Natalia Konstantinovna Vikhlyantseva ( Russian: Наталья Константиновна Вихлянцева; born 16 February 1997) is a Russian tennis player. Her favourite court surface is grass. Vikhlyantseva has career-high rankings of ...
and world No. 9
Aryna Sabalenka Aryna Siarhiejeŭna Sabalenka ( be, Арына Сяргееўна Сабаленка; russian: Арина Сергеевна Соболенко, ''Arina Sergeyevna Sobolenko'', born 5 May 1998) is a Belarusian professional tennis player. She ha ...
, which put her in the last eight. She then advanced to her first semifinal here since 2013 with a win over Venus Williams, where she saw off Belinda Bencic. In the final, young wildcard
Bianca Andreescu Bianca Vanessa Andreescu (; born June 16, 2000) is a Canadian professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of No. 4 in the world, and is the highest-ranked Canadian in the history of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Andreescu ...
defeated Kerber in three sets to win the title. At the Miami Open next, Kerber crossed paths with Andreescu once again, in the third round this time, and lost. in three sets. Kerber notably called her opponent "biggest drama queen ever" during their handshake after the match, owing to the multiple medical time-outs the latter had taken during the match. She then recorded a semifinal run at the
Monterrey Open The Monterrey Open is a professional women's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. The event is affiliated with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), and is part of the 250 series on the WTA Tour. From 2009 to 2013, the tournament wa ...
where she was the top seed but lost to Victoria Azarenka in three sets. Kerber her clay season in Stuttgart where she made the quarterfinals, but then had to withdraw in the second round of
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
, having defeated
Lesia Tsurenko Lesia Viktorivna Tsurenko ( uk, Леся Вікторівна Цуренко; born 30 May 1989) is a Ukrainian tennis player. Tsurenko has won four singles titles on the WTA Tour, as well as six singles and eight doubles tournaments on the IT ...
in straight sets prior, owing to an injury in her right thigh. At the French Open, Kerber lost in the first round to Russian youngster
Anastasia Potapova Anastasia Sergeyevna Potapova (born 30 March 2001) is a Russian tennis player. Potapova has a career-high ranking of No. 44 achieved on 17 October 2022 and a doubles ranking of No. 44 achieved on 3 October 2022. Potapova is a former junior No ...
. That match, notably, was the first one played on the newly rebuilt
Court Philippe Chatrier Stade Roland Garros (; "Roland Garros Stadium") is a complex of tennis courts, including stadiums, located in Paris that hosts the French Open. That tournament, also known as ''Roland Garros'', is a Grand Slam tennis championship played annuall ...
. Her form would improve on grass, however, as she started out with a semifinal run in Mallorca where she was the top seed. She followed that up with a runner-up finish in
Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...
, where she lost to Karolína Plíšková, their fifth encounter in a championship match. However, at the
Wimbledon Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...
defending champion Kerber was shocked by lucky loser
Lauren Davis Lauren Davis (born October 9, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. Known for her aggressive backhand, speed, and clay-court strength, she won her first title on the WTA Tour at the Auckland Open and reached a career-high singles ra ...
in the second round. As a result of this defeat, she fell out of the top 10, and then parted ways with her coach Schüttler. Kerber's dip in form stretched through the
US Open Series The US Open Series is the name given by the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to a series of North American professional tennis tournaments leading up to and including the US Open. It is part of the "North American hard court season". Emira ...
as she was inflicted with a four-match losing streak, including a second-round loss at the US Open in the hands of Kristina Mladenovic. After that defeat, Kerber stated in her post-match interview that she had not reserved plans to find a new coach nor hire former coach Torben Beltz. At the
Pan Pacific Open The Pan Pacific Open ( ja, 東レ パン・パシフィック・オープン・テニストーナメント), currently sponsored by Toray Industries, is a women's outdoor hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Tokyo, Japan. It is a WTA 500-le ...
, Kerber won consecutive matches for the first time in three months by seeing off Americans in
Nicole Gibbs Nicole Gibbs (born March 3, 1993) is an American retired tennis player. She won seven singles and five doubles titles on the ITF Circuit. On 25 July 2016, she reached her best singles ranking of world No. 68. On 19 September 2016, she peaked at ...
and Madison Keys to reach the semifinals, where she lost to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets. In her closing two events of 2019, the
Wuhan Wuhan (, ; ; ) is the capital of Hubei Province in the People's Republic of China. It is the largest city in Hubei and the most populous city in Central China, with a population of over eleven million, the ninth-most populous Chinese city an ...
and China Opens, Kerber managed just one win, over Zhang Shuai in the opening round of the latter. She subsequently withdrew from the
Luxembourg Open Luxembourg Open, Tennis tournaments in Luxembourg Indoor tennis tournaments Hard court tennis tournaments WTA Tour Kockelscheuer Recurring sporting events established in 1991 Autumn events in Luxembourg 1991 establishments in Luxembourg ...
and the
WTA Elite Trophy The WTA Elite Trophy is the second-tier year-end professional women's tennis tournament on the WTA Tour. It is the successor event of the different format WTA Tournament of Champions, which took place from 2009–14. The Elite Trophy takes place ...
due to a leg injury, thus finishing the year as world No. 20. On 21 November, Kerber announced that she has hired former world No. 130
Dieter Kindlmann Dieter Kindlmann (born 3 June 1982) is a German former professional tennis player. He reached his highest individual ranking on the ATP Tour on 26 July 2004, when he became World number 130. His best appearance at a Grand Slam came at the 2006 ...
as her coach. Kerber started her
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...
season in
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
, her last appearance here coming back in 2017. However, she was bounced in the opening round by home star Samantha Stosur in two tiebreak sets. Next, at the Adelaide International, she beat Wang Qiang in straight sets to open her tournament here before retiring against eventual runner-up
Dayana Yastremska Dayana Oleksandrivna Yastremska ( uk, Даяна Олександрівна Ястремська; born 15 May 2000) is a Ukrainian professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of world No. 21 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). ...
due to a left hamstring injury. At the Australian Open, 17th seed Kerber made the fourth round here for the seventh time in her career, but was defeated by 30th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets. That was Kerber's last tournament appearance before the 2020 season went into a lockdown following the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. In late July, Kerber reunited with her former coach, Torben Beltz, with whom she captured her first two Grand Slam titles. Her first appearance since the tour suspension was lifted came at the 2020 US Open (tennis), US Open where she lost to eventual semifinalist Jennifer Brady in the fourth round. She finished her season with back-to-back defeats at the 2020 Italian Open (tennis), Italian and 2020 French Open, French Opens, in the hands of Siniaková and Kaja Juvan, respectively. She would subsequently end the year ranked world No. 25, her lowest since 2011.


2021: Late season resurgence, brief top 10 comeback

Kerber opened her 2021 WTA Tour, 2021 season in Melbourne, entering the 2021 Gippsland Trophy, Gippsland Trophy, a modified warm-up tournament as part of the Australian Open Series#2021 COVID-19 alternative tournaments, 2021 Melbourne Summer Series. However, it was later discovered that her flight to Melbourne carried a COVID-19 infected passenger, forcing her into a mandatory and strict hotel quarantine for two weeks which severely limited her practicing opportunities besides preventing her from participating in the aforementioned tournament. The situation was, however, remedied with the creation of the 2021 Grampians Trophy, Grampians Trophy. Seeded eighth, Kerber's run in this tournament returned wins over the likes of Kateřina Siniaková and Ons Jabeur before being defeated by Maria Sakkari in the quarterfinals. At the 2021 Australian Open, Australian Open, she crashed out in the opening round to fellow lefty Bernarda Pera in straight sets, citing her lack of preparedness from her strict quarantine. The ensuing months of 2021, until the 2021 French Open, French Open in late May would prove to be a tough one for Kerber as she netted in just six wins across seven tournaments played, and winning consecutive matches on just one occasion in the same stretch, at the 2021 Italian Open (tennis), Italian Open, where she beat Alizé Cornet and defending champion Simona Halep, the latter via retirement, before taking a loss in the hands of Jeļena Ostapenko. At the French Open, she was bounced at the first hurdle here for the fifth time in past six appearances, this time to Ukraine's Anhelina Kalinina in straight sets. Kerber's resurgence in 2021, however, did come, on the grass. After an early exit to Victoria Azarenka in 2021 WTA German Open, Berlin, she won the title at the inaugural 2021 Bad Homburg Open, Bad Homburg Open, having need to come back from a set down in each of her quarterfinal and semifinal matches, against Amanda Anisimova and Petra Kvitová, respectively, to make her third final in a row on grass, and her first since Eastbourne two years ago. She defeated Siniaková in the final for her third title on grass, her first since Wimbledon in 2018 and the 13th of her career. Seeded 25th at 2021 Wimbledon Championships, Wimbledon, Kerber navigated her way past the likes of Nina Stojanović, Sara Sorribes Tormo, Aliaksandra Sasnovich and 20th seed Coco Gauff to reach the quarterfinals here for the fifth time in her career. She then saw off 19th seed Karolína Muchová to advance to her fourth semifinal appearance here. There, she lost to world No. 1 and eventual champion Ashleigh Barty in straight sets, despite having served for the second set. Kerber's first tournament of the year's US Open Series was the 2021 Western & Southern Open – Women's singles, Cincinnati Masters, where she defeated Maria Sakkari in the first round in straight sets, before recording her first win over
Elina Svitolina Elina Mykhailivna Svitolina ( uk, Еліна Михайлівна Світоліна, ; born 12 September 1994) is a Ukrainian professional tennis player. She reached career-high rankings of world No. 3 in singles and 108 in doubles. Svitolina ...
in seven meetings in the second round. She next defeated
Jeļena Ostapenko Jeļena Ostapenko (born 8 June 1997), also known as Aļona Ostapenko, is a Latvian professional tennis player. She has career-high WTA rankings of world No. 5 in singles, achieved on 19 March 2018, and world No. 9 in doubles, reached on 22 Augus ...
, despite twice being a break down in the third set, before advancing to the semifinal after
Petra Kvitová Petra Kvitová, OLY ( , ; born 8 March 1990) is a Czech professional tennis player. Known for her powerful left-handed groundstrokes and variety, Kvitová has won 29 career singles titles, including two major titles at Wimbledon in 2011 and ...
retired from their quarterfinal match. The quarterfinal match against Petra Kvitová was Angelique Kerber's 1000th match in her professional career. In the semifinal, she notched her second loss in straight sets to again, eventual champion Barty. As the 16th seed at the 2021 US Open – Women's singles, US Open, Kerber fought to take her campaign to the distance, but she was ultimately ousted in the round of 16, matching her performance from the preceding year. In a first-round thriller against
Dayana Yastremska Dayana Oleksandrivna Yastremska ( uk, Даяна Олександрівна Ястремська; born 15 May 2000) is a Ukrainian professional tennis player. She has a career-high ranking of world No. 21 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). ...
, Kerber was down a set and a break in the deciding set, but she was able to force a tiebreak after Yastremska was serving for the match; in the end, after dropping her serve just once in the tiebreak, she was able to take the match. Following a straight-set win over Anhelina Kalinina in the second round to avenge her loss in the French Open earlier in the year, she encountered
Sloane Stephens Sloane Stephens (born March 20, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. She achieved a career-best ranking of world No. 3 after Wimbledon in 2018. Stephens was the 2017 US Open champion, and has won seven WTA Tour singles titles in to ...
, an opponent she had lost to on five prior occasions. Though Stephens took the first set, Kerber maintained her offensive tactics and won the match by taking the next two sets. The victory set her up for a match with Leylah Fernandez, who had just defeated defending champion
Naomi Osaka is a Japanese professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and is the first Asian player to hold the top ranking in singles. Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam singles champio ...
; in a grueling three-set match that included a second set tiebreak, which saw Fernandez fight her way back into the match, Kerber lost the third set to end her road at the last Grand Slam of 2021. Kerber took on her last tournament of the year at the 2021 BNP Paribas Open – Women's singles, Indian Wells Masters. The defending finalist entered as the tenth seed and started her campaign with another grueling three-set match, this time in a rematch against Bad Homburg finalist Siniaková. After she lost the second set tiebreak, she was able to hold off Siniaková in the third set to take the match. She followed up the win with another three-set match that pit her against 2018 finalist Kasatkina; after decisively losing the second set, she saved break points when serving for the third set to win the match. Kerber then handed a straight-set loss to Ajla Tomljanović in the round of 16 to set up a first-time encounter with eventual champion Paula Badosa in the quarterfinals. Kerber dropped the first set and was down a double break in the second set but she saved match points to tie the set before Badosa broke her for a last time to win the match. Due to her success throughout the season, Kerber returned to the top 10 for the first time since July 2019, reaching No. 9 on 1 November 2021.


2022: Illness and struggles, 14th title and pregnancy

Kerber started off the year having to cancel her preparations for the first Grand Slam of the year when a positive test for coronavirus forced her to skip Sydney. Then, in the first round of the 2022 Australian Open, she fell to
Kaia Kanepi Kaia Kanepi (; born 10 June 1985) is an Estonian professional tennis player. She achieved her career-high ranking of world No. 15 on 20 August 2012 and has won four singles titles on the WTA Tour. Described as a 'resident Grand Slam upset speci ...
by a score of 4-6, 3-6. The Middle Eastern swing provided more woes for Kerber as she withdrew from Dubai and lost against an in-form Jil Teichmann in Doha with a score 6-4, 3-6, 2-6. She returned to 2022 BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells in March, posting two wins against Zheng Qinwen and
Daria Kasatkina Daria Sergeyevna Kasatkina (born 7 May 1997) is a Russian professional tennis player. She is currently the Russian No. 1 player in singles. She made her top-ten debut in the WTA rankings towards the end of the 2018 season and has been ranked ...
. However, she came up against Iga Świątek and lost 6-4, 2-6, 3-6. In the 2022 Miami Open, Kerber had a difficult match-up in the first round against
Naomi Osaka is a Japanese professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and is the first Asian player to hold the top ranking in singles. Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam singles champio ...
. Osaka breezed past Angelique, with Angelique losing 2-6, 3-6. The Billie Jean King Cup was the beginning to Kerber’s clay season. She lost both singles ties at the hands of
Yulia Putintseva Yulia Antonovna Putintseva ( rus, Ю́лия Анто́новна Пути́нцева; , ''puh-TEEN-tseh-vah''; born 7 January 1995) is a Russian-born Kazakhstani professional tennis player. She is a three-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist (twic ...
and Elena Rybakina. In both encounters, She won the first set, but went on to lose in three sets. Appearing in her home country of Germany for the first time this season, Angelique drew
Anett Kontaveit Anett Kontaveit (; born 24 December 1995) is an Estonian professional tennis player. She has been ranked as high as world No. 2 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), which she first achieved on 6 June 2022, making her the highest-ranked Eston ...
in the first round. She lost 6-3, 4-6, 4-6. Kerber pulled out of the 2022 Mutua Madrid Open citing a cold. She went to the 2022 Italian Open (tennis) in Rome, and subsequently lost to Coco Gauff in two sets 1-6, 4-6. The clay season turned around for Kerber at the 2022 Internationaux de Strasbourg. Following a last minute wildcard for Kerber, she went on to post 5 wins, securing her 14th career title. She defeated Diane Parry, Aliaksandra Sasnovich, Magda Linette, Océane Dodin, and Kaja Juvan. Her final match against Juvan lasted 3 hours and 16 minutes. Kerber struck 83 winners to Juvan’s 83, making this one of the highest quality matches in women’s tennis. Angelique Kerber became the third woman, behind
Maria Sharapova Maria Yuryevna Sharapova ( , ; rus, Мари́я Ю́рьевна Шара́пова, p=mɐˈrʲijə ʂɐˈrapəvə, a=Maria_sharapova.ogg; born 19 April 1987) is a Russian former world No. 1 tennis player. She competed on the WTA Tour from 2 ...
and Justine Henin, to win titles on outdoor red clay, indoor red clay and green clay. At the 2022 French Open – Women's singles, French Open, Kerber lost in the third round to Aliaksandra Sasnovich in straight sets. At the 2022 Wimbledon Championships – Women's singles, Wimbledon, Kerber lost in the third round to
Elise Mertens Elise Mertens (; born 17 November 1995) is a Belgian professional tennis player. She is a former world No. 1 in doubles. Mertens is a three-time Grand Slam champion in doubles, having won the 2019 US Open and 2021 Australian Open partnering ...
in straight sets. Kerber had 28 unforced errors in the match compared to 14 for Mertens. On August 24 she announced that she would not be competing at the 2022 US Open (tennis), 2022 US Open due to her being pregnant.


Playing style

Kerber is a defensive baseliner, who has been noted for her speed, agility, athleticism, and footwork. She is known for her counterpunching style of play, extending rallies to attempt to draw an error out of more aggressive players, and to be able to hit low-risk winners with ease. Kerber has powerful groundstrokes, allowing her to hit winners from frequently defensive positions. Her forehand is widely considered her most dangerous weapon, with her being able to hit powerful shots with disguise and speed; she is capable of hitting extreme angles with her forehand, which is responsible for many of the winners she accumulates on the court. Her forehand is hit with a short backswing, allowing her to flatten out her forehand, and generate considerable power. Her best shot is her forehand down-the-line. Kerber is known for hitting her backhand whilst squatting, allowing her to generate considerable power and to create sharp angles on the court; she typically utilises her backhand for defensive purposes, however. Her serve is considered her major weakness, rarely serving aces and hitting, on average, fewer service winners than many of her fellow players, with her first serve speed typically peaking at just 104 mph (167 km/h). Her second serve is a particular weakness, and is highly susceptible to attack, meaning that she rarely wins more than 50 percent of second serve points. Despite her weaknesses on serve, Kerber is proficient at defending her serve with her outstanding athleticism. Kerber, however, is one of the best returners on the WTA Tour, ranking consistently in the top 50 players based on percentage of return points won. Kerber experiences her greatest success when she plays with an aggressive mindset, despite her defensive playing style; her occasional slumps in form can be attributed to an over-reliance upon her defensive skills, and an unwillingness to play points aggressively. Kerber's favourite surface is grass, as the fast pace and low bounce afforded on grass courts suits her defensive playing style, although she has had success on hard courts, as well.


Personal life

Kerber is currently based in the Polish town of Puszczykowo, a suburb of
Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...
, where her maternal grandfather owns an indoor tennis facility. Kerber speaks German, Polish and English, and also holds dual German-Polish citizenship. She has competed for Germany throughout her career. In an interview, Kerber clarified that, despite strong Polish connection, she considers herself German: "I am German. I play for Germany, I grew up in Germany, and my heart beats for Germany"; however, another time she said: "my heart beats for Poland too". A huge football fan, Kerber has cited German club FC Bayern Munich as her favourite team. Kerber has frequently cited former German tennis player Steffi Graf as her childhood idol and her motivation for pursuing tennis. Kerber is Catholic, telling ''Emotion'' Magazine: "[F]aith is important to me... Christian values continue to shape me to this day. In difficult moments, faith in God is an anchor for me. Whereby faith has different forms for me and also comes into play in believing in oneself and one's own path". On August 24, 2022, Kerber announced that she was taking a break from tennis due to pregnancy. ''Bild'' reports the father of Kerber's child is Franco Bianco, manager of Königstein im Taunus.


Endorsements

Kerber has endorsement deals with Adidas, her clothing and shoe sponsor, and Yonex, her racquet sponsor. Kerber uses a discontinued Yonex Vcore SI 100. In early 2015, she became global ambassador of Stuttgart car manufacturer Porsche. In late 2016 she signed a deal with insurance group Assicurazioni Generali, Generali. In late 2016, she became beauty ambassador for the US cosmetics company Bare Minerals, a Shiseido brand. In 2017, she became the global brand ambassador for Australian health snack brand Slim Secrets and signed with both the Swiss luxury watchmaker Rolex and the software corporation SAP SE, SAP. Kerber has also been named ambassador for children's charity UNICEF. In August 2019, Kerber announced that she became a brand ambassador for Head & Shoulders, Head and Shoulders Suprême. In November 2019, Kerber announced that she became a brand ambassador for Ole Lynggaard Copenhagen. In December 2019, she was named tournament ambassador of the inaugural Bad Homburg Open, which due to the COVID-19 pandemic, did not occur until 2021. Her portfolio of endorsements has made her the second highest-paid female athlete in the world in the annual Forbes list of 2017.


Coaches

Kerber has been coached in the past by
Torben Beltz Torben Beltz (born 27 November 1976) is a German tennis coach. Beltz is best known for having coached Angelique Kerber during her successful 2016 Australian Open and 2016 US Open campaigns. Coaching career Beltz first started working with Angel ...
(2003—2004, 2011–2013, 2015–2017),
Wim Fissette Wim Fissette (born 22 March 1980) is a Belgian tennis coach and former professional player. He has worked with former Women's Tennis Association (WTA) world number ones Victoria Azarenka, Kim Clijsters, Simona Halep, Angelique Kerber, and Naomi ...
(November 2017–October 2018),
Rainer Schüttler Rainer Schüttler (; born 25 April 1976) is a German former professional tennis player. Schüttler was the runner-up at the 2003 Australian Open and a semifinalist at the 2008 Wimbledon Championships. He won an Olympic silver medal in doubles ...
(November 2018–July 2019) and
Dieter Kindlmann Dieter Kindlmann (born 3 June 1982) is a German former professional tennis player. He reached his highest individual ranking on the ATP Tour on 26 July 2004, when he became World number 130. His best appearance at a Grand Slam came at the 2006 ...
(November 2019–July 2020). In July 2020, she began working with Beltz once again, until they split in November 2021.


Career statistics


Grand Slam singles performance timeline


Grand Slam tournament finals


Singles: 4 (3 titles, 1 runner-up)


WTA Championships finals


Singles: 1 (runner-up)


Olympic finals


Singles: 1 (silver medal)


Awards and recognition

Kerber has received the following awards: * WTA Player of the Year (2016) * German Sportswoman of the Year (2016, 2018) * US Open Sportsmanship Award (2016) * ITF World Champion (2016) * Nominated for the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportswoman of the Year (2016) * Named among espnW's Impact25 (2016) * Named among "Europe's 30 under 30" by Forbes (2017) * World's second highest-paid female athlete by Forbes (2017) * Nominated 2018 WTA Player of the Year


References


External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kerber, Angelique Angelique Kerber, 1988 births Living people Australian Open (tennis) champions German expatriate sportspeople in Poland German female tennis players German people of Polish descent Grand Slam (tennis) champions in women's singles Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic medalists in tennis Olympic silver medalists for Germany Olympic tennis players of Germany Sportspeople from Bremen Tennis players at the 2012 Summer Olympics Tennis players at the 2016 Summer Olympics US Open (tennis) champions Wimbledon champions Hopman Cup competitors 20th-century German women WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players ITF World Champions