Part of a golden generation of Russian women’s tennis, Vera Zvonareva has had a career that few can rival.
A world No 2 at the very peak of her powers a decade and a half ago, the 41-year-old’s tennis journey is not done yet, with Zvonareva making a surprise return to court this week.
We look back at the highs and lows of her impressive career, and why her latest return to the sport comes as such a surprise.
Career peak
Zvonareva is also a hugely accomplished player in doubles, but was at the very peak of her singles career in the late 2000s and early 2010s.
The Russian finished 2008 ranked seventh in the world and was ranked ninth at the end of 2009, after reaching the Australian Open semi-final and winning Indian Wells.
Despite a difficult start to 2010, Zvonareva defied the odds to reach her first Grand Slam singles final at Wimbledon, beating the likes of Jelena Jankovic and Kim Clijsters before a final loss to Serena Williams.
She then reached her second straight Grand Slam final at the US Open that summer, beating world No 1 Caroline Wozniacki in the semi-final before defeat to reigning champion Clijsters.
Zvonareva ended 2010 at a career-high of world No 2 and then reached a second Australian Open semi-final in 2011, ending that year ranked seventh.
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Across her career, the Russian has won 12 WTA singles titles and reached a further 18 finals, though her last singles final came in 2011.
Zvonareva was also a women’s doubles champion at the 2006 US Open and 2012 Australian Open, and a mixed doubles champion at the US Open in 2004 and Wimbledon in 2006.
Decline and initial comeback attempts
Repeated illness and a right shoulder injury wreaked havoc on her 2012 season and, after four straight top-10 finishes, she ended the year down at 98th in the WTA Rankings.
Zvonareva missed the entirety of 2013 due to injury and then struggled to make significant inroads over the next two years, finishing 2014 ranked 251st in the world and 182nd in 2015.
After welcoming her first child in 2016, she then attempted a further comeback in 2017, one that proved much more successful.
She ended the year ranked 204th in the world, but then moved up to 123rd by the end of 2018, and would later end 2021 back inside the top 100 — ranked 87th.
Zvonareva would then be ranked outside the top 250 by the end of 2022 and 2023, though she was back finding significant success in doubles.
She had initially won the 2020 US Open title alongside Laura Siegemund, though the two would then reach the final again in 2023.
That year, Zvonareva and Siegemund would ultimately win the WTA Finals together, and the Russian finished the year ninth in the doubles rankings.
Winning return
Having not played a singles match since 2024, many had assumed that Zvonareva — who turned 41 this September — had quietly stepped back from the game.
However, that has proven to be an incorrect assumption, with the Russian back on the singles court this week, and in fact winning.
Zvonareva received a wildcard into a W100 event being held in Dubai this week, and defeated current world No 238 Tara Wuerth 6-3, 6-4 to kickstart her latest return.
The 41-year-old will now take on qualifier Tereza Martincova in the second round, with the Czech having knocked out top seed Dalma Galfi in her opening match.
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