The WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) today pays tribute to Danish star Caroline Wozniacki as she retires from professional tennis, having firmly established herself as one of the sport’s all-time greats.
Wozniacki made her professional debut as an unranked wildcard at the Western & Southern Open (Cincinnati) in 2005, eight days after her 15th birthday. She captured her first WTA title (and the first by any Danish woman) at Stockholm in 2008 and went on to win at least one Tour-level event every year through the China Open (Beijing) in 2018, a streak of 11 years.
Across the course of her 15-year career, Wozniacki’s famed consistency produced eight Top 10 season finishes and a total of 30 singles titles across all of the major playing surfaces – hardcourts, grass, clay and indoors.
She first attained the WTA World No.1 ranking after winning the China Open (Beijing) in 2010 and went on to secure the year-end top spot twice, in 2010 and 2011. After winning the WTA Finals in Singapore in October 2017 and the Australian Open in January 2018 she returned to No.1 for the first time in six years – the longest gap between stints at No.1 in rankings history – and took her career total at the summit to 71 weeks.
Wozniacki played in 55 finals, going 30-25, with other notable results including the BNP Paribas Open (Indian Wells) title in 2011 and two runner-up finishes at the US Open in 2009 and 2014. During the second half of the 2017 season she posted wins over three different No.1 players – Karolina Pliskova (Toronto), Garbine Muguruza (Tokyo) and Simona Halep (Singapore) and defeated Halep again in the final to win the 2018 Australian Open.
“I congratulate Caroline on her outstanding career in professional tennis as she steps away as a true champion and fantastic ambassador of our sport,” said Steve Simon, WTA Chairman and CEO. “Her 30 titles, including the Australian Open and WTA Finals, in addition to her two Year-End World No.1 season finishes are a tribute to her tremendous dedication and passion for the game. She will be greatly missed by fans around the world, but I know this marks an exciting new chapter for Caroline and on behalf of the WTA family, I wish her every success and happiness in the future.”
Before heading to Melbourne last week, Wozniacki advanced to the singles semifinals at the ASB Classic (Auckland) and reached the final of the doubles, partnering Serena Williams. Having played her last match today against Ons Jabeur at the Australian Open she steps away from the game with a win-loss record at Tour-level of 598-256 (.700) and total prize money earnings of over $35 million.
Caroline Wozniacki – key statistics and notable achievements:
- 71 weeks as WTA World No.1 – First ascended to top spot week of October 11, 2010; retires in ninth place for weeks spent at No.1
- Two-time Year-End No.1 – 2010, 2011
- Eight Top 10 season finishes – 2009-14, 2017-18 (including five Top 5 finishes)
- Winner of 30 singles titles – Fourth among active players for titles (behind S.Williams, V.Williams and Sharapova) and joint 17th on Open Era list, tied with Tracy Austin; won a Tour-leading six titles in 2010 and 2011 seasons; also won two doubles titles (2008 Beijing w/Medina Garrigues and 2009 Memphis w/Azarenka)
- Grand Slam champion – Won 2018 Australian Open (d. Halep in F); also two-time runner-up at US Open, in 2009 (l. Clijsters) and 2014 (l. S.Williams)
- WTA Finals singles champion – Won event in Singapore in 2017 (d. V.Williams in F) and reached final at Doha in 2011 (l. Clijsters); qualified for the season-ending championships on six occasions
- Won at least one singles title 11 years straight from 2008 through 2018, a streak only bettered by Graf, Navratilova, Evert and Sharapova (tied with Goolagong Cawley, Wade and S.Williams)
- Prize money of over $35 million – Fourth on all-time list behind S.Williams, V.Williams and Sharapova
- Two-time winner of WTA Diamond ACES Award – 2011, 2015 (awarded to player who gives the most to promote the game of tennis on and off the court)
- Member of WTA Players’ Council for two terms – 2010-13
- WTA Most Impressive Newcomer – 2008
- Three-time Olympian – Flag-bearer for Denmark at Rio in 2016
- Junior champion at 2006 Wimbledon and finalist at 2006 Australian Open
