Alicia Molik (born 27 January 1981) is an Australian former professional tennis player. She reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 8 and a career-high doubles ranking of world No. 6.
Shortly after the 2005 Australian Open, Molik contracted an inner-ear infection. The infection developed into vestibular neuronitis, which kept her out of competition until May 2006. Molik was never able to replicate her pre-ailment singles results, even though she returned to the top 60 a year later. She retired in August 2008, but she returned a year later in September 2009. Her last match was a second-round loss at the 2011 Australian Open to Nadia Petrova.
Career
She won her first Grand Slam doubles title at the 2005 Australian Open with partner Svetlana Kuznetsova. She reached the top ten of the WTA rankings for the first time in early 2005 following her first Grand Slam quarterfinal singles appearance, at the Australian Open, where she lost 7–9 in the final set to Lindsay Davenport.
Molik won the bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens in the singles competition, beating then world No. 3, Anastasia Myskina, in straight sets.
Molik began 2005 by partnering Mark Philippoussis in the Hopman Cup. She played in the Sydney International, defeating unseeded players the entire way through the tournament before taking the title over compatriot Samantha Stosur in the final, 6–7, 6–4, 7–5.[1] Molik played in the Australian Open as the 10th seed. She defeated Anabel Medina Garrigues in the first round, Aiko Nakamura in the second round and Tatiana Panova in the third round to set up a meeting with eighth seed Venus Williams in the fourth round. Molik defeated Williams in straight sets 7–5, 7–6 to become the first Australian woman to reach the Australian Open quarterfinals since 1988.[2] Molik played in her first ever Grand Slam quarterfinal against top seed Lindsay Davenport. Davenport defeated Molik in a marathon three-set match, 6–4, 4–6, 9–7.[3] Molik won her first Grand Slam doubles title with Svetlana Kuznetsova. After the Australian Open, Molik rose into the top 10 in singles for the first time in her career, at No. 10.
Molik played in the Proximus Diamond Games in Antwerp, making the semifinals before losing to Amélie Mauresmo 6–3, 7–6.[4] However, she defeated Mauresmo in the Tier II Qatar Ladies Open semifinals 7–6, 6–1 to set up a meeting with second seed Maria Sharapova.[5] Sharapova defeated Molik in the final in three sets. Molik rose to No. 8 after the tournament.
As the seventh seed at the Tier I Indian Wells Open, Molik made the fourth round before losing to a returning Justine Henin 4–6, 6–2, 2–6. This was the second last time in 2005 that Molik won past the first round of a tournament.
After crashing out of the tournament in Amelia Island to Virginie Razzano, Molik took an extended break due to an inner ear infection,[6] which caused her to miss the entire clay-court season including the French Open. Molik returned for the grass court season in Birmingham, however, lost in the second round after a first round bye to Laura Granville 4–6, 2–6. Molik took another long break, missing Wimbledon, due to the ear infection.
She played only one lead in tournament for the US Open, losing in the first round to Gisela Dulko 2–6, 4–6. Seeded 14th at the US Open, she lost in the first round to Shenay Perry 4–6, 4–6. Molik won her last match of 2005 at the tournament in Bali as the third seed, making the second round before losing to Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine 4–6, 2–6.[7] Molik lost in the first round in her last four tournaments of the year, Beijing, Filderstadt, Moscow and Zurich. She finished the year ranked 29th, with a 17–14 record.
Ear infection
In late 2005, Molik was diagnosed with vestibular neuronitis, an inner-ear condition caused by a virus that affected her balance, vision and energy level.[8] In October 2005, she announced that she would be taking an extended break through the 2006 season in order to recover. Molik could have been part of the team for Australia's Fed Cup group matches in April, but Australian Davis Cup Captain, David Taylor announced that she would not be selected due to lack of match play and rustiness. Instead, rookie Casey Dellacqua took her place.[9]
2006: Return from illness
Molik made her return from the ear infection at the Italian Open in 2006, losing in the first round to Katarina Srebotnik 2–6, 0–6, and lost to Austrian Tamira Paszek 7–5, 4–6, 4–6 in the first round in Istanbul.[10] Molik won her first match since returning at the 2006 French Open, reaching the third round after defeating two relative unknowns and then losing to fourth-seeded Maria Sharapova 0–6, 5–7.[10]
Molik played a Wimbledon warm-up in the Netherlands, losing in the first round to fifth seed Ana Ivanovic in three sets. At Wimbledon, she reached the second round by defeating Yung-Jan Chan 7–6, 6–1, but lost to 21st seed Katarina Srebotnik, 2–6, 1–6.[11]
Molik lost in the first round of Stockholm, Montreal and New Haven. She had high hopes for the US Open, but was shocked 6–3, 6–2 in the first round by the 17-year-old Vania King. She gained revenge over King in the first round of the Guangzhou Open, reaching the quarterfinals after also scoring an upset victory over a top 50 player Lourdes Domínguez Lino and lost to top seed Jelena Janković, 3–6, 5–7.[12] After these wins Molik broke back into the top 200 at 179 and played in Tokyo where she defeated Jelena Kostanić, before losing in the second round to Jamea Jackson 3–6, 1–6. Molik suffered first round defeats in Bangkok, losing again to Vania King 1–6, 5–7, and Zürich, losing to Shahar Pe'er 1–6, 2–6. Molik finished the year by losing in the first round of qualifying at the Generali Ladies Linz to Yaroslava Shvedova.
2007: Comeback gains momentum
Molik won a wildcard into the Australian Open by winning the Australian Open Wildcard Play-offs, where she defeated 16-year-old Australian Jessica Moore in the final 6–4, 6–4. In preparation for the Australian Open, Molik competed in the Hopman Cup in Perth and scored victories over world No. 6, Nadia Petrova, and Ashley Harkleroad. Her final Australian Open warm up tournament was the Hobart International where she reached the quarterfinals, beating two higher ranked opponents on her way before losing to doubles partner Sania Mirza. Molik also reached the doubles quarterfinals in Hobart with Mirza, before losing a close match to the No. 2 seeds.
During the Australian Open, Alicia Molik won through her first- and second-round matches against rising Chinese Taipei's Chan Yung-jan, and Estonian Kaia Kanepi, before losing a three-setter against the 8th seed Patty Schnyder of Switzerland.[13] With her impressive third round performance, Molik improved her then-141 ranking to inside the top 100, the first time since withdrawing from numerous tournaments due to that ear infection.
After the Australian Open, Molik reached the second round in Pattya, Bangalore, Dubai and Doha, before playing in Indian Wells, where she reached the third round, losing to 10th seed Ana Ivanovic 2–6, 1–6.[14] Molik had three consecutive first round losses, in Miami, Amelia Island and Charleston. She finally won a match in the clay season, in Strasbourg, before losing to Anabel Medina Garrigues. Molik competed in the French Open, losing in the first round to 9th seed Anna Chakvetadze 2–6, 3–6. However, Molik teamed with Mara Santangelo to win her second Grand Slam doubles title at the French Open.[15]
Molik played in two Wimbledon warm up tournaments, reaching the second round in Birmingham, however, lost in the first round in Eastbourne to Melanie South in three sets. Molik was able to rebound, and easily won her first round match at Wimbledon defeating Anastasia Rodionova, before losing in the second round to Serena Williams 6–7, 3–6.[16] Molik and Santangelo, the 6th seeds in the doubles tournament, made it to the semifinals before losing to eventual champions Cara Black and Liezel Huber. Also competing in the mixed doubles, Molik and partner Jonas Björkman made the final, before losing to Jelena Janković and Jamie Murray.
Molik lost in the first round of two lead-in US Open tournaments, in Forest Hills and New Haven, before then falling in the first round at the US Open to Katarina Srebotnik. After the Open, Molik reached the quarterfinals in Guangzhou, losing to Dominika Cibulková, and at the Japan Open in Tokyo, losing to Venus Williams 6–7, 3–6.[17] Losses followed in the first round of the Kremlin Cup, and in qualifying at Zurich, before Molik qualified for the Generali Ladies Linz, reaching the main-draw second round where she lost to sixth seed Patty Schnyder.[18]
Molik finished the year ranked 60 in the world, with a 25–24 singles record.
2008: Retirement
In 2008, she entered the Perth Hopman Cup where she defeated Lucie Šafářová in the first round of the round-robin competition, before losing to Sania Mirza and Serena Williams in ties involving India and the United States respectively. Her second competition of 2008 was the Sydney International where she again faced Šafářová, Šafářová winning 7–6, 7–6. Molik won her opening round at the Australian Open against Kaia Kanepi, before falling to 18-year-old Czech sensation Nicole Vaidišová, 2–6, 3–6.
Molik's singles ranking continued to fall due to an elbow problem. Molik lost in the first round of singles qualifying at the French Open and Wimbledon in 2008, and did not win a main-draw match after January 2008. Molik has enjoyed erratic results in doubles, where she partnered Sun Tiantian and defeated Cara Black and Liezel Huber who were the top-seeds at the tournament in Sydney. She partnered Mara Santangelo at Wimbledon and the French Open, but fell in the first round of competition. Molik received a wildcard into the Beijing Olympics which she stated was "the best news I've had since 2004." Representing Australia alongside fellow countrywomen Sam Stosur and Casey Dellacqua, Molik was ousted in the first round by María José Martínez Sánchez 6–2, 6–2.
On 5 September, Molik announced her retirement from professional tennis, after experiencing nagging leg and elbow problems.[19]
She worked for six months as a commentator before announcing her comeback.
2009: Comeback
On 30 July 2009, Molik announced that she planned to embark on a comeback to tour tennis, claiming to be free of injury.[20] Her first comeback tournament was in the 2009 New Haven doubles event.[21] She entered the women's doubles at the Pilot Pen Tennis event as a wildcard with Meghann Shaughnessy, losing to the Spanish duo of María José Martínez Sánchez and Nuria Llagostera Vives.
Molik lost her first-round doubles match with Shaughnessy at the US Open against Līga Dekmeijere and Julie Ditty 6–7(4), 1–6.
In September 2009, Molik entered a $25k tournament in Darwin, which she won in both singles and doubles. Molik won the doubles with compatriot Casey Dellacqua (who is also on a comeback trail) and won the singles over rising star Monika Wejnert 3–6, 6–3, 6–1. Molik backed up with a win at the Bendigo ITF event. She won another ITF event in Mildura, and reached the semifinals of another ITF event in Perth. Molik then made it through to the Australian Open wildcard playoff quarterfinals after winning three out of three round-robin matches, however, suffered a shock loss to teenager Jessica Moore.
2010: Return to tour level tennis and final retirement
After great success during the last three months of the 2009 season in ITF tournaments, Molik started 2010 ranked back inside the top 200.
Molik started her 2010 campaign at the Brisbane International where she defeated Ekaterina Makarova in the first round 6–4, 1–6, 6–4. In the second round, Molik was made to rethink her comeback on the WTA Tour, losing to eventual champion Kim Clijsters 0–6, 3–6. After the disappointing loss, she played the Hobart International. In her first-round match, she defeated her former doubles partner Sania Mirza in three sets. But just like her results at Brisbane, she lost in a much tighter second round 6–7, 6–3, 3–6 to Carla Suárez Navarro. Needing more matches under her belt, Molik decided to play with compatriot Jelena Dokić in the doubles event at the same tournament. However, they lost in a very tight first round match 6–7, 7–6, [2–10].
Molik took part in both singles and doubles at the Australian Open with Meghann Shaughnessy. In singles, Molik lead 6–3, 5–2 before she lost to Julie Coin 6–3, 6–7, 3–6.
Molik played in Australia's Fed Cup World Group II tie against Spain, however, she lost heavily in the reverse singles to Suárez Navarro 1–6, 1–6. Molik played in Dubai, where she defeated Australian Open semifinalist and 16th seed Zheng Jie in the first round,[22] and then lost to fellow qualifier Anna-Lena Grönefeld in straight sets. She lost in the first round of the Malaysian Open to Alisa Kleybanova, 1–6, 4–6.[23]
Molik accepted a wildcard into the Premier Mandatory event at Indian Wells. In the first round, she defeated Tatjana Malek 6–3, 6–1,[24] and then pulled off an upset by defeating the 29th seed Anabel Medina Garrigues 6–4, 5–7, 7–6. Molik played Elena Baltacha in the third round, dominating the match with a 6–0, 6–2 victory. She lost to Zheng Jie in the fourth round. In the first round of the Miami Open, Molik defeated Ashley Harkleroad in her comeback match 6–1, 6–1 in 45 minutes. In doubles, she partnered with the 2009 Miami doubles champion, Svetlana Kuznetsova. Molik lost in the first round of the 2010 French Open to Janković, 0–6, 4–6.
Personal life
Molik was an Australian Institute of Sport scholarship holder.[25] She married Tim Sullivan in February 2011 and gave birth to their first child, a son, in 2012.
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (S) silver or (B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; (NMS) not a Masters tournament; (NTI) not a Tier I tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
Venus Ebony Starr Williams 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 widely regarded as one of the all-time greats of the sport.
Nadezhda Viktorovna "Nadia" Petrova is a Russian former professional tennis player. A former top-five player in both singles and doubles, she reached a career-high ranking of No. 3 in the world in both disciplines. Petrova won a total of 37 titles on the WTA Tour in her career, 13 in singles and 24 in doubles, as well as over $12.4 million in prize money, making her one of the most successful Russian tennis players of all time.
The 2005 WTA Tour was the elite professional tennis circuit organized by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) for the 2005 tennis season. The 2005 WTA Tour included the four Grand Slam tournaments, the WTA Tour Championships and the WTA Tier I, Tier II, Tier III, Tier IV and Tier V events. ITF tournaments were not part of the WTA Tour, although they award points for the WTA World Ranking.
Daniela Hantuchová is a Slovak tennis commentator and retired player. She turned professional in 1999 and had her breakthrough year in 2002, when she won her first WTA Tour title at the Indian Wells Masters, defeating Martina Hingis in the final and becoming the lowest-ranked player to ever win the tournament. She also reached the quarterfinals of that year's Wimbledon Championships and US Open, ending the year in the top ten. She was part of the Slovak team that won the 2002 Fed Cup and the 2005 Hopman Cup.
Alona Volodymyrivna Bondarenko Dyachok is a Ukrainian former tennis player. Her younger sister Kateryna Bondarenko plays on the WTA Tour.
Ai Sugiyama is a Japanese former tennis player. She reached the world No. 1 ranking in women's doubles on the WTA Tour and had a career-high singles ranking of world No. 8, achieved on February 9, 2004. In her career, she won six singles and 38 doubles titles, including three Grand Slam titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title. Sugiyama held the all-time record, for both male and female players, for her 62 consecutive Grand Slam main-draw appearances, until she was surpassed by Roger Federer at the 2015 Wimbledon Championships.
Flavia Pennetta 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. She is a major champion, having won the 2011 Australian Open women's doubles title with Gisela Dulko, and the 2015 US Open singles title over childhood friend Roberta Vinci in the first all-Italian major final.
Tatiana Golovin is a Russian-born French professional tennis player. She won the 2004 French Open mixed-doubles event, partnering with Richard Gasquet, and reached the singles quarterfinals at the 2006 US Open, losing to the eventual champion Maria Sharapova. Her career-high singles ranking is world No. 12. In 2008, she was diagnosed with lower back inflammation and was forced to stop playing competitive tennis.
Lucie Šafářová is a Czech former professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles, and No. 5 in singles.
Maria Yuryevna Kirilenko is a Russian former professional tennis player. A junior Grand Slam champion at the 2002 US Open at the age of 15, she went on to become a top ten player in both singles and doubles. Kirilenko won six WTA singles titles and 12 doubles titles. She was a three Grand Slam singles quarterfinalist, a semifinalist at the 2012 London Olympics, and reached a career-high ranking of world No. 10 on 10 June 2013. In women's doubles, she became ranked as high as No. 5 in the world on 24 October 2011, and reached two Grand Slam finals, at the 2011 Australian Open with Azarenka and the 2012 French Open with compatriot Nadia Petrova. Along with Petrova, Kirilenko won the 2012 WTA Tour Championships in doubles and was a bronze medalist at the 2012 London Olympics.
Samantha Jane Stosur is an Australian former 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 singles player, Stosur reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 4 on 21 February 2011 and spent a total of 165 weeks ranked inside the top ten, between March 2010 and June 2013. Stosur was also the top-ranked Australian singles player for 452 consecutive weeks, from October 2008 to June 2017, and was ranked inside the top 25 for a period of nine straight years. She won a combined total of 40 career titles, including 8 major titles, and amassed more than $20 million in prize money.
Lena Sofia Alexandra Arvidsson is a Swedish professional padel player and a former tennis player. In her tennis career, she won two singles titles and one doubles title on the WTA Tour, as well as 20 singles and 13 doubles titles on the ITF Circuit. On 1 May 2006, she reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 29. On 12 September 2011, she peaked at No. 67 in the WTA doubles rankings. Over her career, Arvidsson defeated top-ten players Marion Bartoli, Anna Chakvetadze, Jelena Janković, Petra Kvitová, Sam Stosur, and Caroline Wozniacki.
Anastasia Ivanovna Rodionova is a Russian-born Australian professional tennis player.
Casey Dellacqua is an Australian former 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 Classic, a quarterfinal finish at the 2014 Indian Wells Open and fourth round appearances at the 2008 Australian Open, the 2014 Australian Open and the 2014 US Open; she also won 22 ITF singles titles.
Melanie Jayne South is a former English tennis player. She won six singles and 24 doubles titles on the ITF Circuit. On 2 February 2009, she reached her best singles ranking of world No. 99. On 9 March 2009, she peaked at No. 120 in the doubles rankings.
Ekaterina Valeryevna Makarova is a Russian former professional tennis player who was ranked world No. 1 in doubles, and world No. 8 in singles.
Elena Viacheslavovna Dementieva 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. She won 16 WTA singles titles, reached the finals of the 2004 French Open and 2004 US Open and reached seven other Grand Slam semifinals. Dementieva was also part of the Russian team that won the 2005 Fed Cup. In doubles, she won the 2002 WTA Championships with Janette Husárová and was the runner-up in two US Open doubles finals – in 2002 with Husárová and in 2005 with Flavia Pennetta. Dementieva achieved a career-high ranking of world No. 3, which was accomplished on 6 April 2009. She announced her retirement on 29 October 2010, after her final match at the 2010 WTA Championships. Between 2003 and 2010, she only ended one year, in 2007, outside the top 10. She is considered to be one of the most talented players never to have won a Grand Slam tournament.
Zheng Jie is a retired Chinese tennis player. In May 2009, she achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 15.
Svetlana Aleksandrovna Kuznetsova is an inactive Russian professional tennis player. She is a two-time major singles champion, winning the 2004 US Open and 2009 French Open, and finishing runner-up at two other majors. In doubles, Kuznetsova reached the finals of each major at least once, winning the Australian Open twice.
The 2014 WTA Finals was a women's tennis tournament in Singapore from October 17 to October 26, 2014, and was the 44th edition of the singles event and the 39th edition of the doubles competition. The tournament was held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, and contested by eight singles players and eight doubles teams. It was the Championships of 2014 WTA Tour.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Australia 
Bronze medal (2004)
