Sportskeeda Tennis Awards 2014: Breakthrough Players of the Year - Female

Similar to their men’s circuit counterpart, the Women Tennis Association had four different Grand Slam champions this year. Apart from Li Na, Maria Sharapova, Petra Kvitova, and Serena Williams, who won the prestigious titles, there were new kids on the block who made a splendid run this year.While the old order was very much in command, the young players weren’t far away. What was most striking about the coming of age of players, was the location from which they hail: Simona Halep from Romania, Eugenie Bouchard from Canada and Belinda Bencic from Switzerland.Traditionally, these places aren’t the hot spots of tennis. To see the potential champions coming from different parts of the world is a very positive sign for the future of the game. In what can be considered as the watershed moment of tennis of the present era, where the old generation is locking horns with the next generation, 2014 has truly been the breakthrough season of WTA.Here is the list of top 5 breakthrough players in WTA who have braved the odds:

#5 Ekaterina Makarova

Ekaterina Makarova had an amazing year considering the fact that she played both singles and doubles at major tournaments. After losing in the third round at the Australian Open in singles,she reached the women’s doubles finals in Melbourne with Elena Vesnina. However, they lost to Italian pair of Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci.

The Russian had a decent grass court season which culminated in her losing to Lucie Safarova in Wimbledon quarterfinals. Makarova reached her first Grand Slam semifinal at Flushing Meadows beating Eugenie Bouchard and Victoria Azarenka in fourth round and quarterfinal respectively. She couldn’t progress beyond the last four stage in New York as she lost to eventual champion and World No. 1 Serena Williams in straight sets. Her stay in the big apple was extended as she won her third Grand Slam doubles title partnering Vesnina.

She finished the year ranked No. 11 in the world.

#4 Dominika Cibulkova

Dominika Cibulkova showed glimpses of talent on many occasions, but failed to deliver on the big stage. That changed during 2014. The Slovakian reached her first Grand Slam final at the Australian Open. She beat the likes of Maria Sharapova, Simona Halep and Agnieszka Radwanska to advance to the final. The joy was shortlived as she was beaten in straight sets in the final by Li Na.

Cibulkova won the Mexican Open in Acapulco and reached the semifinals of the Sony Open in Miami. This performance enabled her to reach the Top 10 rankings for the first time in her career.

She is currently ranked No. 10 in the world.

#3 Simona Halep

Simona Halep had the best year of her professional tennis this season. The Romanian dominated the court throughout the year which helped her climbed the WTA singles’ ranking to No. 2. Halep reached quarter final of the Australian Open, made an entry into last 4 at the Wimbledon, and reached her first ever grand slam final at French Open where she lost to Maria Sharapova.

Halep also had a successful run at the WTA Finals, where she defeated Serena Williams 6-0, 6-2 in the round robin fixture and reached the final. However, she lost to Serena in the final.

#2 Eugenie Bouchard

The Canadian sports star, Eugenie Bouchard had a phenomenal 2014 season. The Canadian No. 1 penetrated deep into the Australian Open and the French Open where she reached the last eight. But her best mark came at the Wimbledon where she became the first Canadian to reach the final. She lost to Petra Kvitova. Genie, as she is famously called, also won her maiden WTA title this year at the Nurnberg Open.

With her successful run at the majors, Bouchard qualified for her first WTA finals and reached her highest singles ranking of 7. She was aslo awarded the Most Improved Player by WTA this year.

#1 Belinda Bencic

The 17-year old Swiss prodigy, Belinda Bencic had a remarkable WTA run in 2014. The aggressive right-handed player who is coached by Martina Hingis’ mother had won the juniors French Open and Wimbledon title last year. This year she had the best result to date at the US Open where she reached the last 8 after defeating three seeded players, including two top-10 players.

Bencic, propelled by her US Open run, hit her highest rank this season at 32. Making her WTA debut 2 year ago, Bencic is already a part of Swiss FED Cup team, where she has 5-3 record. She was awarded the Best Newcomer of the Year by WTA. Martina Hingis, impressed by her young compatriot, had shown interest in playing doubles with Bencic next year.