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Home , 1993 US Open (tennis), 2015 CS Tallinn Trophy, 2017 WTA Finals, Alison Van Uytvanck, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Anett Kontaveit

PREVIEW NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | USD €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA Website: www.wtatennis.com | @WTA | facebook.com/wta Tournament Website: www.internazionalibnlditalia.com | @InteBNLdItalia | facebook.com/ internazionalibnlditalia | www.instagram.com/ internazionalibnlditalia WTA Communications: Alex Prior ([email protected]), Ellie Emerson ([email protected])

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – QUICK FACTS

Main draw dates: Monday - Monday, September 14-21, 2020 Singles Final: Monday, September 21, 2:30pm Doubles Final: Sunday, September 20 Venue: Foro Italico Status: Premier 5 Staging: Tournament’s 76th edition Draw sizes: 56 singles / 28 doubles teams / 32 singles qualifying Surface: Red clay / Outdoors Total prize money: €1,692,169 Tennis Ball: Dunlop Fort

SINGLES € RANK POINTS Winner 205,190 900 Runner-Up 150,000 585 Semifinalist 80,000 350 Quarterfinalist 37,910 190 Round of 16 19,355 105 Round of 32 13,745 60 Round of 56 9,000 1

MAIN DRAW QUICK-HITS

Singles wildcards: (ITA), (ITA), (ITA), (USA), (RUS) Youngest singles player: (USA), 16 years old (March 13, 2004) Oldest singles player: Venus Williams (USA), 40 years old (June 17, 1980) Best result by a qualifier: runner-up – Alizé Cornet (2008) Best result by a wildcard: semifinal – (1995), (2010) Most main draw match wins:

PLAYER WINS LOSSES TITLES Serena Williams (USA) 44 8 2002, 2013-14, 2016 Conchita Martínez (ESP) 42 10 1993-96 (USA) 37 3 1974-75, 1980-82 Venus Williams (USA) 34 14 1999

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1 PREVIEW NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | USD €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

RECENT ROME HONOR ROLL

YEAR RUNNER-UP SCORE DOUBLES CHAMPIONS 2019 [4] Karolina Pliskova (CZE #7) (GBR #42) 6-3 6-4 Azarenka/Barty 2018 [4] (UKR #4) [1] (ROU #1) 6-0 6-4 Barty/Schuurs 2017 [8] Elina Svitolina (UKR #11) [6] Simona Halep (ROU #4) 4-6 7-5 6-1 Chan/Hingis 2016 [1] Serena Williams (USA #1) (USA #24) 7-6(5) 6-3 Hingis/Mirza 2015 [3] (RUS #3) [10] Carla Suárez Navarro (ESP #10) 4-6 7-5 6-1 Babos/Mladenovic

TOURNAMENT TALKING POINTS

 Preparation for Roland Garros continues this week, with six of the Top 10 heading to Rome for the 76th edition of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Top seed this year is two-time runner-up (2017-18) Simona Halep, who after a first-round bye will take on or Italian wildcard Jasmine Paolini in her opening match  Also among the leading eight seeds are Halep’s conqueror in those two finals, Elina Svitolina, and both last year’s Rome finalists, Karolina Pliskova and Johanna Konta  The standout first-round match-up this year is between 2016 Roland Garros champion Garbiñe Muguruza and 2018’s losing finalist in ,  Saturday’s draw threw up another intriguing match-up, between one of the field’s other former champions, Venus Williams, and . Seven players in this year’s draw were not born when Williams defeated Mary Pierce to lift the title at the Foro Italico 21 years ago  This success here is one of nine career titles Williams has won on clay, making her the second most successful active player on the surface:

PLAYER CLAY COURT TITLES Serena Williams (USA) 13 Venus Williams (USA) 9 Simona Halep (ROU) 8 (ITA) 7 (NED) 6 Petra Kvitova (CZE) 5 Elina Svitolina (UKR) 4

 Meanwhile, eight players in the field – Marie Bouzkova, Elisabetta Cocciaretto, , , Jasmine Paolini, , Iga Swiatek and Ajla Tomljanovic – are seeking their first career titles on any surface  One to Watch – . Last spring the American teenager announced herself to the tennis world with a run to the semifinals at Roland Garros, which included a win over reigning champion and current World No.1 Simona Halep. Anisimova – the youngest player in the Top 50 – is coming off a third round showing at the US Open and starts her campaign in the Italian capital against No.16 seed Donna Vekic

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2 PREVIEW NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | USD €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

COUNTRY AND REGION BREAKDOWN

Excluding qualifiers, a total of 25 countries and regions are represented in the main draw, led by the United States with seven players:

Australia (1) Ajla Tomljanovic (1) Victoria Azarenka Belgium (1) China (1) Chinese Taipei (1) Hsieh Su-Wei (2) Petra Martic, Donna Vekic (5) Marie Bouzkova, Karolina Pliskova, Katerina Siniakova, Barbora Strycova, Marketa Vondrousova (1) (1) (2) Julia Goerges, Great Britain (1) Johanna Konta Italy (3) Elisabetta Cocciaretto, Camila Giorgi, Jasmine Paolini (2) , (2) Jelena Ostapenko, Anastasija Sevastova Netherlands (1) Kiki Bertens (2) , Iga Swiatek Romania (1) Simona Halep (5) , Veronika Kudermetova, , , Vera Zvonareva Slovenia (1) Spain (1) Garbiñe Muguruza Sweden (1) (2) , Tunisia (1) Ons Jabeur United States (7) Amanda Anisimova, Coco Gauff, , Bernada Pera, , Sloane Stephens, Venus Williams (2) Elina Svitolina,

2020 WTA TOUR FINALS

Week of Level Tournament Singles Final Doubles Final January 6 Premier Brisbane, AUS [2] Pliskova d. [8] Keys 64 46 75 Hsieh/Strycova d. Barty/Bertens 36 76(7) 108 Int. Shenzhen, CHN [5] Alexandrova d. [7] Rybakina 62 64 Krejcikova/Siniakova d. Duan/Zheng 62 36 104 Int. Auckland, NZL [1] Williams d. Pegula 63 64 Muhammad/Townsend d. Williams/Wozniacki 64 64

January 13 Premier Adelaide, AUS [1] Barty d. Yastremska 62 75 Melichar/Xu d. Dabrowski/Jurak 26 75 105 Int. Hobart, AUS [3] Rybakina d. [4] Zhang 76(7) 63 Kichenok/Mirza d. Peng/Zhang 64 64

January 20 GS , AUS [14] Kenin d. Muguruza 46 62 62 Babos/Mladenovic d. Hsieh/Strycova 62 61

February 10 Premier St. P’burg, RUS [2] Bertens d. [8] Rybakina 61 63 Aoyama/Shibahara d. Christian/Guarachi 46 60 103 Int. Hua Hin, THA [5] Linette d. [Q] Kung 63 62 Rodionova/Sanders d. Haas/Perez 63 63 Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA

3 PREVIEW NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | USD €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

February 17 Premier Dubai, UAE [1] Halep d. Rybakina 36 63 76(5) Hsieh/Strycova d. Krejcikova/Zheng 76 36 105 February 24 Premier Doha, QAT [9] Sabalenka d. [8] Kvitova 63 63 Hsieh/Strycova d. Dabrowski/Ostapenko 62 57 102 Int. Acapulco, MEX [7] Watson d. [Q] Fernandez 64 67(8) 61 Krawczyk/Olmos d. Bondarenko/Fichman 63 76(5) March 2 Int. Lyon, FRA [1] Kenin d. Friedsam 62 46 64 Paar/Wachaczyk d. Pattinama Kerkh./Schoofs 75 64 Int. Monterrey, MEX [1] Svitolina d. [9] Bouzkova 75 46 64 Bondarenko/Fichman d. Kato/Wang 46 63 107 August 3 Int. Palermo, ITA Ferro d. [4] Kontaveit 62 75 Rus/Zidansek d. Cocciaretto/Trevisan 75 75 August 10 Int. Prague, CZE [1] Halep d. [3] Mertens 62 75 Hradecka/Pliskova d. Niculescu/Olaru 62 62 Int. Lexington, USA Brady d. Teichmann 63 64 Carter/Stefani/Bouzkova/Teichmann 61 75

August 17 Premier 5 , USA Azarenka d. [4/WC] Osaka w/o Peschke/Schuurs d. Melichar/Xu 64 46 104

August 31 GS New York, USA [4] Osaka d. Azarenka 16 63 62 Siegemund/Zvonareva d. Melichar/Xu 64 64

September 6 Int. Istanbul, TUR Tig d. [Q] Bouchard 26 61 76(4) Guarachi/Krawczyk d. Perez/Sanders 61 63

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR  Three Top 10 Debuts: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3)  Fewest games dropped en route to a title: (24, Lexington)  Lowest-ranked title winner: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul)  Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); : 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up)  Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul)  Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d)  Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d)  Aces leaders: Elena Rybakina – 155, Garbiñe Muguruza – 128, Kristyna Pliskova – 125  Most aces in a match (22): (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF)  Match win leaders: Elena Rybakina – 22, Elise Mertens – 22, Anett Kontaveit – 19, Sofia Kenin – 18  Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha)  Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul)  Longest match: 3h 33m – d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF)  Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA 4 PREVIEW NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | USD €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

SEASON & CAREER PRIZE MONEY LEADERS*

PLAYER SINGLES DOUBLES 2020 TOTAL Sofia Kenin (USA) $2,980,486 $50,687 $3,031,173 Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP) $1,603,605 - $1,603,605 Simona Halep (ROU) $1,464,783 $4,811 $1,469,594 (AUS) $1,040,588 $38,314 $1,078,902 (BLR) $790,728 $59,265 $849,993 Petra Kvitova (CZE) $779,391 - $785,941 Elena Rybakina (KAZ) $751,968 $15,414 $767,382 Ons Jabeur (TUN) $516,146 $21,477 $537,623 Anett Kontaveit (EST) $517,226 $16,644 $533,890 Karolina Pliskova (CZE) $489,506 $9,865 $499,371

PLAYER CAREER TOTAL Serena Williams (USA) $92,742,122 Venus Williams (USA) $41,819,806 Maria Sharapova (RUS) $38,777,962 Simona Halep (ROU) $36,577,615 (DEN) $35,233,415 Petra Kvitova (CZE) $31,852,578 Victoria Azarenka (BLR) $30,650,035 Angelique Kerber (GER) $29,526,500 Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) $27,683,807 Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) $25,389,852 *Not including US Open prize money

Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA 5 ALPHABETIC PLAYER LIST MAIN DRAW SINGLES 2020 Internazionali BNL d'Italia - Rome, Italy

RANK SEED CAREER @ TRN YEAR-TO-DATE CAREER CAREER HGH TITLES PLAYER NAME 8/31/2020 NAT AGE PRIZE W / L PRIZE W / L PRIZE W / L RANK DATE YTD CAR

ALEXANDROVA, EKATERINA 29 RUS 25 2,797 01/ 0 392,511 3/ 62,046,602 / 170292 25 2/17/2020 11 ANISIMOVA, AMANDA 28 USA 19 14,676 16/ 1 143,665 / 41,691,915 / 4281 21 10/21/2019 01 AZARENKA, VICTORIA 27 BLR 31 646,267 / 1019 294,530 5/ 2 30,360,105 / 200511 1 1/30/2012 020 BENCIC, BELINDA 10 6 SUI 23 40,511 28/ 3 271,401 / 78,117,609 / 151274 4 2/17/2020 04 BERTENS, KIKI 7 5 NED 28 342,419 71/ 5 454,593 2/ 311,191,293 / 254438 4 5/13/2019 110 BOUZKOVA, MARIE 46 CZE 22 0138/ 0 148,096/ 811,854 / 126243 47 3/9/2020 0 0 W COCCIARETTO, ELISABETTA 144 ITA 19 9,770 07/ 1 75,378 / 6129,705 / 3260 144 8/10/2020 00 GARCIA, CAROLINE 50 FRA 26 141,742 35/ 5 145,650 / 710,331,911 / 264333 4 9/10/2018 07 GAUFF, CORI 51 USA 16 074/ 0 276,908/ 812,990 / 2345 49 2/24/2020 0 1 W GIORGI, CAMILA 74 ITA 28 29,794 1148/ 2 153,511 / 3,909,329 / 258361 26 10/22/2018 02 GOERGES, JULIA 40 GER 31 142,223 66/ 5 175,241 / 59,809,949 / 335478 9 8/20/2018 07 HALEP, SIMONA 2 1 ROU 28 904,323 15 / 7 1,469,594 15/ 2 36,577,615 / 216508 1 10/9/2017 221 HERCOG, POLONA 49 SLO 29 62,935 33/ 4 110,030 / 53,687,796 / 278412 35 9/12/2011 03 HSIEH, SU-WEI 58 TPE 34 194,962 126/ 3 421,954 / 8,511,824 / 319504 23 2/25/2013 03 JABEUR, ONS 31 TUN 26 5,437 01/ 0 537,623 6/ 72,126,436 / 175290 39 3/2/2020 00 KENIN, SOFIA 4 3 USA 21 39,742 21/ 1 3,031,173 5/ 65,930,775 205 / 117 4 3/9/2020 25 KERBER, ANGELIQUE 23 15 GER 32 234,885 84/ 7 231,843 / 329,526,500 / 333627 1 9/12/2016 012 KONTA, JOHANNA 13 7 GBR 29 428,843 10 / 4 183,003 6/ 6 9,462,367 / 232383 4 7/17/2017 03 KONTAVEIT, ANETT 21 14 EST 24 241,770 81/ 3 533,890 6/ 74,489,651 / 159304 14 4/1/2019 01 KUDERMETOVA, VERONIKA 42 RUS 23 8,707 01/ 0 203,775 2/ 101,369,581 / 155231 38 2/3/2020 00 KUZNETSOVA, SVETLANA 34 RUS 35 573,159 / 1523 254,495 5/ 4 25,389,852 / 336661 2 9/10/2007 018 LINETTE, MAGDA 37 POL 28 5,505 08/ 0 151,818 / 62,503,427 / 268362 33 2/17/2020 12 MARTIC, PETRA 15 8 CRO 29 31,312 19/ 1 313,665 / 75,140,051 / 240349 14 1/13/2020 01 MERTENS, ELISE 18 11 BEL 24 15,680 01/ 1 417,264 9/ 86,293,979 / 167309 12 11/26/2018 05 MUGURUZA, GARBIÑE 16 9 ESP 26 358,513 10 / 6 1,603,605 16/ 4 20,821,334 / 197388 1 9/11/2017 07 OSTAPENKO, JELENA 43 LAT 23 157,369 54/ 4 216,552 / 48,877,147 / 145237 5 3/19/2018 03 W PAOLINI, JASMINE 97 ITA 24 17,072 028/ 1 81,304 / 467,464 / 167237 93 3/2/2020 00 PAVLYUCHENKOVA, ANASTA 32 RUS 29 160,206 66/ 10 421,356 / 510,223,275 / 290427 13 7/4/2011 012 PERA, BERNARDA 61 USA 25 2,708 08/ 0 129,307 / 71,289,616 / 163291 59 3/2/2020 00 PETERSON, REBECCA 48 SWE 25 9,770 02/ 1 86,528 / 61,538,064 / 145259 43 10/21/2019 02 PLISKOVA, KAROLINA 3 2 CZE 28 765,399 78/ 4 499,371 / 419,997,689 / 293535 1 7/17/2017 116 PUTINTSEVA, YULIA 35 KAZ 25 44,323 2138/ 2 224,826 / 4,169,113 / 229292 27 2/6/2017 01 RISKE, ALISON 20 13 USA 30 50,876 15/ 5 326,487 / 54,865,799 / 292372 18 11/4/2019 02 RYBAKINA, ELENA 17 10 KAZ 21 02/ 0 767,3821/ 51,198,876 / 69162 17 2/24/2020 1 2 SEVASTOVA, ANASTASIJA 45 LAT 30 71,103 31/ 3 136,969 / 87,410,704 / 240417 11 10/15/2018 04 SINIAKOVA, KATERINA 57 CZE 24 84,859 27/ 3 233,674 / 85,870,348 / 173247 31 10/22/2018 02 STEPHENS, SLOANE 39 USA 27 115,459 61/ 6 106,843 / 715,274,615 / 203294 3 7/16/2018 06 STRYCOVA, BARBORA 33 CZE 34 172,382 436/ 6 451,557 / 11,785,003 / 407562 16 1/16/2017 02 SVITOLINA, ELINA 5 4 UKR 26 1,257,727 11 / 4 225,496 9/ 6 19,460,456 / 197377 3 9/11/2017 114 SWIATEK, IGA 53 POL 19 053/ 0 257,459/ 909,148 / 29101 48 2/3/2020 0 0 TEICHMANN, JIL 52 SUI 23 0137/ 0 127,014/ 714,474 / 136206 54 7/29/2019 0 2 TOMLJANOVIC, AJLA 59 AUS 27 36,634 15/ 2 191,120 / 83,046,712 / 225305 39 4/1/2019 00 VEKIC, DONNA 24 16 CRO 24 29,313 16/ 2 200,806 / 74,237,202 / 198266 19 11/4/2019 02

Page 1 of 2 Date: 9/13/2020 00:09:2 entry Please credit WTA Media Information System ALPHABETIC PLAYER LIST MAIN DRAW SINGLES 2020 Internazionali BNL d'Italia - Rome, Italy

RANK SEED CAREER @ TRN YEAR-TO-DATE CAREER CAREER HGH TITLES PLAYER NAME 8/31/2020 NAT AGE PRIZE W / L PRIZE W / L PRIZE W / L RANK DATE YTD CAR

VONDROUSOVA, MARKETA 19 12 CZE 21 74,698 337/ 1 152,464 / 3,197,044 / 63160 14 7/1/2019 01 W WILLIAMS, VENUS 67 USA 40 684,185 / 1434 83,268 1/ 5 41,808,806 / 253812 1 2/25/2002 049 YASTREMSKA, DAYANA 25 UKR 20 9,770 01/ 1 269,565 2/ 71,875,142 / 79143 21 1/20/2020 03 ZHANG, SHUAI 38 CHN 31 116,262 48/ 4 208,883 / 66,442,955 / 329479 23 11/14/2016 02 W ZVONAREVA, VERA 178 RUS 36 148,087 10 / 5 62,653 11/ 5 14,267,444 / 276544 2 10/25/2010 012

Page 2 of 2 Date: 9/13/2020 00:09:2 entry Please credit WTA Media Information System

MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA Website: www.wtatennis.com | @WTA | facebook.com/wta Tournament Website: Internazionalibnlditalia.com | @InteBNLdItalia | facebook.com/internazionalibnlditalia WTA Communications: Alex Prior ([email protected]), Ellie Emerson ([email protected])

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – DAY ONE

ANASTASIJA SEVASTOVA (LAT #46) vs. [WC] JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99)

First meeting Sevastova enjoyed a successful clay season last year, lifting her fourth WTA title at Jurmala… Paolini enters this week’s tournament ranked No.99, six spots shy of her career-high ranking

[WC] CAMILA GIORGI (ITA #69) vs. DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29) Series tied 1-1 Giorgi saved two match points when she defeated the Ukrainian at 2020 Palermo… Yastremska bidding to record maiden win in Rome, having suffered a 1r exit upon debut last year

[10] ELENA RYBAKINA (KAZ #17) vs. EKATERINA ALEXANDROVA (RUS #29)

Alexandrova leads 2-0

Rybakina is making her tournament debut in Rome. The Kazakh No.1 captured her career first title on clay last year at Bucharest… Alexandrova is aiming for her sixth career Top 20 victory today

AMANDA ANISIMOVA (USA #27) vs. [16] DONNA VEKIC (CRO #28) First meeting Anisimova enjoyed a phenomenal clay swing in 2019, winning her first title at Bogota and reaching SFs at Roland Garros… Vekic returns to Rome having withdrawn last year due to a right hip injury

HSIEH SU-WEI (TPE #62) vs. [11] ELISE MERTENS (BEL #20) Mertens leads 2-1 Hsieh is contesting her first event since the Tour’s five-month hiatus and is looking for her first singles victory of 2020… Mertens enters Rome with a Tour-leading 23 match wins in 2020

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MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY

• As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. • Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play. • WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities. • Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer. • “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the and the United States, among others. • In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants. • For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

• One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3) • Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington) • Lowest-ranked player to triumph: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul) • Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up) • Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul) • Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d) • Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d) • Aces leaders: Elena Rybakina – 155, Garbiñe Muguruza – 128, Kristyna Pliskova – 125 • Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF) • Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 23, Elena Rybakina – 22, Anett Kontaveit – 19, Sofia Kenin – 18 • Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha) • Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul) • Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF) • Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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MATCH NOTES

ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ANASTASIJA SEVASTOVA (LAT #46) vs. [WC] JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99)

Head to : 0-0

ANASTASIJA SEVASTOVA JASMINE PAOLINI 46 WTA RANKING 99 491 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 111 13-04-1990 (30) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 04-01-1996 (24) $144,579 YTD PRIZE MONEY $83,604 $7,423,954 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $470,464 0 / 4 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 3-3 ROME W-L (MD) * 0-1 2-9 / 178-145 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 1-4 / 10-22 2-1 / 58-49 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 5-2 2-3 / 40-39 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 2-2 0-1 / 65-41 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-2 / 8-14 0-1 / 10-11 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 1-1 0-0 / 3-13 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 0-1 1-1 / 10-24 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 0-1 1-4 / 19-47 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 1-3 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

ANASTASIJA SEVASTOVA JASMINE PAOLINI 2019 2019 R1 L - BELINDA BENCIC (SUI #15) 2-6 6-3 6-2 R1 L - SOFIA KENIN (USA #37) 6-1 6-2

2018 2015 R16 L - CAROLINE WOZNIACKI (DEN #2) 6-2 5-7 6-3 R1-Q L - (ROU #67) 7-6(1) 2-6 6-0

2017

R2 L - ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA (RUS #17) 7-6(4) 6-2

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SEVASTOVA:

Rome • Making third consecutive appearance here in Rome • Best result achieved in 2018 when she advanced to R16 (l. Wozniacki) • In today’s 1r match up, faces wildcard Paolini for their first career meeting – the winner of today’s match will move on to face top seed Simona Halep in 2r • One of two Latvian’s in this week’s main draw, joined by Ostapenko • Enjoyed a successful clay season last year, lifted her fourth WTA title in Jurmala (d. Kawa in final) and advanced to QF at Stuttgart (l. eventual champion Kvitova) and R16 at Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up Vondrousova), Madrid (l. eventual champion Bertens) and Bucharest (l. eventual R-Up Tig)

Season • Achieved second match win of the season at US Open to reach 2r (d. Gauff, l. Kostyuk) • Prior to US Open, had fallen 1r at every Tour level event contested this season, at Brisbane (l. Kenin), Adelaide (l. Vekic), Australian Open (l. Tomljanovic), Dubai (l. Vondrousova), Doha (l. Kontaveit), Prague (l. Begu) and Western & Southern Open (l. Mladenovic) • Her first win this season came during Latvia’s 3-2 Fed Cup loss to USA, handing S.Williams her first-ever singles loss in the competition

Grand Slam History • Contested 29th main draw at 2020 US Open • Best results have been at US Open, making SF in 2018 (l. S.Williams). Fell at QF stage on two occasions, in 2016 (l. Wozniacki) and 2017 (l. Stephens) • Best results elsewhere are reaching R16 at Australian Open in 2011 (l. Wozniacki) and 2019 (l. eventual champion Osaka), and 2019 Roland Garros (l. Vondrousova) • Made 3r at 2017 Roland Garros; this was the first time a Latvian woman reached 3r in the Open Era (also eventual champion Ostapenko). Latvian-born Larisa Savchenko advanced to 3r in 1984 and 1989 whilst representing the USSR • At Wimbledon, has reached 2r in 2017 and 2019

Career Highlights • Finished 2019 ranked No. 27 for fourth consecutive Top 50 finish. Captured fourth career title at inaugural home event in Jurmala • Also in 2019 advanced to R16 for the first time at Roland Garros (l. Vondrousova); saved 5mp during 3h 21m 3r win over Mertens • Other standout results included SF run at Mallorca (l. eventual champion Kenin), reaching R16 at Australian Open (l. eventual champion Osaka) and QF runs at Brisbane (l. Osaka) and Stuttgart (l. eventual champion Kvitova) • Recorded second Top 20 season in 2018 (also No.16 in 2017), finishing No.11 and posted a career-high number of wins (43) • Lifted third title of her career on clay in Bucharest (d. Martic in F) and reached first Premier Mandatory final at Beijing (l. Wozniacki in F); now 4-4 in singles finals • Was the second of two singles alternates for WTA Finals in Singapore and fell in round robin stage at WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai • Flushing Meadows run saw her became the first Latvian woman to reach SF there, upsetting No.7 Svitolina and No.3 Stephens en route. • Captured second career singles title and first in seven years at 2017 Mallorca (d. Goerges in F)

• In 2016, played first full season since 2012, reaching two singles finals at Mallorca (l. Garcia) and Bucharest (l. Halep), as well as first Grand Slam QF of career at US Open • Retired from professional tennis in May 2013 due to various injuries – mostly muscular and back-related – but returned to competition at ITF level in January 2015 after body had fully healed • During tennis break studied leisure management • Prior to break, won first singles title at 2010 Oeiras – becoming first Latvian to win a WTA title in 17 years (since Savchenko at Schenectady in 1993) • Made Top 100 debut on July 13, 2009, Top 50 debut on October 11, 2010 and Top 20 debut on May 15, 2017 • Played first WTA event at 2007 Istanbul; made Slam main draw debut as qualifier at 2009 Roland Garros • Member of Latvian Fed Cup Team 2005-06, 2008-10, 2018-20

Personal • Trains and resides in Liepaja, Latvia and coached by Ronald Schmidt • Mother is Diana Golovanova (English teacher) • Started playing at age six, introduced to the sport by her grandmother, played for fun until she was 15 • Speaks Latvian, English, Russian, German • Other sports interests are soccer and jet skiing

PAOLINI:

Rome

• Making second main draw appearance as a wildcard at Rome and third appearance overall • Suffered 1r exit to Kenin last year and fell during qualifying in 2015 • One of five wildcards in this year’s singles draw; best result by a wildcard here were SF showings from Pierce in 1995 and S.Williams in 2010 • Faces No.46 Sevastova today; owns 2-13 career record against Top 50-ranked opponents, with wins coming over No.15 Kasatkina at 2018 Prague and No.37 S.Zheng at 2019 Guangzhou • Enters this week’s tournament ranked No.99, just six spots shy of her career-high ranking of No.93 achieved on March 2, 2020. Last year, entered Rome ranked No.210

Season

• Coming off 2r showing at Istanbul (l. Hercog) • Fell 1r at Prague (l. eventual R-Up Mertens) and during qualifying at Western & Southern Open • Advanced to 2r at Palermo (d. Kasatkina, l. Sasnovich) • Suffered 1r exit at Australian Open (l. Blinkova) • Fell during qualifying at Shenzhen, Adelaide, Dubai and Monterrey

Grand Slam History • 2020 US Open marked her third Grand Slam main draw appearance • Appeared in maiden Grand Slam main draw at 2019 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Kasatkina) • Has fallen in qualifying on 11 occasions, most recently at 2019 US Open • Contested Australian and US Opens as a junior

Career Highlights

• Posted career-high ranking of No.93 on March 2, 2020 • 2019 season highlights include QF showings at Guangzhou and Palermo, a SF run at WTA 125K Series event at Karlsruhe, lifting seventh, eighth and ninth ITF Circuit title of her career, at $60K Brescia-ITA, $25K ITF/Curtiba-BRA and $100K ITF/Tokyo-JPN, and qualifying for maiden Grand Slam main draw at Roland Garros (l. Kasatkina in 1r) • Ended 2018 ranked No.180, with season highlight a maiden WTA singles QF at Prague (d. No.15 Kasatkina, l. Zhang) • Also in 2018, made 2r at Bogota and fell 1r at Shenzhen, Acapulco and Bucharest • Posted first Top 200 season in 2017, finishing at No.137. During campaign made WTA main draw debut at Bastad (l. Suarez Navarro in 1r) and also fell 1r at Guangzhou and in qualifying a further three times • Posted career-high ranking of No.130 on June 19, 2017 • Made WTA qualifying debut at 2015 Rome • Part of Italy Fed Cup team 2017-19 • Owns nine singles and one doubles title on ITF Circuit • Made professional debut on ITF Circuit in Italy in 2011

Personal

• Currently coached by Renzo Furlan • Father Ugo Paolini is Italian and mother Jacqueline Gardiner is of Ghanaian and Polish descent • Favorite shot is her and favorite surface is clay

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[WC] CAMILA GIORGI (ITA #69) vs. DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29)

Head to Head: 1-1

2020 PALERMO CLAY O QF CAMILA GIORGI 4-6 7-6(5) 6-3 172 mins 2019 WIMBLEDON GRASS O R1 DAYANA YASTREMSKA 6-3 6-3 68 mins

CAMILA GIORGI DAYANA YASTREMSKA 69 WTA RANKING 29 39 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 17 30-12-1991 (28) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 15-05-2000 (20) $153,511 YTD PRIZE MONEY $269,565 $3,909,329 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $1,897,142 0 / 2 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 3 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 1-2 ROME W-L (MD) * 0-1 10-6 / 151-136 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 13-8 / 56-40 5-3 / 51-47 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-3 / 10-19 5-0 / 41-29 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 4-3 / 13-13 4-2 / 30-28 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 2-1 / 9-8 0-1 / 11-10 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 4-2 0-0 / 4-10 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-1 / 2-3 0-1 / 9-19 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-3 / 2-9 0-2 / 27-45 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 4-4 / 11-15 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

CAMILA GIORGI DAYANA YASTREMSKA 2018 2019 R2-Q L - (USA #47) 2-6 6-4 6-2 R1 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #31) 6-4 1-6 6-3

2015 R1 L - JELENA JANKOVIC (SRB #20) 7-5 7-5

2014 R2 L - CHRISTINA MCHALE (USA #63) 1-6 6-3 6-1

2008 R1-Q L - (USA #63) 3-6 6-2 7-6(1)

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GIORGI:

Rome • Making third appearance here in Rome as a wildcard (fifth overall) • Best result at home tournament was 2r run on maiden main draw appearance in 2014 (l. McHale) • One of three Italian players in the main draw, joined by fellow wildcards Paolini and Cocciaretto • Faces No.29 Yastremska in today’s opening match; recently defeated the young Ukrainian, saving two match points in the second set to triumph at 2020 Palermo • Missed entire clay court season last year w/wrist and ankle injuries

Season • Made 2r showing at US Open (l. eventual champion Osaka) • Upon tennis return, reached SF at Palermo (d. No.25 Yastremska, l. eventual champion Ferro) and R16 at Prague (l. eventual R-Up Mertens) • Before the Tour’s hiatus, fell in qualifying at Dubai and Doha before enjoying a QF run at Lyon (l. Kasatkina) • Advanced to 3r at Australian Open (l. Kerber) • Opened 2020 season by reaching 1r through qualifying at Auckland (l. eventual champion S.Williams) and fell in qualifying at Hobart

Grand Slam History • 2020 US Open marks 31st career Grand Slam main draw • Best result across the majors was reaching QF at 2018 Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) • Also reached R16 at 2012 Wimbledon (as qualifier, l. A.Radwanska) and at 2013 US Open (l. Vinci) • Made 3r at Wimbledon in 2013 (l. eventual champion Bartoli) and 2015 (l. Wozniacki), Australian Open in 2015 (l. V.Williams), 2019 (l. Ka.Pliskova) and 2020 (l. Kerber), and 2018 Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up Stephens) • Made tour-level debut at Wimbledon in 2011 (as qualifier, l. Pironkova in 1r)

Career Highlights • Finished 2019 ranked No.98 • Highlights were R-Up finishes at Washington DC (l. Pegula) and the Bronx (l. Linette); these were her first final losses, with career record in WTA finals slipping to 2-6 • Missed entire clay court season w/wrist and ankle injuries • Lost both her matches (l. Golubic, Bencic) as Italy fell to a 3-1 defeat to Switzerland in last week’s Fed Cup World Group II encounter. Her previous appearance in the team competition came in 2016 • Ended 2018 season perched at a career-best ranking of No.26, winning second career title in final event at Linz (d. Alexandrova in F). Won 29 tour-level matches in 2018 – the most wins she had previously posted in a single season was 28, in 2014 • Advanced to first Grand Slam QF at 2018 Wimbledon (l. eventual R-Up S.Williams) on her 26th appearance at this level; became the first Italian woman to reach the QF of Wimbledon since 2009 (Schiavone, l. Dementieva) • Other highlights last season included SF runs at (l. eventual champion Kerber), Prague (l. Buzarnescu after serving for match in third set) and Tokyo (l. Osaka) • Posted sixth consecutive Top 100 season, finishing 2017 ranked No.79 (up from No.83 in 2017) • In 2016 reached final at Katowice for the third year in a row (l. Cibulkova). Appeared in four additional quarterfinals in 2016, at Hobart (l. Bouchard), Prague (l. Ka.Pliskova), Washington, DC (l. Davis) and Seoul (l. Zhang)

• Won first career title at 2015 ‘s-Hertogenbosch (d. Bencic in F). • Finished 2015 season with then best year-end ranking (No.34), up one place from No.35 in 2014. Season highlighted by winning her first WTA singles title at ‘s-Hertogenbosch (d. Bencic in F) • Had never reached WTA QF prior to 2014; reached QF or better at seven events during that season • Made Top 100 debut on July 9, 2012 and broke into • Top 50 on May 26, 2014 • Tour-level main draw debut came as a qualifier at 2011 Wimbledon • On ITF Circuit, winner of five singles titles • Played first career professional tournament at 2006 ITF/Baku-AZE

Personal • Coached by father, Sergio Giorgi • Favorite book is The Diary of Anne Frank • Mother Claudia is a fashion designer

YASTREMSKA:

Rome • Making second appearance here in Rome • Suffered 1r exit on only previous run in 2019 (l. Suarez Navarro) • Faces No.69 Giorgi for their third career meeting; looking to avenge QF loss to the then-No.71 Italian at Palermo, her worst loss by ranking so far this season • Enters tournament ranked No.29, eight spots off career-high ranking of No.21, which she set the week of January 20 following R-Up finish at Adelaide • After a slow start to last year’s clay season, falling 1r at Istanbul, Madrid and Rome, went on to capture her third career WTA title at Strasbourg (d. Garcia in F)

Season • Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. Brengle) • Made 3r run at Western & Southern Open (d. V.Williams in 1r, l. eventual R-Up Osaka) • In first event of tour’s resumption, made QF career WTA QF at Palermo (l. Giorgi, having held 2MP) • Highlight of opening months of season reaching first Premier-level SF and then F at Adelaide (l. Barty in F). Posted three Top 20 wins en route, over No.18 Kerber, No.20 Vekic and No.12 Sabalenka • Also made 3r at Doha (d. No.5 Kenin, l. Muguruza) and 2r at Australian Open (l. Wozniacki). Fell 1r at Brisbane (l. Bertens) and Dubai (l. Kudermetova) • In February, won all three singles rubbers to help Ukraine see off Estonia, Croatia and to earn a trip to Japan for the rescheduled Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Play-offs for a place in the 2022 Qualifiers

Grand Slam History • Advanced to second week of a major for the first time at 2019 Wimbledon, falling to S.Zhang in R16 • Reached 3r at 2019 US Open (l. Svitolina) and (l. S.Williams) • Made 1r exit at 2019 Roland Garros (l. Suárez Navarro) in first appearance in Paris • Runner-up in 2016 Wimbledon junior girls’ event (l. Potapova)

Career Highlights • Posted second Top 100 and first Top 30 season finish in 2019, at No.22 • Captured two WTA singles titles in 2019 at Hua Hin (d. Tomljanovic in F after trailing 5-2 in third set) and Strasbourg (d. Garcia after saving 1mp) • Advanced to QF at 2019 Wuhan, where she recorded maiden Top 5 win against No.2 Ka.Pliskova in R16 (l. Kvitova), and made Grand Slam breakthrough with R16 run at 2019 Wimbledon (l. Zhang) • Qualified for WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai in 2019, going 1-1 in RR stage (d. No.20 Vekic, l. eventual R-Up Bertens) and reached maiden doubles final, at Beijing (w/Ostapenko, l. Kenin/Mattek-Sands) • Posted first Top 100 season in 2018, at No.60, winning first career title at Hong Kong (d. Q.Wang in F) • Also in 2018, reached SF at (l. Bencic), 2r at New Haven (as qualifier, l. Goerges) and Charleston (as LL, l. Pera) and fell 1r at US Open (l. Muchova), Acapulco (as qualifier, l. Puig) Québec City (l. McHale) and Beijing (as qualifier, l. S.Zheng) • Became first woman born in the 2000s to crack the Top 100 on the WTA rankings, debuting at No.100 (week of July 16, 2018) • Won third ITF singles title in at $60k ITF/Rome-ITA and reached two more finals in 2018•Posted first Top 200 season in 2017, at No.189 – rose more than 200 places during the year • Won first WTA main draw match and reached first tour-level QF at 2017 Istanbul, defeating former World No.9 Petkovic en route (l. Cepelova) • Made WTA main draw debut as a WC at 2016 Istanbul (l. Hibino in 1r) • Played first matches of career on ITF Circuit in 2015 • In juniors, rose as high as No.6 in the world • On ITF Circuit, winner of three singles titles and three doubles titles

Personal • Split with coach Sascha Bajin (former coach of Naomi Osaka and ) following 2020 US Open; plans to announce new coach this November • Previously coached by Olivier Jeunehomme • Nominated for 2019 WTA Newcomer of the Year • Born and resides in Odessa, Ukraine • Trained as a junior in Istanbul, at Koza WOS

MATCH NOTES

ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[10] ELENA RYBAKINA (KAZ #17) vs. EKATERINA ALEXANDROVA (RUS #29)

Head to Head: EKATERINA ALEXANDROVA leads 2-0

2020 NEW YORK HARD O R1 EKATERINA ALEXANDROVA 7-5 7-6(6) 98 mins 2020 SHENZHEN HARD O F EKATERINA ALEXANDROVA 6-2 6-4 73 mins

ELENA RYBAKINA EKATERINA ALEXANDROVA 17 WTA RANKING 29 5 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 15 17-06-1999 (21) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 15-11-1994 (25) $767,382 YTD PRIZE MONEY $392,511 $1,212,126 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $2,065,732 1 / 2 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 1 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 1 0-0 ROME W-L (MD) * 0-0 22-6 / 48-19 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 14-7 / 62-59 9-1 / 17-5 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 6-2 / 21-22 6-5 / 13-9 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-3 / 11-18 0-0 / 9-4 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-2 / 7-16 2-0 / 4-2 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 8-4 1-2 / 1-3 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 1-5 2-3 / 4-4 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-2 / 2-10 4-3 / 6-6 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-2 / 5-14 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

EKATERINA ALEXANDROVA 2019 R1-Q L - (GER #85) 6-3 3-6 6-4

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RYBAKINA:

Rome

• Making debut appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia as the No.10 seed • Faces Alexandrova in 1r today in their third meeting of 2020, having fallen to the Russian in Shenzhen final this January and in 1r at Western & Southern Open • Owns the second most wins on Tour this season (22), behind Mertens (23) • Has hit a Tour-leading 155 aces in 2020, ahead of Muguruza (128) and Kr.Pliskova (125) • Playing this week ranked No.18 – one spot shy from her a career high ranking of No.17 (achieved on February 24, 2020 – following R-Up finish at Dubai) • Last year on clay, won first WTA title at Bucharest (d.Tig in F) after claiming back-to-back ITF titles at $25K ITF/Moscow-RUS (d. Poznikhirenko in F) and $25K ITF/Kazan-RUS (d. U.Radwanska in F). At Roland Garros, fell in final round of qualifying (l. Flink)

Season

• Coming off 2r showing at US Open (l. Rogers) after a 1r exit at Western & Southern Open (l. Alexandrova) • In final tournament prior to tour’s hiatus, withdrew w/abductor strain prior to 3r match vs. No.1 Barty at Doha • Earlier in February was R-Up at Dubai (l. Halep); en route, upset No.7 Kenin and No.3 Ka.Pliskova to score third and fourth career wins over Top 10 players • Was also R-Up at St. Petersburg (l. Bertens) – first final appearance at a Premier-level tournament; made Top 20 debut at No.19 following run in Russia (February 17) • Recorded career-best run at a Grand Slam by advancing to 3r at the Australian Open (l. Barty) – posted back-to-back victories at a major for the first time after two straight sets victories over Pera in 1r and Minnen in 2r • Opened 2020 season with back-to-back final runs, first reaching the championship match at Shenzhen (l. Alexandrova) before claiming a second career title at Hobart (d. S.Zhang in F)

Career

• Finished 2019 season at No.37 to record first Top 50 finish of her career, up from 2018’s final ranking of No.191 • During a breakout 2019 season, lifted maiden WTA singles title at Bucharest (d. Tig in F). Also advanced to second career final at Nanchang (l. Peterson) and made SF appearances at Luxembourg (l. Goerges) and ‘s-Hertogenbosch (l. Bertens) • Additionally, made QF runs at Istanbul (l. Strycova), Wuhan (l. Sabalenka) and Linz (l. Ostapenko) • Made Grand Slam main draw debut at 2019 Roland Garros, falling 1r (as qualifier, l. Siniakova). Also fell 1r at 2019 US Open (as qualifier, l. Muchova) • On the ITF Circuit in 2019, lifted silverware on three occasions; back-to-back at $25k Moscow-RUS and $25k Kazan-RUS and at $60k ITF/Launceston-AUS. Now holds four singles and four doubles titles on ITF Circuit • Highlights of 2018 included reaching maiden WTA QF at St. Petersburg (l. Goerges) and clinching title at $15k ITF/Kazan-RUS • First Top 10 win came over No.7 Garcia at 2018 St. Petersburg. Has since added three more: No.6 Halep (2019 Wuhan), No.7 Kenin and No.3 Ka.Pliskova (both 2020 Dubai)

• Ended 2017 ranked No.425, improving 191 spots from 2016 (finished at No.616) • Holds four singles and four doubles titles on ITF Circuit • Made WTA qualifying and main draw debut at 2017 Moscow (as qualifier, l. Begu in 1r) • Professional debut came at $10k ITF/Antalya-TUR in 2014

Grand Slam History

• Contested her fourth career Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Best result at the majors was reaching 3r at (l. Barty) • Fell 1r on Grand Slam main draw debut at 2019 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Siniakova) • Also made 1r exit at 2019 US Open (as qualifier, l. Muchova) • Contested qualifying at Wimbledon in 2019 • As a junior, reached two Grand Slam SFs at and Roland Garros

Personal

• Trained at Spartak Club in Moscow as a junior • Coached by Stefano Vukov; previous coaches included Andrei Cheshnokov (’s former coach) and Evgenia Kulikovskaya • Nominated for 2019 WTA Newcomer of the Year Award • Started playing tennis aged five

ALEXANDROVA:

Rome • Making main draw debut at Internazionali BNL d’Italia, having fallen in qualifying last year (l. Barthel) • Faces No.18 Rybakina in 1r today; broke the Kazakh No.1 six times to triumph in the final at Shenzhen this January and lift her maiden WTA title. Also defeated her last month in 1r at Western & Southern Open in two grueling sets • Owns five career Top 20 wins, over No.10 Ostapenko (2018 Seoul), No.13 Wozniacki (2019 Indian Wells), No.13 Bencic (2019 ), No.5 Halep (2019 Beijing) and No.17 Rybakina (Western & Southern Open) • Currently top-ranked of eight Russians in Top 100; sits at No.31, six places off career high (set on February 17, 2020) • During last year’s clay court swing, best results were reaching 3r at Roland Garros (d. Buzarnescu and Stosur, l. Bolsova) and 2r at Nurnberg (l. Kudermetova). Fell in 1r at Lugano and Prague, and in qualifying at Stuttgart, Madrid and Rome • Since returning to the court in recent weeks, played two clay events - fell 2r at Palermo (l. Ferro) and 1r at Prague (l. Tsurenko) • During the tour’s hiatus, played several exhibition events in Prague alongside, among others, Ka.Pliskova and Vondrousova

Season

• Coming off back-to-back 2r showings at Western & Southern Open (l. McHale) and US Open (d. Clijsters, l. McNally) • Fell 2r at Palermo (l. Ferro) and 1r at Prague (l. Tsurenko)

• Opened 2020 season by winning first tour-level WTA singles title at Shenzhen (d. Rybakina in F, having dispatched seeds Wang (QF) and Muguruza (SF) along the way) • Extended winning streak to seven by advancing to 3r at Australian Open (l. Kvitova) – was seeded for the first time at a major (No.25) • One of three maiden title winners in 2020 – also Brady (Lexington) and Tig (Istanbul) • Won both singles rubbers (d. Bogdan and Ruse) as Russia beat Romania in Cluj-Napoca to reach next year’s Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Finals • In February reached maiden Premier-level SF at St. Petersburg (l. Bertens) and fell 1r at Doha (l. Anisimova); rose to career-high ranking of No.25 after St. Petersburg run (February 17, 2020)

Career Milestones

• Posted first Top 40 season finish in 2019, at No.35 (up from No.93 the year prior) • Registered 30 tour-level match wins during 2019, in which she reached SF at Budapest, Seoul and Linz and made QF at St. Petersburg, ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Eastbourne and Moscow. Also advanced to 3r at a major for the first time, at Roland Garros • Made Top 50 debut after QF run at ‘s-Hertogenbosch (June 17, 2019) • Other highlights in 2019 included upset of No.5 Halep en route to R16 at Beijing – the first win of her career over a Top 5 player – and 3r showing at Roland Garros • Won first WTA doubles title at 2019 Budapest (w/Zvonareva) • Reached maiden WTA final at 2018 Linz (l. Giorgi). Other notable results in 2018 were QF run at Seoul (d. No.10 Ostapenko en route for her first career Top 10 win) and lifted WTA 125K Series title at Limoges for second time • Made Top 100 debut at No.93 after winning title at $60K ITF/Shenzhen-CHN (March 20, 2017) • Won WTA 125K Series title at Limoges in 2016 (d. Garcia in F). Also in 2016 reached 2r at Wimbledon (won her way through qualifying, on first attempt to qualify at any Slam, upsetting No.23 seed Ivanovic in 1r) • Reached 2r on WTA main draw debut at 2016 Katowice (as qualifier, l. eventual R-Up Giorgi) • Contested qualifying for the first time at a WTA-level tournament at 2014 Bad Gastein • Played first professional events of career on ITF Circuit in 2011

Grand Slam History

• Contested 15th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Matched best Grand Slam result to date this year by reaching 3r at Australian Open (d. Teichmann and Krejcikova, l. Kvitova) • Also reached 3r at 2019 Roland Garros (d. Buzarnescu and Stosur, l. Bolsova) • Made Grand Slam debut at 2016 Wimbledon – defeated No.23 seed Ivanovic before falling to Friedsam in 2r • Competed in all four majors for the first time in career in 2017, falling in 1r at Australian Open (l. compatriot Makarova) and Wimbledon (l. eventual champion Muguruza) and advancing to 2r at Roland Garros (l. Ka.Pliskova) and US Open (l. Garcia)

Personal

• Coached by Vojtech Flegl and her father, Evgeny Alexandrov, who both travel with her • Born in Chelyabinsk, Russia, and began playing tennis at age six; remembers playing on holiday at Spain. Now trains in Prague, Czech Republic • Favorite surface is hard and admires Serena Williams

MATCH NOTES

ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

AMANDA ANISIMOVA (USA #27) vs. [16] DONNA VEKIC (CRO #28)

Head to Head: 0-0

AMANDA ANISIMOVA DONNA VEKIC 27 WTA RANKING 28 63 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 53 31-08-2001 (19) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 28-06-1996 (24) $145,965 YTD PRIZE MONEY $200,806 $1,706,115 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $4,248,202 0 / 1 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 2 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 1-1 ROME W-L (MD) * 1-2 8-5 / 42-25 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 8-8 / 132-134 2-2 / 9-13 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-1 / 36-46 1-1 / 8-3 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 28-35 0-0 / 11-4 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 18-21 0-0 / 3-4 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 10-10 0-0 / 1-3 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 3-8 1-1 / 3-7 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 7-21 2-1 / 6-10 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 10-40 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

AMANDA ANISIMOVA DONNA VEKIC 2019 2018 R2 L - KIKI BERTENS (NED #4) 6-2 4-6 7-5 R2 L - MADISON KEYS (USA #14) 7-6(2) 7-6(0)

2017 R1 L - CAROLINE GARCIA (FRA #24) 7-6(2) 3-6 7-6(6) 2016 R1-Q L - (SWE #60) 7-5 6-2

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ANISIMOVA:

Rome • Making second main draw appearance at Rome, having reached 2r on her debut here last year (as LL, l. Bertens) • Faces No.28 Vekic today in their career first meeting. Is 3-2 against Top 30 ranked players this season, with wins coming over No.26 Alexandrova and No.7 Svitolina (both at Doha). Fell to No.10 S.Williams (Auckland) and No.22 Sakkari (US Open) • Enjoyed best clay court swing in 2019, clinching her career first WTA title at Bogota (d. Sharma in F) and reaching SF stage at Roland Garros (l. eventual champion Barty). Defeated No.11 Sabalenka and the defending champion Halep en route to final four in Paris • Currently ranked No.27 – six spots shy of her career high (achieved on October 21, 2019) • Celebrated her 19th birthday on August 31

Season • Coming off 3r showing at US Open (l. Sakkari) and 2r at Western & Southern Open (l. Pegula) • Defeated No.19 Riske in just over an hour (71 minutes) at Cincinnati event to record sixth career Top 20 win, also No.9 Kvitova (2018 Indian Wells), No.11 Sabalenka (2019 Australian Open), No.11 Sabalenka (2019 Roland Garros), No.3 Halep (2019 Roland Garros) and No.7 Svitolina (2020 Doha) • Prior to the Tour’s hiatus, last event played was Doha, where she withdrew prior to 3r match vs. Kuznetsova (w/gastrointestinal illness) • Upset No.7 Svitolina in 2r ay Doha to record her first Top 10 win of the season and third overall, also No.9 Kvitova at 2018 Indian Wells and No.3 Halep at 2019 Roland Garros • Made 1r exits at Australian Open (l. Diyas) and Dubai (l. Strycova, having led 3-1 in third set) • Kicked off 2020 campaign by reaching SF at Auckland (l. eventual champion S.Williams) – her first time reaching the final four of a tournament since 2019 Roland Garros (l. Barty)

Career Milestones • Highlight of 2019 season was winning maiden title at Bogotá (d. Sharma in F); at 17y 222d was the youngest American to win a title since S.Williams at 1999 Indian Wells (17y 169d) • Finished 2019 ranked No.24 – the youngest of three teenagers in the Top 50 (also Andreescu and Yastremska). Other standout performances included SF run at Roland Garros – first player (man or woman) born in 2000s to advance to this stage of a major – QF showings at Mallorca and San Jose, and R16 appearance at Australian Open – at 17 years and five months old, was the youngest player to reach R16 at a Slam since Paszek at 2007 US Open (16 yrs 277 days) • Scored maiden win over a Top 5 player during 2019 Roland Garros, upsetting No.3 and defending champion Halep in QF • Made Top 100 debut at No.95 on September 17, 2018, after reaching first WTA final at Hiroshima (as qualifier, l. Hsieh) • Also in 2018, upset No.9 Kvitova to become the joint-youngest player to reach R16 at Indian Wells, along with Majoli, who made SF in 1994 (both aged 16 years, 199 days) • Made WTA main draw debut at 2017 Miami (l. Townsend in 3s), with Grand Slam bow coming at 2017 Roland Garros. Also in 2017, reached four ITF Circuit finals, winning $60k ITF/Sacramento, CA-USA and finishing R-Up at $25k ITF/Curtiba-BRA, $80k ITF/Indian Harbour Beach, FL-USA and $60k ITF/Dothan, AL-USA • In juniors, won US Open girls’ singles in 2017 and was R-Up at 2016 Roland Garros • Reached No.2 in junior world rankings

Grand Slam History • Has played in seven Grand Slam main draws, most recently 2020 US Open • Produced best Slam showing at 2019 Roland Garros, becoming the first player born in 2000s – man or woman – to reach a Grand Slam SF (l. eventual champion Barty) • Best previous result was a R16 run at 2019 Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Kvitova) • At 17 years and five months old, was the youngest player to reach R16 at Melbourne Park since Vaidisova in 2006 (16 yrs 281 days), and across all Slams since Paszek at 2007 US Open (16 yrs 277 days) • Also the youngest American to reach this stage of a Slam since S.Williams at 1998 Roland Garros (16y 254d) and at Australian Open since Capriati in 1993 • Advanced to 3r at 2020 US Open (l. Sakkari) • Fell 1r on Slam main draw debut at 2017 Roland Garros (as WC, l. Nara, having led 6-3 4-2) • In juniors, won US Open girls’ singles in 2017 and was R-Up at 2016 Roland Garros

Personal • Coached by Jaime Cortez and Andis Juska, while fitness trainer is Yutaka Nakamura • Mother is Olga and father is Konstantin (deceased), both parents were born and raised in Moscow; sister Maria Anisimova-Egee played tennis at University of Pennsylvania and now lives in New York • Born in New Jersey but moved to Miami at age of 3

VEKIC:

Rome • Making third main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia (fourth overall) • Won her first match in Rome in 2018 (as qualifier, d. Suarez Navarro, l. Keys). Fell 1r in 2017 (l. Garcia) and made qualifying exit in 2016 • Did not play here in 2019 due to a right hip injury • Faces No.27 Anisimova today. Looking for her second Top 30 win of the season, having previously defeated No.23 Sakkari (Adelaide). Fell to No.24 Yastremska (Adelaide) and No.28 Alexandrova (St. Petersburg) • Went 7-3 on clay in 2019, reaching QF at Stuttgart (l. Osaka), R16 at Madrid (l. Martic) and R16 at Roland Garros (l. Konta) • Enters Rome ranked No.28. Achieved a career high of No.19 on November 4, 2019

Season • Coming off 3r showing at US Open (l. Pironkova) and 1r exit at Western & Southern Open (l. eventual champion Azarenka) • Returned to tennis following the hiatus at Palermo, making 2r (l. Cocciaretto) • Prior to Tour’s hiatus, reached R16 at St. Petersburg (l. Alexandova) and fell 1r at Doha (l. Swiatek) • Standout results of the early 2020 season were a QF run at Adelaide (l. Yastremska) and 3r showing at Australian Open (l. Swiatek), her best result at Melbourne Park • Also posted 1r exit at Brisbane (l. Putintseva)

Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 ranked No.19 for career-best year-end finish (up from No.34 in 2018) • Cracked the WTA Top 20 for the first time on October 21, 2019 • Produced career best Grand Slam result at US Open, where she reached QF (l. Bencic) • Reached biggest final of career at Premier-level St. Petersburg (l. Bertens) • Posted best win of career by ranking – and third over a Top 5 opponent –with defeat of No.2 Kvitova en route to St. Petersburg QF, bettering victories over No.4 Stephens at 2018 Wimbledon and No.4 Garcia at 2018 Tokyo [PPO] • season saw her reach final at Nottingham (l. Garcia in thirdset tie-break) • Qualified for WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, however fell in RR stage • Ended 2018 at then-career-high ranking of No.34, after registering 31 tour-level wins • 2018 season highlighted by R-Up finish at Washington, DC (l. Kuznetsova after holding 4mp) – her first finals appearance since winning 2017 Nottingham • Also made SF showings at Nottingham and Tokyo [PPO] and reached Grand Slam R16 for first time at Wimbledon (l. Goerges) • Enjoyed a resurgent year in 2017, cracking the Top 50 in the week of July 24 and finishing campaign ranked No.54 • Grass court season highlighted by winning second WTA singles title of career, at Nottingham –d. No.8 Konta. Until this title run, had not posted back-toback main draw wins since September 2015 (run to final at Tashkent) • Reached two ITF finals at the end of 2016 season, winning the title at $100k ITF/Sharm ElSheikh-EGY • Posted just four main draw wins across 2016, defeating Al Nabhani at Doha, Riske at Kaohsiung, Ivanovic at Cincinnati and Zhang at Tianjin • Highlights in 2015 included reaching final at Tashkent (l.Hibino) and QF at Baku • When she won first career singles title at 2014 Kuala Lumpur, aged 17 yrs 10 mos, became youngest player to win a WTA singles title since 2006 Bangkok () • Reached first WTA career final at 2012 Tashkent. In what was her first WTA main draw appearance, became youngest WTA finalist since 15-year-old Paszek won Portoroz in 2005. Also finished runner-up on grass at 2013 Birmingham (l. Hantuchova) and 2015 Tashkent (l. Hibino). Including 2019 St. Petersburg and 2019 Nottingham, owns a 2-6 record in singles finals • Broke into Top 100 (at No.93) on January 28, 2013 Has won five ITF Circuit singles and one doubles title • Member of Croatian Fed Cup Team, 2012-15, 2017, 2019

Grand Slam History • 2020 US Open marked her 27th Grand Slam main draw appearance • At 2019 US Open, posted her best Slam result, reaching the QF (l. Bencic) • Has reached R16 at 2018 Wimbledon (l. Goerges) and 2019 Roland Garros (l. Konta) • At Australian Open, reached 3r in 2020 (l. Swiatek)

Personal • Both parents played professional sports: mother, Brankica (track hurdler) and father, Igor (soccer goalkeeper) • Currently working with Nikola Horvat, having split with coach Torben Beltz during the tour’s hiatus. Dario Novak is also part of coaching team Favorite surface is hard • Speaks Croatian, English and Italian • Self-described as strong-willed, determined and extremely competitive

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

SU-WEI HSIEH (TPE #62) vs. [11] ELISE MERTENS (BEL #20)

Head to Head: ELISE MERTENS leads 2-1

2019 OSAKA HARD O R16 ELISE MERTENS 6-3 1-6 6-2 114 mins 2018 TIANJIN HARD O QF SU-WEI HSIEH 6-2 4-0 66 mins 2018 RABAT CLAY O SF ELISE MERTENS 6-0 6-2 57 mins

SU-WEI HSIEH ELISE MERTENS 62 WTA RANKING 20 315 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 9 04-01-1986 (34) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 17-11-1995 (24) $421,954 YTD PRIZE MONEY $417,264 $8,511,824 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $6,373,909 0 / 3 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 3 / 27 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 9 1-3 ROME W-L (MD) * 0-1 0-5 / 142-159 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 23-8 / 139-80 0-1 / 61-51 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 5-3 / 40-29 0-0 / 34-43 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-3 / 26-31 0-0 / 20-31 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 4-2 / 37-16 0-0 / 14-18 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 14-3 0-0 / 4-11 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-2 / 4-10 0-0 / 7-25 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-3 / 6-18 0-2 / 15-47 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-4 / 13-38 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SU-WEI HSIEH ELISE MERTENS 2019 2019 R1 L - JULIA GOERGES (GER #18) 6-3 6-4 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #50) 7-5 3-6 7-6(4)

2018 R2 L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #22) 6-0 6-4

2016 R2-Q L - JOHANNA LARSSON (SWE #60) 6-3 6-4

2013 R1 L - (AUS #10) 6-2 6-3

2012 R2-Q L - SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #92) 6-2 6-4

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

2009 R2-Q L - JILL CRAYBAS (USA #93) 6-2 6-1

HSIEH

Rome • Making fourth main draw appearance at Rome (seventh overall) • Best result here is reaching 2r in 2018 (d. Sabalenka, l. Konta) • Also a former doubles champion here in 2009 and 2013 (both w/S.Peng) • This marks her first event since the Tour’s five-month hiatus • Faces No.20 Mertens today in their fourth career meeting, most recently falling to the Belgian last year at Osaka • Owns 15 career wins over Top 20 ranked players (0-4 in 2020), capturing nine of those wins across the 2019 season over No.11 Sevastova, No.7 Kerber, No.5 Ka.Pliskova (all at Dubai), No.1 Osaka, No.13 Wozniacki (both at Miami), No.16 Q.Wang (Stuttgart), No.10 Sabalenka (Birmingham), No.17 Q.Wang (Cincinnati) and No.18 Wozniacki (Wuhan) • Bidding for her first main draw singles win of 2020, having fallen in 1r at Brisbane, Adelaide, Australian Open, Dubai and Doha • Highlight of 2019 clay swing was reaching QF at Rabat (l. Konta). Also made 2r showings at Stuttgart (l. Osaka) and Roland Garros (l. Petkovic) and fell 1r at Madrid (l. Garcia) and Rome (l. Goerges)

Season • Prior to Tour’s five-month hiatus, fell 1r at Doha however captured third doubles title of 2020 that week (w/Strycova, d. Ostapenko/Dabrowski in F); now holds 27-14 career record in doubles finals • As qualifier, fell 1r at Dubai (l. Martic) however lifted the doubles trophy (w/Strycova, d. Krejcikova/S.Zheng in F) • At Australian Open, fell in 1r in singles (l. Putintseva) and reached doubles championship match (w/Strycova, l. Babos/Mladenovic in F) • Opened 2020 campaign with 1r exit at Brisbane (l. Kontaveit) however, captured 25th career WTA doubles title alongside Strycova (d. Barty/Bertens in 3s final) • Also fell 1r at Adelaide (l. Sabalenka in 3s)

Career • Ended 2019 ranked No.32, down from No.28 in 2018 • Singles season highlighted by SF runs at Auckland (l. Andreescu) and Dubai (l. Kvitova), and QF at Miami (l. Kontaveit) • Reached as high as No.24 in 2019 – one spot shy from her career-high of No.23 (achieved on February 25, 2013) • Enjoyed great success in doubles in 2019, winning her third Grand Slam doubles trophy at Wimbledon (w/Strycova) • Captured three additional doubles titles w/Strycova at Dubai, Madrid and Birmingham and finished as R-Up at WTA Finals Shenzhen (l. Babos/Mladenovic) and Osaka (l. Chan/Chan)

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from • Won third WTA singles title at 2018 Hiroshima – others both coming in 2012 at Kuala Lumpur (as qualifier, d. Martic in F) and Guangzhou (d. Robson in F) • Other highlights of 2018 season were SF runs Auckland (l. eventual champion Goerges), Rabat (l. eventual champion Mertens), Seoul (l.Tomljanovic) and Tianjin (.Garcia). Also made QF at Strasbourg (l.Buzarnescu) and equaled best Grand Slam result by reaching R16 at Australian Open and Wimbledon • Stunned No.1 Halep at 2018 Wimbledon for first win over reigning No.1 • Returned to Top 30 on September 17, 2018 for the first time since reaching career high of No.23 on February 25, 2013 • Reached QF at Nanchang (l. Y.Wang) in 2017 and concluded season with runner-up effort at WTA 125K Series event at Hua Hin (l. Bencic) • 2016 season highlights included SF run at Kaohsiung (l. Doi) and QF showing at Prague (l. eventual champion Safarova) • Just second player from Chinese Taipei to win a tour-level singles title (Wang Shi-Ting won six titles in 1990s) • Became first player from Chinese Taipei (male or female) to achieve the No.1 doubles ranking on May 12, 2014 – held top spot for five weeks • Owns 25-13 record in doubles finals, with most recent title coming at 2020 Brisbane (w/Strycova) • Qualified for 2012 Tournament of Champions-Sofia (went 1-2 in round robin play) • Won three Grand Slams - two w/Peng and one w/Strycova and qualified twice for WTA Finals, emerging as champions in 2013 (w/Peng, d. Makarova/Vesnina in F) and runners-up in 2014 (w/Peng, l. Black/Mirza in F) and 2019 (w/Strycova, l. Babos/Mladenovic) • On ITF Circuit, winner of 26 singles titles and 23 doubles titles • Played first professional tournament at ITF level in New Zealand in 2001; started career by winning first 33 matches (mix of ITF and tour level)

Grand Slam History • Has reached R16 on three occasions, at the Australian Open in 2018 (l. Kerber) and 2008 (as qualifier, l. Henin), and Wimbledon in 2018 (l. Cibulkova) • Made 3r at 2017 Roland Garros (l. Garcia) and 2r at US Open on four occasions • Winner of three Slam doubles titles – 2014 Roland Garros (w/Peng, d. Errani/Vinci in final), 2013 Wimbledon (w/Peng, d. Barty/Dellacqua in final) and 2019 Wimbledon (w/Strycova, d. Dabrowski/Xu in final)

Personal • Has six siblings. Brother (Cheng-peng) and sister (Yu-chieh) both play on the professional Tour • Introduced to tennis by dad (Hsieh Tze-Lung) at age 5; mother is Ho Fom-Ju • Idolized and growing up

MERTENS: Rome

• Making second main draw appearance at Rome, where she fell 1r in 2019 (l. V.Williams) • Saved eight match points against V.Williams in 2019 before eventually falling to the American • Faces No.62 Hsieh today. In their career first meeting, defeated today’s opponent on clay en route to 2018 Rabat title • Has fallen to players ranked below today’s opponent twice in 2020 – l. No.101 Watson (Hobart) and No.104 Sasnovich (Palermo)

• Holds a Tour-leading 23 match wins this season, ahead of Rybakina with 22 and Kontaveit with 19 • During last year’s clay court season posted 4-6 record, highlighted by 3r showing at Roland Garros (l. Sevastova). Two others wins on clay last year came at Rabat (l. eventual champion Sakkari in QF). Fell in 2r at Charleston (following 1r bye, l. Kanepi), and 1r at Stuttgart (l. Kasatkina), Madrid (Schmiedlova) and Rome (l. V.Williams) • Enters Rome ranked No.20. Returned to Top 20 after reaching SF at Western & Southern Open (l. Osaka) • Thanks to results this week, is projected to return to Top 20 in the new rankings at No.18. Can move to No.17 by reaching the final and No.15 with the title

Season

• As the No.16 seed, made QF at US Open (l. eventual R-Up Azarenka). Ousted the 2020 Australian Open champion Kenin in R16 to record her first Top 5 win since defeating No.3 Halep in 2019 Doha championship match • Reached doubles QF at Flushing Meadows (as defending champions w/Sabalenka, l. eventual champions Siegemund/Zvonareva) • Advanced to SF at Western & Southern Open (l. Osaka). Was seeded No.1 in doubles w/Sabalenka that week – withdrew prior to QF against Hradecka/Klepac w/left leg injury • Fell 1r in the first week of the tour’s return at Palermo (l. Sasnovich) • Bounced back the following week at Prague, where she finished R-Up (l. Halep). Is now 5-2 in WTA singles finals • Began the season with QF runs at Shenzhen (l. Rybakina) and Hobart (l. Watson – 3h 33m match is the longest so far in 2020) and R16 showing at Australian Open (l. Halep) • In February made 2r exit in defense of Doha title (l. Putintseva) and also fell at this stage the previous week at Dubai (l. Sabalenka)

Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 ranked No.17 for second consecutive Top 20 finish • Singles highlight was winning biggest title of career at Doha (d. No.3 Halep in final). Also beat No.8 Bertens and No.6 Kerber in Doha, doubling career total of Top 10 wins to six • Advanced to QF at US Open for the first time (l. eventual champion Andreescu in 3s) and R16 at Wimbledon for the first time (l. Strycova, having led 6-4 5-2). Reached QF during defense of Rabat title (l. eventual champion Sakkari) • Enjoyed standout season in doubles in 2020 - won maiden major doubles title at US Open w/Sabalenka (d. Azarenka/Barty in F). Also Completed ‘Sunshine Double’ in doubles (w/Sabalenka), lifting the back-to-back titles at Indian Wells (d. Krejcikova/Siniakova) and Miami (d. Stosur/Zhang) • Team qualified for Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen (went 1-2 in RR) • Won three singles titles in 2018 (Hobart, Rabat and Lugano), one of six players on tour with three or more titles to their name that year - also Kvitova (5), Svitolina (4), Bertens (3), Halep (3) and Wozniacki (3) • Also in 2018, advanced to first Grand Slam SF of career at (l. eventual champion Wozniacki), going on to post 46 main draw match wins across the campaign – only Ka.Pliskova (49) and Kvitova (47) registered more. By contrast, prior to 2018 season owned only 36 wins at this level across entire career • In doubles in 2018, won four titles and reached QF at WTA Finals (w/Schuurs) • Finished 2017 season at No.35, up from No.120 in 2016 – first Top 50 and Top 100 year-end finish 2017 season highlighted by first career singles title at Hobart (as a qualifier, d. Niculescu in F)

• Registered first Top 10 win of career over No.10 Cibulkova in 1r at 2017 Beijing • Made WTA singles main draw debut at 2016 ‘s-Hertogenbosch – made QF (as qualifier, l. Mladenovic) • Won first WTA title of any kind in doubles at 2016 Auckland (w/Mestach). Now has nine doubles titles – also 2017 Guangzhou (w/Schuurs), 2018 Hobart (w/Schuurs), 2018 Lugano (w/Flipkens), 2018 ‘s-Hertogenbosch (w/Schuurs), 2018 Wuhan (w/Schuurs), 2019 Indian Wells-Miami double (w/Sabalenka) and 2019 US Open (w/Sabalenka) • Played first tour-level event of career at 2015 Antwerp (fell in qualifying) • Has 11 singles and 14 doubles titles on ITF Circuit • Played first events of career on ITF Circuit in Belgium in 2010

Grand Slam History

• Advanced to first Grand Slam SF of career at 2018 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Wozniacki), • In 2019, reached QF at US Open (l. eventual champion Andreescu in 3s) and R16 at Wimbledon (l. Strycova, having led 6-4 5-2) – the deepest run of her career at both tournaments (also at 2020 US Open) • Has also reached R16 at Roland Garros in 2018 (l. eventual champion Halep) • Won maiden major doubles title at 2019 US Open w/Sabalenka (d. Azarenka/Barty in F)

Personal

• Working once again with former coach Robbe Ceyssens having recently worked with both David Taylor and • Earlier coaching history includes Belgian federation until early teens, as well as a year at the Mouratoglou Academy • Mother is Liliane Barbe (teaches languages and history); father is Guido Mertens (makes furniture for churches). Was home schooled, enjoyed studying languages • Loves animals and has lots of pets at home, four dogs and a variety of birds (pheasants, peacocks, chickens, cranes)

MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – DAY TWO

[WC] ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO (ITA #128) vs. [Q] IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #77)

First meeting Cocciaretto posted her career first Top 100 wins last month at Palermo over Hercog and Vekic… Begu holds a 14-1 record against Top 100 ranked players in 2020

[9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) vs. SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #33) Stephens leads 2-1 Muguruza owns 10 wins at Rome as a two-time semifinalist… Stephens defeated Muguruza in their sole meeting on clay last year at Roland Garros, which marked her last win over a Top 20 player

KATERINA SINIAKOVA (CZE #61) vs. [15] ANGELIQUE KERBER (GER #22)

Kerber leads 3-0

Siniakova is bidding for her second main draw win of 2020, having defeated Muchova at Dubai… Kerber has fallen to a player outside the Top 50 once in 2020, against No.98 Stosur at Brisbane

[14] ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #21) vs. CAROLINE GARCIA (FRA #45) Series tied 1-1 Kontaveit record her sole win over a reigning No.1 here at Rome in 2017 against Kerber… Garcia faces her second Top 30 ranked opponent of 2020, having defeated No.3 Ka.Pliskova at US Open

ONS JABEUR (TUN #34) vs. COCO GAUFF (USA #53) Gauff leads 1-0 Jabeur is looking for her first main draw win on clay since reaching QF at 2018 Bucharest… Gauff is playing in her career first clay event at Tour level… Gauff defeated Jabeur last month at Lexington

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MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY

• As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. • Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play. • WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities. • Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer. • “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among others. • In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants. • For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

• One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3) • Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington) • Lowest-ranked player to triumph: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul) • Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up) • Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul) • Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d) • Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d) • Aces leaders: Elena Rybakina – 155, Garbiñe Muguruza – 128, Kristyna Pliskova – 125 • Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF) • Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 24, Elena Rybakina – 23, Anett Kontaveit – 19, Sofia Kenin – 18 • Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha) • Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul) • Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF) • Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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2

MATCH NOTES

ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[WC] ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO (ITA #128) vs. [Q] IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #77)

Head to Head: First meeting

ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU 128 WTA RANKING 77 75 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 38 25-01-2001 (19) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 26-08-1990 (30) $129,129 YTD PRIZE MONEY $190,661 $183,456 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $5,345,617 0 / 0 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 4 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 9 0-1 ROME W-L (MD) * 7-5 3-2 / 3-4 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 3-5 / 172-176 0-1 / 0-2 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 65-57 1-0 / 1-0 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 1-2 / 40-42 2-1 / 2-3 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 3-2 / 86-62 0-1 / 0-1 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-2 / 10-18 0-0 / 0-0 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 2-17 0-0 / 0-0 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-2 / 6-29 0-2 / 0-2 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-3 / 12-45 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 1r

"-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History

ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU 2019 2019 R1 L - AMANDA ANISIMOVA (USA #54) 6-3 6-3 R1 L - (RUS #21) 6-2 7-6(5)

2018 R2 L - ANGELIQUE KERBER (GER #12) 3-6 7-5 7-5

2017 R1 L - ANASTASIJA SEVASTOVA (LAT #18) 6-4 6-4

2016 SF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-4 6-1

2015 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #29) 6-4 5-7 6-1

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COCCIARETTO:

Rome

• Playing Internazionali BNL d’Italia for the second time; fell 1r here in 2019 (as WC, l. Anisimova) • One of five wildcards in this year’s draw (also Giorgi, Paolini, V.Williams and Zvonareva); best result by WC here were SF runs from Pierce in 1995 and S.Williams in 2010 • Faces No.77 Begu in 1r today; only previous Top 100 wins came over No.45 Hercog and No.26 Vekic during QF run at Palermo this August • Contesting tournament ranked at career-high No.128 (September 14); as recently as last May was ranked as low as No.779 • Is one of five teenagers in this week’s draw (also Anisimova, Gauff, Juvan and Swiatek) • Also awarded WC into doubles draw w/Trevisan (d. Hibino/Ninomiya in 1r, face No.1 seeds Hsieh/Strycova in 2r)

Season

• Coming off qualifying exit at Istanbul • Finished R-Up at WTA 125K Series event at Prague (l. Kucova) • At Palermo became the youngest Italian to reach a WTA QF since Errani at Budapest in 2006 (l. Kontaveit); also finished R-Up in doubles w/Trevisan • Highlight of 2020 season before tour came to a halt was qualifying for maiden Grand Slam main draw, at Australian Open (l. Kerber in 1r) • Also contested qualifying at Auckland, Acapulco and Monterrey and on Fed Cup duty won all four rubbers as Italy advanced to next February’s play-off against Romania

Career Milestones • Rose over 500 ranking spots in 2019, to finished campaign at No.215 having compiled a 38-16 win-loss record • At tour level, fell 1r on WTA debut at Rome (as WC, l. Anisimova) and Palermo (as qualifier, l. Kuzmova), while won three titles on ITF Circuit • In 2018, won maiden title on ITF Circuit at $15K Nules-ESP • Made Fed Cup debut for Italy in 2018, losing dead fifth doubles rubber w/Paolini during 3-2 World Group II win over Spain • Owns four singles and one doubles title on ITF Circuit • Professional debut came on ITF Circuit in Italy in 2017 • Former junior World No.12

Grand Slam History • Fell 1r on Grand Slam debut at 2020 Australian Open (as qualifier, l. Kerber) • Reached girls’ singles semifinals at the Australian Open in 2018 (l. eventual champion Liang) • Also reached 3r at other three majors as a junior

Personal • Now coached by Fausto Scouri; originally coached by Antonio Di Paolo • Born in Ancona on Adriatic coast but went to school on the opposite coast in Cecina. Introduced to tennis at the age of six by her parents (Jessica and Piero) • Currently studying law

BEGU:

Rome

• Making sixth consecutive appearance at Rome where she made SF in 2016 • During 2016 run, defeated No.6 Azarenka before falling to then-No.1 and eventual champion S.Williams • Has fallen 1r twice here, including last year (as qualifier, l. Kasatkina) • Came through qualifying again this year, beating former Rome finalist Errani and Friedsam • Faces No.128 Cocciaretto in 1r today; this season has compiled 14-1 record against players ranked outside Top 100, with sole loss coming via retirement against No.231 Snigur at $60 ITF/Cairo-EGY • Is one of two Romanians in the draw (also two-time Rome R-Up and this year’s top seed Halep) • Owns fine record on clay, winning 2017 Bucharest – her most recent WTA title – finishing R-Up at 2011 Marbella and 2011 Budapest and also reaching eight other SFs on the surface

Season

• Coming off 1r exit at US Open (l. Kvitova) • Made first WTA SF in over two years at Prague in mid-August (l. eventual champion Halep); win over No.43 Sevastova in 1r was first over a Top 50 player since 2018 Roland Garros • Fell 1r at Palermo (l. Siegemund) • Prior to tour’s hiatus was in good form, winning the title at WTA 125K Series event at Indian Wells and another title at $100K ITF/Cairo-EGY • In opening month of the season, fell 1r at Shenzhen (as qualifier, l. Kr.Pliskova) and Australian Open (l. Bertens). Also contested qualifying at Hobart

Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 at No.99 – sixth straight Top 100 finish • Season highlight was 3r run at Roland Garros (l. Anisimova) and three QF runs at Hobart (l. Schmiedlova), Budapest (l. Vondrousova) and Bucharest (l. Siegemund) • In doubles in 2019, won Hua Hin (w/Niculescu), her ninth doubles title • Won two doubles titles in 2018 – Shenzhen and Bucharest – finishing the year at a career-best No.23 in the WTA Doubles Rankings. Reached SF stage of 2018 Australian Open doubles event w/Niculescu • Reached two singles SFs - Shenzhen and Istanbul - and one QF in 2018. Also defeated No.5 Ostapenko at 2018 Madrid for second Top 5 win of career having also beaten No.4 Muguruza at 2016 Madrid • Highlight of 2017 was lifting fourth singles title of her career at Bucharest without dropping a set (d. Goerges in F); also took home the doubles trophy without dropping a set w/Olaru • Also in 2017 reached two SFs: Istanbul (l. Mertens) and Moscow (l. Kasatkina), and one QF at Charleston (l. eventual champion Kasatkina) • Represented Romania at 2016 Rio Olympics, making 1r exits in singles (l. Hibino) and doubles (w/Niculescu, l. Chan/Chan) • Other notable results in 2016 included SF at Rome (l. S.Williams), QF at Charleston (l. Kerber) and QF at Madrid (l. Halep) • Posted career-best ranking at No.22 (August 22, 2016) • In run to QF at 2016 Madrid was one of four Romanians for reach QF – which was first time this had occurred at a Premier Mandatory event (also Halep, Cirstea and Tig). Secured two milestones during Madrid: career-best win vs. No.4 Muguruza, and 300th match win of career (all levels) with R16 defeat of McHale

• Owns four WTA singles titles from seven finals, lifting the trophies at 2012 Tashkent, 2015 Seoul, 2016 Florianopolis and 2017 Bucharest • Owns nine WTA doubles titles from 16 finals, most recently at 2019 Hua Hin (w/Niculescu) • Struggled with right shoulder injury in 2013 – first felt pain at and missed three months of action • Holds 12 singles titles and 19 doubles titles on ITF Circuit • Voted WTA Newcomer of the Year in 2011 (media vote)

Grand Slam History

• Contested 34th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Best results at the majors are R16 showings at (l. Bouchard) and 2016 Roland Garros (l. Rogers) • Also made 3r at Wimbledon in 2015, Roland Garros in 2015 and 2018-19, and 2r at US Open in 2012 and 2014 • Made Grand Slam debut at 2011 Roland Garros, reaching 2r (d. Rezai, l. Kuznetsova) • In doubles, reached SF stage at 2018 Australian Open (w/Niculescu), and QF at 2017 Roland Garros (w/Zheng), 2018 Wimbledon (w/Buzarnescu) and (w/Niculescu)

Personal

• Coached by Teador Bolanu • Started playing tennis at age 3 with aunt, who was a coach • Did gymnastics and played handball when younger • Idol growing up was

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) vs. SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #33)

Head to Head: SLOANE STEPHENS leads 2-1

2019 ROLAND GARROS CLAY O R16 SLOANE STEPHENS 6-4 6-3 100 mins 2018 MIAMI HARD O R16 SLOANE STEPHENS 6-3 6-4 88 mins 2015 WUHAN HARD O R2 GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 6-2 6-0 63 mins

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA SLOANE STEPHENS 17 WTA RANKING 33 4 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 119 08-10-1993 (26) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 20-03-1993 (27) $1,703,605 YTD PRIZE MONEY $269,843 $20,921,334 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $15,450,865 0 / 7 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 6 0 / 5 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 10-6 ROME W-L (MD) * 6-6 17-5 / 253-142 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 3-8 / 223-158 7-3 / 80-62 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-4 / 71-54 6-0 / 41-50 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 60-30 0-0 / 53-29 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 61-39 0-0 / 18-14 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-2 / 20-9 2-1 / 11-18 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 9-21 3-1 / 35-34 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 17-36 3-2 / 61-60 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 36-59 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA SLOANE STEPHENS 2019 2019 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 6-4 3-1 R2 L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-7(3) 6-4 6-1

2018 2018 R2 L - (AUS #24) 5-7 6-2 7-6(6) R16 L - CAROLINE GARCIA (FRA #7) 6-1 7-6(7)

2017 2015 SF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-1 R1 L - (GER #22) 6-4 6-1

2016 2014 SF L - MADISON KEYS (USA #24) 7-6(5) 6-4 R2 L - (USA #49) 6-2 6-2 2014 2013 R2 L - (ITA #61) 3-6 6-1 7-6(5) R16 L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-2 6-1 2013 2012 R2 L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-2 6-2 R2 L - (ITA #21) 6-2 6-3

MUGURUZA:

Rome

• Making seventh main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Best result here were SF runs in 2016 (d. No.10 Bacsinszky in QF, l. Keys) and 2017 (ret. w/neck injury vs. eventual champion Svitolina) • Faces Stephens in 1r today; only win over the American came en route to Wuhan final in 2015 • Has reached the QF or better at five of six events played in 2020, going 17-5 across the season – fifth most main draw wins this year, behind Mertens (24), Rybakina (23), Kontaveit (19) and Kenin (18) • One career final on clay was 2016 Roland Garros victory over S.Williams

Season

• Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. Pironkova) • Withdrew from Western & Southern Open last week w/ left ankle injury • Prior to tour’s hiatus, was enjoying her best ever start to a season and for the first time in her career made the QF or better at five straight tournaments - is the only player to achieve this feat in 2020 • Last event played was Doha, reaching QF (l. Barty) • Also made QFs at Dubai (l. Brady in 3s). Defeated former No.1 and four-time Grand Slam singles champion Clijsters in the 1r at Dubai which was the Belgian’s first professional match since 2012 • Finished R-Up at Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – her fourth career major final • Defeated four seeds en route to Melbourne final, including three of the Top 10 (No.4 Halep, No.5 Svitolina, No.9 Bertens) • Forced to withdraw with viral illness prior to QF match against Kudermetova at

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from • Began 2020 campaign posting SF appearance (l. eventual champion Alexandrova) at Shenzhen Open

Career Milestones

• Finished 2019 season at No.36 for first non-Top 20 finish since 2014 • Successfully defended her title in Monterrey for seventh career WTA trophy (d. Azarenka in F) • Also in 2019, reached QF at Indian Wells defeating No.10 S.Williams and No.7 Bertens en route (l. eventual champion Andreescu) and R16 at Australian Open (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Roland Garros (l. Stephens) • Is a two-time Grand-Slam champion winning titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F). Dropped only one set in Roland Garros title run • Is only player to ever beat both in a Grand Slam final and one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles • Also finished R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) to make Top 10 debut. Is one of two players to meet both Williams sisters in the final of the same Grand Slam – also Hingis at US Open (1997, d. V.Williams; 1999, l. S.Williams) • First Spaniard to reach Wimbledon final since Sánchez Vicario in 1996 and first to reach any Slam final since Conchita Martínez at 2000 Roland Garros • Rose to World No.1 on September 11, 2017 to become the 24th woman in history to hold the top spot and second from Spain (after Sánchez Vicario in 1995). Also named ITF World Champion for 2017 • In 2015, became first Spanish player to compete at the WTA Finals in singles since 2001 (Sánchez Vicario) and reached doubles final (w/Suárez Navarro, l. Hingis/Mirza) • Made WTA main draw debut at Miami in 2012, defeating No.9 Zvonareva for first Top 10 win of career

Grand Slam History • Appeared in 30th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Won titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F dropping just one set en route to lifting the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F) • Reached title match at 2020 Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – Grand Slam final record now stands at 2-2 (also R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon – l. S.Williams) • One of just eight players all-time to defeat Serena in a Grand Slam final • Is one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles • Is the second player to face both Williams sisters in the final of the same major (also Hingis, at US Open in 1997 – d. V.Williams, and 1999 – l. S.Williams) • By winning 2017 Wimbledon, became only player to defeat both sisters in Grand Slam final, at Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in 2016) and Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in 2017) • Best result at US Open came in 2017 with R16 showing • In doubles, best result was SF run at 2014 Roland Garros w/Suárez Navarro

Personal • Began playing tennis at age three; first memory of the sport was playing with her brothers • Mother, Scarlet is from Venezuela and father, José Antonio, is from Spain • Coached by Conchita Martínez

STEPHENS:

Rome

• Making seventh main draw appearance at Rome • Best previous results were R16 showings in 2013 (l. Sharapova) and 2018 (l. Garcia) • Faces No.17 Muguruza in 1r today; beat then No.19-ranked Muguruza at 2019 Roland Garros – her most recent win over a Top 20 opponent • One of nine Grand Slam winners in this year’s Rome starting field • Has reached two career clay court finals, winning 2016 Charleston and finishing R-Up at 2018 Roland Garros

Season

• Coming off 3r showing at US Open (l. S.Williams); win over Buzarnescu in 1r ended three-match losing streak • On tennis’ return suffered 1r exits at Lexington (l. Fernandez) and Cincinnati (l. Garcia) • Before break, advanced to 2r at Monterrey (d. Navarro, l. Fernandez). Fell 1r at Acapulco (l. Zarazua) • Suffered 1r defeats in first three tournaments of the year, at Brisbane (l. Samsonova), Adelaide (l. Rodionova) and Australian Open (l. Zhang)

Career Milestones

• Finished 2019 season ranked No.25; campaign was highlighted by SF at Madrid (l. eventual champion Bertens) and QF at Roland Garros (l. Konta) • Also made R16 at Sydney (l. Putintseva), Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova), Acapulco (l. Haddad Maia), Cincinnati (l. to Kuznetsova), Osaka (l. Giorgi) and Wuhan (l. Kvitova) • In 2018 posted best year-end finish of career to date, at No.6; reached career-high No.3 ranking on July 16, 2018 • Season highlights in 2018 included capturing first Premier Mandatory title at Miami – subsequently made Top 10 debut at No.9. Also reached her second Grand Slam final, at Roland Garros and posted R-Up finishes at Montréal and WTA Finals • Won her maiden Grand Slam title at 2017 US Open, d. Keys 6-3 6-0 to become the fifth unseeded player to win a major in the Open Era • Voted 2017 WTA Comeback Player of the Year. Returned to action at Wimbledon after 11 months on sidelines w/foot injury (had surgery in the January) • After 1r loss at 2017 Washington DC, went 15-2 through US Open title run, including back-to-back SF at Toronto and Cincinnati • Won three titles in 2016, at Auckland, Acapulco and Premier-level Charleston. Won maiden singles title in first final contested at 2015 Washington, DC • At No.97 was youngest player in year-end Top 100 in 2011; and after a phenomenal sophomore season, reached No.38 and was the youngest player, and the only teenager, in the year-end Top 50 in 2012 • Made Top 20 debut on January 29, 2013

Grand Slam History

• Contested 33rd Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open

• Enjoyed fairytale run at 2017 US Open, lifting maiden Grand Slam title at Flushing Meadows (d. Keys in F) • Best result across other Slams was R-Up finish at 2018 Roland Garros (l. Halep) • Prior to 2017 US Open triumph, best result across all majors was reaching SF at 2013 Australian Open (d. S.Williams in QF, l. eventual champion Azarenka) • Also just the second American (after Davenport) to beat both Williams sisters in Grand Slam match play • Advanced to SF at 2013 Australian Open (d. Halep, Mladenovic and S.Williams en route) and QF at 2013 Wimbledon (l. eventual champion Bartoli)

Personal

• Reunited with former long-term coach Kamau Murray during off-season; formerly coached by Sven Groenefeld and • Mother is Sybil Smith a former collegiate swimmer at University and late father, John Stephens, was an NFL player in 1980s and 1990s; brother is Shawn Farrell • Aged 11, relocated from Fresno to Boca Raton, Florida, where she began training at the Evert Tennis Academy before moving to Nick Saviano High Performance Tennis Academy • On April 29, 2019 announced engagement to Toronto FC soccer star Jozy Altidore

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

KATERINA SINIAKOVA (CZE #61) vs. [15] ANGELIQUE KERBER (GER #22)

Head to Head: ANGELIQUE KERBER leads 3-0

2017 MADRID CLAY O R2 ANGELIQUE KERBER 6-2 1-6 7-5 120 mins 2016 BEIJING HARD O R1 ANGELIQUE KERBER 6-4 6-4 77 mins 2015 BIRMINGHAM GRASS O QF ANGELIQUE KERBER 6-2 6-4 83 mins

KATERINA SINIAKOVA ANGELIQUE KERBER 61 WTA RANKING 22 139 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 28 10-05-1996 (24) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 18-01-1988 (32) $319,674 YTD PRIZE MONEY $481,843 $5,969,598 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $29,776,500 0 / 2 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 12 1 / 8 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 2-3 ROME W-L (MD) * 8-7 1-8 / 107-129 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 7-4 / 434-248 1-1 / 45-47 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 120-100 0-0 / 28-25 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-4 / 88-61 0-1 / 37-32 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 79-55 0-1 / 8-11 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 34-20 0-0 / 3-9 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 19-33 0-1 / 5-19 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 39-62 0-2 / 13-35 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 90-116 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 1r

Result Duration

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

KATERINA SINIAKOVA ANGELIQUE KERBER 2019 2018 R2 L - DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #21) 2-6 6-4 6-1 QF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-4 6-4

2018 2017 R2-Q L - (EST #59) 6-3 3-6 6-3 R2 L - ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #68) 6-4 6-0

2017 2016 R2 L - SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #8) 6-1 7-6(3) R2 L - (CAN #46) 6-1 5-7 7-5

2015 2015 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #16) 6-2 6-2 R2 L - IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #31) 6-3 6-3

2014 R2 L - PETRA CETKOVSKA (CZE #69) 4-6 6-3 6-4

2012 SF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-3 6-4

2011 R1 L - (BEL #24) 4-6 6-3 6-3

SINIAKOVA: Rome • Making fourth main draw appearance at Rome (fifth overall) • Best result here is reaching 2r twice in 2017 (l. Kuznetsova) and 2019 (l. Kasatkina) • Posted SF run in doubles last year (w/Krejcikova); This week, teams up with Kudermetova as No.6 seed (face Christian/Olmos in 1r) • Faces No.22 Kerber today in their fourth career meeting, most recently falling to the German at 2017 Madrid in 2r (was 5-3 up in the third set, then lost 4 games in a row); bidding for just her second main draw win of 2020 (d. No.27 Muchova at Dubai) • At World No.61, is the Czech No.7 of eight women in the Top 100 (week of September 14, 2020) • Enjoyed a fruitful clay season last year, highlight was reaching R16 at a Grand Slam for the first time at Roland Garros (l. Keys) - upsetting top seed Osaka in straight sets in 3r was the first time that a doubles World No.1 had beaten a singles World No.1 on the singles court since 1987 US Open final when Navratilova defeated Graf • Also advanced to SF at Nürnberg (l. Zidansek) and QF at Prague (l. Strycova) in 2019; fell 1r at Istanbul (l. Rybakina), Madrid (l. eventual champion Bertens), and Jurmala (l. Kalinina)

Season • Coming off 1r exit at US Open (l. Kanepi) • Suffered 1r exits at Western & Southern Open (l. Flipkens) and Prague (l. Zidansek) • Before the Tour’s hiatus, reached 3r at WTA 125K Series event at Indian Wells (l. Zvonareva)

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• Reached 2r at Dubai (l. Rybakina) - win over Muchova in 1r was first at tour level since 2019 Beijing – before fell 1r at Doha (as qualifier, l, Jabeur) • In singles, fell 1r at Shenzhen (l. eventual R-Up Alexandrova), the Australian Open (l. Kvitova) and St. Petersburg (l. eventual R-Up Rybakina) • Advanced to the doubles SF at Prague, Doha and Australian Open (all w/Krejcikova) • Lifted fifth WTA doubles title with Krejcikova at Shenzhen, her eighth doubles title overall

Career Milestones • 2019 highlights include SF run at Nürnberg (l. Larsson), Bronx (l. Linette), and QF run at Prague (l. Strycova). Also made R16 at Roland Garros (career-best result at a Slam, l. Keys), Guangzhou (l. Golubic) and Beijing (l. Wozniacki) • Secured two Top 20 victories in 2019 after defeating No.17 Q. Wang at Rome and No. 1 Osaka at Roland Garros • Won two doubles titles in 2019 at Sydney (w/Krunic) and Toronto (w/Krejcikova). Also R-Up at Indian Wells (l. Mertens/ Sabalenka) and SF run at Wimbledon (l. Dabrowski/Xu) both w/ Krejcikova • Finished 2018 ranked No.1 in doubles after winning first two Grand Slam trophies at Roland Garros (d. Hozumi/ Ninomiya in F) and Wimbledon (d. Melichar/Peschke in F) both w/ Krejcikova, the first pairing to complete the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double since and Ai Sugiyama in 2003. Also R-Up at WTA Finals Singapore (l. Babos/ Mladenovic) • Has three Top 5 career wins in singles - against No.4 Halep at 2017 Shenzhen, No.4 Garcia at Wuhan, and No.1 Osaka at 2019 Roland Garros • In 2016, Reached first two WTA finals of career, at Bastad (as qualifier, l. Siegemund) and Tokyo [] (l. McHale) • On ITF Circuit has won seven singles titles and five doubles titles • Made WTA main draw debut at 2013 Miami (l. Muguruza) • Played first events of career on ITF Circuit in 2012

Grand Slam History • Contested 23nd Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Achieved best showing at a major to date with run to R16 at 2019 Roland Garros (l. Keys) • Previously made 3r at Wimbledon in 2016 (l. A.Radwanska) and 2018 (l. Giorgi), Roland Garros in 2018 (l. Strycova) and US Open in 2018 (l. Tsurenko) • In doubles, lifted first two Grand Slam trophies at 2018 Roland Garros (d. Hozumi/Ninomiya in F) and 2018 Wimbledon (d. Melichar/Peschke in F) both w/Krejcikova – the first pairing to complete the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double since Kim Clijsters and Ai Sugiyama in 2003. Became the first team ever to win the girls’ (2013) and ladies’ (2018) doubles title at Wimbledon • Also reached doubles final at 2017 US Open (w/Hradecka, l. Chan/Hingis)

Personal • Coached by father, Dmitri Siniakov (also a businessman). Has also worked with WTA legend Helena Sukova and Iain Hughes • Mother’s name is Hana Siniakova (accountant); younger brother is Daniel • Started playing tennis at age 5 • All-court player; favorite surface is ; favorite tournament is Australian Open • Tennis idol growing up was Maria Sharapova

KERBER: Rome • Making eighth main draw appearance at Rome • Best result came from a SF run in 2012 (l. eventual champion Sharapova) • Also reached QF in 2018 (l. eventual champion Svitolina) • The only German remained in the singles draw (Goerges lost on Monday) • Faces No.61 Siniakova in 1r today; last time fell to a player ranked outside Top 50 was at Brisbane in January (l. No.98 Stosur) • Last year on clay, reached QF at Stuttgart (l. Bertens), then withdrew from her 2r match in Madrid and also pulled out of Rome due to a right ankle injury; suffered 1r exit at Roland Garros for the third time in the last four years (l. Potapova)

Season • Played her first tournament since January at US Open; reached R16 for the first time since 2016 title run (l. Brady) • Suffered from left leg injury during Australian swing, leading her to pull out of Sunshine Double • Before tennis’ hiatus, posted R16 run at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova) • Posted 2r showing at Adelaide (ret. vs. Yastremska w/left hamstring injury) • Opened 2020 season with 1r exit at Brisbane (l. Stosur)

Career Milestones • Ended 2019 ranked No.20, down from No.2 in 2018 • Reached two finals across last season, firstly finishing as R-Up at Indian Wells (l. Andreescu), in what was the first Premier Mandatory final of her career. As a result, passed the $28 million prize money mark – currently eighth on the all-time list • Second final came on the grass of Eastbourne (R-Up, l. Ka.Pliskova) • Also made SF runs at Doha (l. eventual champion Mertens), Osaka (l. Pavlyuchenkova) and Mallorca (l. Bencic) • Victory over Kontaveit in 2r at Doha marked 600th career win across all levels • Defeated Haddad Maia in 2r at 2019 Australian Open for 100th Grand Slam match-win (one of seven active players to achieve the feat) • Won two titles in 2018, at Sydney (d. Barty in F) and third Grand Slam crown of career at Wimbledon (d. S.Williams in F), finishing the season ranked No.2 • Also in 2018, advanced to SF at Australian Open (l. Halep in 3s, having held two match points), Dubai (l. eventual champion Svitolina) and Eastbourne (l. eventual champion Wozniacki • Ended 2017 on a ranking of No.21. Best results of season were R-Up finish at Monterrey and SF runs at Tokyo [PPO] and Dubai • Enjoyed an outstanding 2016 season, winning first Grand Slam titles of career at Australian Open (d. S.Williams in F) and US Open (d. Ka.Pliskova in F), finishing R-Up at Wimbledon (l. S.Williams in F) and rising to World No.1 in the WTA rankings. At 28, became oldest player to make her debut at World No.1 • Finished 2016 year-end World No.1 ranking – became 12th WTA player to achieve the feat and second German woman to do so after Graf (eight times) • Was voted WTA Player of the Year in 2016 by inter-national media and fans; also, ITF World Champion • Was the WTA match win leader in 2016, going 63-18

• Made fourth appearance at WTA Finals in 2016, progressing past round-robin for first time (l. Cibulkova in F); first German to reach final at the season-ending championships since Graf won title in 1996 • Won first career title at 2012 Paris [Indoors] – defeated Bartoli in final • One of only five active players with three or more Grand Slam titles to their resume along with S.Williams (23), V.Williams (7), Clijsters (4) and Osaka (3)

Grand Slam History • At , became first Grand Slam champion to save match point en route to the title since at (Kerber saved a match point in 1r win over Doi) • Won second Grand Slam singles title at US Open (d. Ka.Pliskova in F) and duly rose to World No.1 • Kerber made just five unforced errors to beat S.Williams and lift third major at 2018 Wimbledon • Just one of two players all-time to defeat Serena Williams in two Grand Slam finals (also Venus Williams at 2001 US Open and 2008 Wimbledon) • In 2016, finished R-Up at Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) • Best result at Roland Garros are QF runs in 2012 (l. eventual R-Up Errani) and 2018 (l. eventual champion Halep)

Personal • Recently reunited with former coach Torben Beltz • Previously worked with Dieter Kindlman, Raemon Sluiter and Wim Fissette • In January 2017 was named in Forbes 30 Under 30 in Europe (in the entertainment category), alongside the likes of Gareth Bale and Luis Suárez • Commercial endorsements include deals with Porsche, Rolex and Head & Shoulders and SAP

MATCH NOTES

ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #21) vs. CAROLINE GARCIA (FRA #45)

Head to Head: 1-1

2019 STUTTGART CLAY I R1 ANETT KONTAVEIT 6-4 6-3 79 mins 2016 LUXEMBOURG HARD I R1 CAROLINE GARCIA 7-6(2) 2-6 6-4 145 mins

ANETT KONTAVEIT CAROLINE GARCIA 21 WTA RANKING 45 13 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 56 24-12-1995 (24) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 16-10-1993 (26) $783,890 YTD PRIZE MONEY $312,080 $4,782,651 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $10,512,541 0 / 1 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 7 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 6 8-3 ROME W-L (MD) * 3-5 19-8 / 122-96 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 8-9 / 222-178 6-3 / 43-32 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 4-3 / 77-62 2-3 / 30-31 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-2 / 59-55 4-1 / 32-21 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 61-44 1-0 / 12-10 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 2-1 / 21-18 1-1 / 3-11 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 6-28 2-4 / 11-20 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 17-40 3-6 / 19-33 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 33-67 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

ANETT KONTAVEIT CAROLINE GARCIA 2019 2019 R2 L - (GRE #39) 6-3 6-2 R1 L - KRISTINA MLADENOVIC (FRA #63) 6-1 6-2

2018 2018 SF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-4 6-3 QF L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #1) 6-2 6-3

2017 2017 QF L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #4) 6-2 6-4 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #33) 7-5 3-6 6-3

2016 R1 L - SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #19) 7-5 6-4

2015 R1 L - BOJANA JOVANOVSKI PETROVIC (SRB #73) 7-6(4) 4-6 6-2

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KONTAVEIT:

Rome • Playing main draw at Internazionali BNL d’Italia for fourth time in her career • Her best result here is reaching SF in 2018 (l. eventual champion Svitolina). Defeated No.12 Vandeweghe, Kuznetsova, No.9 V.Williams and No.2 Wozniacki before bowing out to No.4 Svitolina • Also made QF on her debut in 2017 (l. Halep), when she defeated then-No.1 Kerber in 2r – her first of three career wins over Top 5 ranked players, having also defeated No.2 Wozniacki (2019 Rome) and No.4 Svitolina (2020 Fed Cup playoffs) • Fell 2r in 2019 (l. Sakkari) • Faces No.45 Garcia today in their third career meeting, most recently defeating the Frenchwoman on clay last year en route to Stuttgart final (l. Kvitova) • A loss today would mark her worst-by-ranking of 2020, and worst since falling to No.68 Muchova at 2019 Wimbledon 3r • Last year on clay, reached final at Stuttgart (l. Kvitova in F), made 2r at Rome (l. Sakkari) and fell 1r at Madrid (l. Sasnovich) and Roland Garros (l. Muchova) • Reached QF stage or better three times across 17 events last season – whereas this season has reached four from eight tournaments contested thus far • Enters this week with 19 main draw wins this season – the third-most on Tour behind Mertens (24) and Rybakina (23) • Over the last few months, the Estonian has used her time off to refining her gardening skills back home; while on the court, in July defeated Ostapenko to help Estonia beat Latvia in the Merko Cup exhibition in

Season • Coming off R16 showing at US Open (l. eventual champion Osaka) after a QF run at Western & Southern Open (l. Osaka) • Upon the Tour’s return, made R-Up finish at Palermo (d. No.15 Martic in SF, l. Ferro); career record in finals is now 1-5 • In Middle East, advanced to QF at Dubai (l. No.15 Martic) and fell 2r at Doha (l. eventual champion Sabalenka) • Won all four singles rubbers on Fed Cup duty (including over No.4 Svitolina), leading Estonia to within one win of victory over Ukraine in the promotional play-off • Made Grand Slam breakthrough by reaching maiden major QF at Australian Open (l. Halep), became the first Estonian to make the last eight at Australian Open • Kicked off 2020 season by reaching 2r in Brisbane (l. Bertens) and falling 1r in Adelaide (l. Pavlyuchenkova)

Career Milestones • Finished 2019 ranked No.26 – her second straight Top 30 finish (No.21 in 2018) – despite missing final two months of the season w/viral illness • Reached her fifth career final in 2019 at Stuttgart (l. Kvitova). Also in 2019, advanced to her first Premier Mandatory SF at Miami (l. eventual champion Barty), which propelled her to a career high ranking of No.14 (April 1, 2019) • In 2018, season highlighted by fourth WTA singles final at Wuhan (l. Sabalenka); posted 33 main draw wins – the first time she had registered 30 or more wins in a season – finishing No.21 in the rankings • Enjoyed fruitful clay swing in 2018, including a R16 at Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up Stephens) and SF showings at Rome (l. eventual champion Svitolina) and Stuttgart (l. eventual champion Ka.Pliskova) • Breakthrough season came in 2017, finishing on a ranking of No.34, up from No.110 in 2016 – first year-end finish inside Top 50 and second non-consecutive year in Top 100

• Won first career singles title at 2017 ‘s-Hertogenbosch (d. Vikhlyantseva in F). Also reached finals at Biel/Benne (l. Vondrousova) and Gstaad (l. Bertens) • Broke into Top 30 for first time at No.27 following run at Gstaad (July 24, 2017) • Also advanced to QF at Premier-level tournaments at Stuttgart, where she beat No.6 Muguruza en route, and Rome, where she posted her first career win over a reigning No.1 with defeat of Kerber in 2r • In 2016, played main draw at all four Grand Slams for first time, but dropped out of Top 100 • One of five teenagers in 2015 year-end Top 100 • Made Top 100 debut on September 14, 2015 at No.96, up from No.152 • Scored first Top 20 win of career over No.17 Errani at 2016 Monterrey (2r) • Has won 11 singles titles and five doubles titles on ITF Circuit • Made WTA main draw debut at 2013 Miami as WC (l. McHale, 1r) • Played first events of career on ITF Circuit in 2010 • Junior highlights included winning 2011 , defeating Bouchard and Putintseva en route

Grand Slam History • Played 21st Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open (l. eventual champion Osaka in R16) • Earlier this year, made history by becoming the first Estonian to reach QF at Australian Open, and also the first Estonian to reach a Grand Slam QF since Kanepi at 2017 US Open • Earned her first Grand Slam victories at 2015 US Open where she reached R16 (as qualifier, l. V.Williams) – only seventh qualifier in Open Era to reach US Open R16 • Also made R16 at 2018 Australian Open (l. Suárez Navarro) and 2018 Roland Garros (l. Stephens) • Best showings at Wimbledon are 3r runs in 2017 (l. Wozniacki), 2018 (l. Van Uytvanck) and 2019 (l. Muchova) • R-Up in 2012 US Open girls’ singles (l. Crawford)

Personal • Coached by Nigel Sears • Grew up in Tallinn, Estonia • Mother, Ulle, is a tennis coach and started her in tennis (was her coach until the age of 11, then began working other Estonian coaches). Father, Andrus, is a manager at the Port of Tallinn

GARCIA:

Rome • Contesting the Internazionali BNL d’Italia main draw for the sixth time • Best result here is reaching QF in 2018 (d. No.10 Stephens in R16, l. then-No.1 Halep) • Only other win at Rome came in 2017 (d. Vekic in 1r, l. Gavrilova). Fell 1r in 2015-16 and 2019 • Faces No.21 Kontaveit today in their third career meeting. Defeated the Estonian four years ago at 2016 Luxembourg in 3s • Today marks her second meeting against a Top 30 ranked opponent in 2020, having defeated No.3 Ka.Pliskova at US Open • Post 10-8 record on clay in 2019, highlighted by R-Up finish at Strasbourg (l. Yastremska in F) and R16 at Madrid (l. Kvitova)

Season • Coming off 2r exit at Istanbul (l. Martincova) following a 3r run at US Open (l. Brady) • Defeated No.3 Ka.Pliskova in 2r at Flushing Meadows to record her first Top 10 win since 2018 Tianjin title (d. No.6 Ka.Pliskova in F); career record vs. such players stands at 17-40 • Fell 2r at Western & Southern Open (d. Stephens, l. eventual champion Azarenka) • Prior to Tour’s hiatus, made first QF run of 2020 at Lyon, breaking a three-match losing streak at Australian Open (l. Jabeur in 2r), and 1r exits at St. Petersburg (l. Ferro) and Qatar (l. Pera) • Opened 2020 campaign at Auckland, falling to No.262 Bouchard in 2r before falling 1r at Hobart (l. No.129 Cabrera)

Career Highlights • 2019 season highlights include capturing her seventh career WTA singles title at Nottingham and reaching the finals at Strasbourg • Member of French Fed Cup team that won the 2019 competition final vs. , teaming up with Mladenovic to win the decisive doubles runner against Barty/Stosur. Also took part in the team that advanced to final vs. Czech Republic • Fell out of the Top 20 on March 18, 2019 after holding her position there since August 14, 2017 • In 2018, won sixth career title at Tianjin; also made semifinals at Stuttgart and Madrid • Broke into the Top 5 on August 13, 2018 and reached a career-high of No.4 on September 10, 2018 • Became first player to win Wuhan and Beijing back-to-back in 2017. As a result, qualified for WTA Finals. Was ranked No.30 on the Race to Singapore leaderboard in May 2017 • Best win of her career came over No.2 Halep in 2017 Beijing final • 2017 Wuhan marked first Premier-5 level title and 2017 Beijing marked first Premier-Mandatory crown; subsequently made Top 10 debut • Won a career-best 48 main draw matches in 2017 (48-22 record, two titles) • Qualifying for WTA Finals in 2017, became the first Frenchwoman to compete at WTA Finals in singles since Mauresmo in 2006 (l. Henin in F) • Played 2015 WTA Finals Rising Stars Invitational in Singapore (l. Osaka in F) • Represented France at 2016 Rio Olympics in singles (2r) and doubles (1r, w/Mladenovic) • Member of French Fed Cup team that advanced to 2016 competition final vs. Czech Republic • Made professional debut at 13 on ITF Circuit in France in 2007

Grand Slam History • Played 33rd Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Advanced to QF at 2017 Roland Garros (l. Ka.Pliskova) for best Grand Slam singles result to date • Has also reached R16 at 2017 Wimbledon (l. Konta), 2018 Australian Open (l. Keys) and 2018 Roland Garros (l. Kerber) • Made US Open 3r in 2016 (l. A.Radwanska), 2017 (l. Kvitova) and 2018 (l. Suárez Navarro) • In 2016 was doubles champion at Roland Garros and R-Up at US Open (both w/Mladenovic) • In juniors, singles runner-up at 2011 US Open (l. Min) and was a semifinalist at the other three Slams

Personal • Coached by father, Louis Paul Garcia; Mother is Marylene • Played many sports when she was younger and chose tennis because it was the one she enjoyed the most • Enjoys reading and spending time with family • Endorsement portfolio includes Rolex, Nike, and Sothys beauty products

MATCH NOTES

ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ONS JABEUR (TUN #34) vs. CORI GAUFF (USA #53)

Head to Head: CORI GAUFF leads 1-0

2020 LEXINGTON HARD O QF CORI GAUFF 4-6 6-4 6-1 118 mins

ONS JABEUR CORI GAUFF 34 WTA RANKING 53 14 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 55 28-08-1994 (26) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 13-03-2004 (16) $700,623 YTD PRIZE MONEY $362,908 $2,332,436 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $914,920 0 / 0 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 1 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 2 0-0 ROME W-L (MD) * 0-0 16-8 / 55-69 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 7-5 / 18-10 6-3 / 17-27 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-3 / 9-3 4-6 / 15-24 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 6-0 0-0 / 7-9 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 0-0 1-1 / 6-4 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 0-0 1-2 / 2-4 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 1-1 1-2 / 4-8 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 2-2 4-4 / 9-16 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 2-1 / 3-3 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 1r

ROME Tournament Performance - 2020 "-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration Rnd Result Duration

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

ONS JABEUR 2019 R2-Q L - TAMARA ZIDANSEK (SLO #70) 6-3 7-6(4)

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JABEUR:

Rome • Making main draw debut at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Fell in qualifying in 2019 (l. Zidansek) • Faces No.53 Gauff today in their second career meeting, falling to the American last month at Lexington • Is facing an American for the 10th time in 2020, posting a 6-3 record thus far with wins over Brengle (Hobart qualifying), Riske (Dubai), Brady (Doha), McNally (Lexington), Keys and McHale (both at Western & Southern Open) • Has fallen to players ranked outside the Top 50 twice this year – l. No.53 Gauff (Lexington) and No.59 Azarenka (Western & Southern Open) • Bidding for her first Tour level win on clay since reaching QF at 2018 Bucharest (l. Hercog) • Contested two clay court events in 2019, falling in Rome qualifying and a 1r exit at Roland Garros (l. Martic). Best clay court results at Tour level were QF showing at 2018 Bucharest and 3r at 2017 Roland Garros (as LL, l. Bacsinszky) – became first Arab woman to reach 3r at a major • Enters Rome ranked No.34 – three spots shy from her career high of No.31 (achieved on August 31, 2020)

Season • Coming off 3r showing at US Open (l. Kenin) • Reached QF at Western & Southern Open (l. eventual champion Azarenka). Scored her fourth Top 20 win of the season over No.13 Keys in 2r. Also this season has beaten No.13 Konta (Australian Open), No.18 Riske (Dubai) and No.3 Ka.Pliskova (Doha) • Upon the Tour’s return, reached QF at Lexington (l. Gauff in 3s) • Prior to tennis’ hiatus in March, advanced to Doha QF (d. No.3 Ka.Pliskova in 3r, l. Kvitova) • Fell 2r at Dubai (l. Halep – held 1MP in third-set tie-break) • Made Top 50 debut at No.45 after breakthrough performance in Melbourne • Reached maiden Grand Slam QF at Australian Open to become the first Arab woman to reach that stage at a major (l. eventual champion Kenin) • Was voted January’s WTA Breakthrough Player of the Month • Opened 2020 season with 1r exit at Shenzhen (l. Q.Wang) and 2r showing at Hobart (as qualifier, l. Muguruza)

Career Milestones • Ended 2019 ranked No.77, while during season posted ranking of No.51 (September 9, 2019) • Season highlights were matching best result at the Slams with 3r run at US Open (matching 2017 Roland Garros and now 2020 Australian Open) and SF appearances at Eastbourne (l. eventual R-Up Kerber) and Tianjin (l. eventual champion Peterson) • In 2018, defeated No.3 seed Stephens, No.8 seed Kontaveit and No.5 seed Sevastova en route to her first WTA final at 2018 Moscow, where she fell in three sets to No.6 seed Kasatkina. Was first Tunisian woman to advance beyond QF at a WTA tournament (Sfar was the only other Tunisian to reach a QF at this level) • Prior to 2018 Moscow, best previous results were QF at 2013 Baku, 2017 Taipei City and 2018 Bucharest • Owns four Top 10 victories, over No.7 Cibulkova (2017 Roland Garros), No.1 Halep (2018 Beijing), No.8 Stephens (2018

Moscow) and No.3 Ka.Pliskova (2020 Doha) • Member of Tunisian Olympic Team in 2012 and 2016 • Contested first two WTA main draws in 2012, at Doha (as WC) and Olympics • Became first North African woman to win a junior Slam at 2011 Roland Garros (d. Puig in F), having also reached the final in 2010 (l. Svitolina in F) • On ITF Circuit, has 11 singles and one doubles title • Played first event of career at 2008 ITF/El Menzah-TUN

Grand Slam History • Played her 14th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Deepest run at a major was advancing to QF at 2020 Australian Open, making history by becoming the first Arab woman to reach the final eight of a Grand Slam (l. eventual champion Kenin) • Prior to 2020 US Open, best Slam runs were 3r runs at 2017 Roland Garros and 2019 US Open; in Paris became first Arab woman to reach 3r at a major and first to contest 3r of a Slam since Kasatkina at 2015 US Open, and first at Roland Garros since Pizzichini in 1996. Gaidano, at 1993 US Open, was most recent lucky loser to reach Slam R16 • Is second Tunisian woman to win a Grand Slam main draw match after reached 2r at 2001 Roland Garros, Wimbledon and US Open; 2002 Wimbledon; 2005 Wimbledon; and 2008 Roland Garros • Has also made 2r at 2017 US Open (l. Vandeweghe) and 2018 Wimbledon (l. Siniakova) • In girls’ singles at Roland Garros was champion in 2011 (d. Puig) and R-Up in 2010 (l. Svitolina)

Personal • Coached by Issam Jellali • Started playing tennis at age 3 • Husband Karim Kamoun is half-Russian and a former professional fencer; also her fitness coach • Speaks Arabic, English and French • Away from court enjoys playing and watching football • In in December 2019, was honoured at the Arab Women of the Year ceremony for her achievements in the sport so far • Fan of Eminem and Cristiano Ronaldo

GAUFF:

Rome

• Making tournament debut this week at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • 2020 Rome marks the first Tour level clay event of her career. Last year fell in qualifying at Roland Garros (l. Juvan) • Faces No.34 Jabeur today, having defeated the Tunisian last month at Lexington QF – her last singles victory after falling in the SF to eventual champion Brady, and 1r exits at Western & Southern Open (l. Sakkari) and US Open (l. Sevastova) • Has posted 3-4 record against Top 50 ranked players this season, with wins over No.4 Osaka (Australian Open), No.11 Sabalenka and No.39 Jabeur (both at Lexington) • Enters Rome ranked No.53. Broke into the WTA Top 50 (at No.49) on February 24, 2020

Season • Coming off back-to-back 1r exits at Western & Southern Open (l. Sakkari) and US Open (l. Sevastova) • Made R16 in doubles at Western & Southern Open and US Open (w/McNally, l. Melichar/Xu at both events) • Returned to tennis at Lexington, reaching the SF (l. eventual champion Brady) • Won 12 of the last 15 points of the match to upset No.11 Sabalenka in 2r at Lexington; now owns three career Top 20 wins, having also defeated No.4 Osaka earlier this year at Australian Open and No.8 Bertens at 2019 Linz • At 2h 50m, match against Sabalenka was the longest of her career – five minutes longer than her win over Hercog at 2019 Wimbledon • Opened 2020 season by reaching 2r at Auckland (l. Siegemund) and R16 at Australian Open (l. eventual champion Kenin in 3s)

Career Milestones • Enjoyed breakout season in 2019, highlighted by maiden WTA singles title at Linz (as lucky loser, d. Ostapenko in F) - earned her first Top 10 win en route to title over No.8 Bertens in QF • At 15y214d, her title run in Linz made her youngest to win a WTA tour-level title since Vaidisova (15y177d) won Tashkent in 2004 • Also claimed maiden WTA doubles titles at Washington, DC (w/McNally, d. Sanchez/Stollar in F) and Luxembourg (w/McNally, d. Christian/Guarachi in F) • By winning the doubles title at Washington, DC at 15 yrs, 144 days, became the youngest player to win a doubles title since May 1995 (Martina Hingis won Hamburg at 14 yrs, 219 days) • Reached R16 at 2019 Wimbledon on Grand Slam main draw debut (l. eventual champion Halep) - followed with 3r showing at US Open (as WC, l. Osaka) • Finished 2019 season ranked No.69, having started the year ranked No.685 • Made WTA main draw debut at 2019 Miami (as WC, l. Kasatkina in 2r) • Made ITF debut in May 2018 as a qualifier into the $25K ITF/Osprey, FL—USA, where she won her first professional match (as qualifier, l. Stewart in R16) • Finished 2018 season with a WTA ranking of No.875 • Former junior World No.1 (July 2018)

Grand Slam History • Played her 13th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 Australian Open • Deepest run at a major was advancing to QF at 2020 Australian Open, making history by becoming the first Arab woman to reach the final eight of a Grand Slam (l. eventual champion Kenin) • Prior to 2020 Australian Open, best Slam runs were 3r runs at 2017 Roland Garros and 2019 US Open; in Paris became first Arab woman to reach 3r at a major and first lucky loser to contest 3r of a Slam since Kasatkina at 2015 US Open, and first at Roland Garros since Pizzichini in 1996. Gaidano, at 1993 US Open, was most recent lucky loser to reach Slam R16 • Is second Tunisian woman to win a Grand Slam main draw match after Selima Sfar reached 2r at 2001 Roland Garros, Wimbledon and US Open; 2002 Wimbledon; 2005 Wimbledon; and 2008 Roland Garros • Has also made 2r at 2017 US Open (l. Vandeweghe) and 2018 Wimbledon (l. Siniakova) • In girls’ singles at Roland Garros was champion in 2011 (d. Puig) and R-Up in 2010 (l. Svitolina)

Personal • Began playing tennis at age 7 • Grew up in Atlanta, Georgia before moving to Florida to pursue tennis; main residence is now Delray Beach, Florida • Currently coached by her father Corey Gauff (played for Georgia State University) and is part of ‘Team Mouratoglou’ along with rising male players Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexei Popyrin, Rudi Molleker and Jason Tseng – has trained at Mouratoglou Academy in France since age of 10 • Mother, Candi was a track and field athlete at Florida State University. Has two younger brothers, Cody and Cameron • Favorite subject at school is literature • Cites Serena Williams as the reason she plays tennis and also admires Venus • Signed first multi-year sponsorships in 2018 with , Head and Barilla, an Italian food company known for its pasta

MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA Website: www.wtatennis.com | @WTA | facebook.com/wta Tournament Website: Internazionalibnlditalia.com | @InteBNLdItalia | facebook.com/internazionalibnlditalia WTA Communications: Alex Prior ([email protected]), Ellie Emerson ([email protected])

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – DAY THREE

[SE] VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) vs. [WC] VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #70)

V.Williams leads 6-2 Azarenka arrives following finalist performance at the US Open… V.Williams returns as a former champion, having lifted the crown in 1999… Azarenka was R-Up here in 2013

ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA (RUS #36) vs. [4] ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6)

Pavlyuchenkova leads 3-1 Pavlyuchenkova bidding for third Top 10 win this season… Svitolina returning to Rome as a two- time champion, capturing back-to-back titles in 2017-18

[6] BELINDA BENCIC (SUI #10) vs. [Q] DANKA KOVINIC (MNE #86)

Kovinic leads 1-0 Bencic playing in first event back since hiatus; prior to break, advacned to QF at Doha… Kovinic defeated the Swiss over five years ago at Charleston in their only previous meeting

[1] SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. [WC] JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99)

First meeting Halep currently on a nine-match winning streak, including title runs at Dubai and Prague… Paolini looking to improve 2-0 record against Top 10 ranked opponents

BARBORA STRYCOVA (CZE #37) vs. [2] KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Ka.Pliskova leads 4-1 Strycova looking for her first pair of back-to-back wins since reaching SF at 2019 Wimbledon… Ka.Pliskova kicks off title defense after defeating Konta to lift last year’s crown

Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA 1 MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY

• As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. • Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play. • WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities. • Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer. • “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among others. • In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants. • For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

• One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3) • Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington) • Lowest-ranked player to triumph: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul) • Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R-Up) • Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul) • Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d) • Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d) • Aces leaders: Elena Rybakina – 155, Garbiñe Muguruza – 128, Kristyna Pliskova – 125 • Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF) • Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 24, Elena Rybakina – 23, Anett Kontaveit – 19, Sofia Kenin – 18 • Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha) • Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul) • Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF) • Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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2 MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) vs. VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #70)

Head to Head: VENUS WILLIAMS leads 6-2

2020 LEXINGTON HARD O R1 VENUS WILLIAMS 6-3 6-2 80 mins 2019 AUCKLAND HARD O R1 VENUS WILLIAMS 6-3 1-6 6-3 131 mins 2015 MADRID CLAY O R1 VICTORIA AZARENKA 6-3 7-5 89 mins 2015 DOHA HARD O SF VICTORIA AZARENKA 2-6 6-2 6-4 138 mins 2014 STANFORD HARD O R16 VENUS WILLIAMS 6-4 7-6(1) 103 mins 2013 TOKYO HARD O R2 VENUS WILLIAMS 6-2 6-4 81 mins 2010 DUBAI HARD O F VENUS WILLIAMS 6-3 7-5 91 mins 2008 OLYMPICS HARD O R16 VENUS WILLIAMS 6-3 6-2 70 mins

VICTORIA AZARENKA VENUS WILLIAMS 14 WTA RANKING 70 3 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 262 31-07-1989 (31) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 17-06-1980 (40) $1,819,530 YTD PRIZE MONEY $144,268 $32,175,035 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $41,880,806 1 / 21 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 49 0 / 8 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 22 19-10 ROME W-L (MD) * 34-14 11-3 / 462-181 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 1-6 / 795-253 3-1 / 88-63 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 0-4 / 185-117 2-0 / 68-44 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 0-2 / 135-97 0-0 / 93-46 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 167-62 0-0 / 46-14 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 73-16 0-0 / 30-41 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 65-75 1-1 / 68-73 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 136-106 4-1 / 124-101 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 236-153 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 1r

"-Q" Qualifying match

Rnd Result Duration

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

VICTORIA AZARENKA VENUS WILLIAMS 2019 2019 QF L - KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #7) 6-7(5) 6-2 6-2 R16 L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-2 6-4

2018 2018 R1 L - NAOMI OSAKA (JPN #21) 6-0 6-3 R16 L - ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #26) 6-2 7-6(3)

2016 2017 R2 L - IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #35) 6-3 6-2 QF L - GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #7) 6-2 3-6 6-2 2015 2016 QF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #3) 6-3 6-2 R2 L - TIMEA BABOS (HUN #48) 6-7(5) 7-5 6-4 2013 2015 F L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-1 6-3 R16 L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) 6-2 6-1 2012 2014 R16 L - DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA (SVK #17) W/O R2 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #14) 6-4 6-2 2011 QF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #8) 4-6 3-0 2013 R1 L - (GBR #39) 6-3 6-2 2010 R2 L - (SRB #58) 6-4 6-4 2012 QF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-4 6-3 2009 SF L - SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #8) 6-2 6-4 2010 QF L - JELENA JANKOVIC (SRB #7) 6-0 6-1 2008 R16 L - (BUL #64) 6-2 1-0 2009 SF L - (RUS #1) 6-7(3) 6-3 6-4 2006 R1 L - ANASTASIA MYSKINA (RUS #13) 6-3 3-6 7-6(6) 2008 QF L - JELENA JANKOVIC (SRB #4) 5-7 6-2 6-3

2006 SF L - MARTINA HINGIS (SUI #21) 0-6 6-3 6-3

2000 R16 L - (AUS #37) 6-1 6-2

1999 F W - MARY PIERCE (FRA #8) 6-4 6-2

1998 V.WILLIAMS: F L - MARTINA HINGIS (SUI #1) 6-2 3-6 6-2 Rome • Making 16th appearance at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, as a former champion in 1999 (d. Pierce in F). Also reached final on debut in 1998 (l. Hingis in F) • During title run here in 1999, notched second career win over a reigning World No.1, defeating Hingis in SF. First win over a No.1 also came against Hingis at 1998 Miami • Has posted 34 wins at the tournament – only S.Williams (44), Martínez (42) and Evert (37) have registered more • Sits in second place among active players for clay court titles, with nine, behind S.Williams (13) • Faces No.14 Azarenka in 2r today; last Top 20 win on clay came 12 months ago, over No.20 Mertens in 1r here in Rome Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from

• Only win of the season came over Azarenka in 1r at Lexington • Winner faces No.3 seed Kenin in 2r • At 40-years-old, is the oldest woman in this week’s field; oldest player to play Rome was Date in 2011 (40y 233d) • One of six players in this year’s field to have held the WTA World No.1 ranking, and one of nine Grand Slam champions • Currently ranked No.70 – her lowest position since occupying No.72 spot on July 30, 2012

Season • On record 22nd appearance at US Open, suffered first ever opening round exit at the tournament (l. Muchova) • Made 1r exit at Western & Southern Open (l. Yastremska) • Posted 2r showing at Lexington; snapped four-match losing streak with victory over fellow former No.1 Azarenka in 1r, before falling to sister Serena in 2r in what was the 31st career meeting between the sisters • The win over Azarenka marked her first main draw win of 2020, having fallen in the opening round this year at the Australian Open (l. Gauff), Acapulco (l. Juvan) and Monterrey (l. Schmiedlova)

Career Milestones • Ended 2019 ranked No.53, down from No.40 in 2018 • Reached four QFs across 2019, including Auckland (l. eventual R-Up Andreescu), Indian Wells (l. eventual R-Up Kerber), Birmingham (l. eventual champion Barty) and Cincinnati (l. eventual champion Keys) • Scored her best win of the season at Indian Wells, ousting No.3 Kvitova in 3s. Also defeated defending champion and then-ranked No.5 in Cincinnati • Also made R16 at Miami (l. Halep) and Rome (l. Konta) • Season highlights in 2018 were SF run at Indian Wells (d. S,Williams in 3r, l. eventual R-Up Kasatkina) and QF effort at Miami (l. Collins) • Winnings at Indian Wells took her career total past $40 million – S.Williams ($92 million) is the only other player to pass this milestone • Teamed up in Fed Cup for Serena’s first competitive match back since giving birth in September 2017 (played dead doubles rubber, l. Kerkhove/Schuurs) • Ended 2017 season as runner-up at WTA Finals (l. Wozniacki) – the oldest player to ever reach the title bout at the season finale • Reached two other finals in 2017, at Australian Open (l. S.Williams) and Wimbledon (l. Muguruza) – only player in 2017 to reach two Grand Slam finals • Shortly after her 37th birthday, returned to Top 10 by reaching 2017 Wimbledon final, becoming (at the time) the third oldest player to rank in Top 10 in WTA history behind Billie Jean King (September 26, 1983 – 39 years, 322 days) and (December 26, 1994 – 38 years, 75 days); also surpassed by 37-year-old Serena in February 2019 • 2016 season highlights including winning 49th career singles title at Kaohsiung (d. Doi). Is sixth-oldest player to win a WTA singles title, after Billie Jean King (39) at 1983 Birmingham, (38) at 2009 Seoul, Serena Williams (38) at 2020 Auckland, Martina Navratilova (37) at 1994 Paris [Indoor] and Francesca Schiavone (36) at 2017 Bogotá • With 49 titles, currently 11th on list of Open Era titleholders, chasing (53 titles) • At Grand Slam level in 2016, advanced to SF at Wimbledon (l. Kerber) which was first time reaching that stage at a major since 2010 US Open • At 2016 Rio Olympics won silver medal in the mixed doubles (w/Ram, l. Mattek-Sands/) • Returned to Top 10 for first time since March 2011 following victory in final of the 2015 WTA Elite Trophy • Was diagnosed with Sjögrens Syndrome in 2011, missing the end of that season and start of 2012

• Won singles gold medal at 2000 Sydney Olympics (d. Dementieva in F); won doubles gold three times with sister Serena, at Sydney, Beijing and London • Spent 11 weeks at World No.1 in singles (first ascended to top spot week of February 25, 2002) and topped the doubles rankings for eight weeks in 2010 • Made WTA main draw debut at Oakland in 1994; as unranked WC, defeated Stafford in 1r before falling to then-world No.2 Sánchez Vicario in three sets

Grand Slam History • Played 86th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open, the most in the Open Era • Is a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, winning Wimbledon five times: 2000-01 2005 and 2007-08. Also won US Open in 2000 (d. Davenport in F) and 2001 (d. S.Williams in F) • In addition, a nine-time Grand Slam R-Up across all four majors: Wimbledon (2002-03, 2009 and 2017), US Open (1997, 2002), Roland Garros (2002) and Australian Open (2003, 2017) • The span between her maiden Grand Slam final at the US Open in 1997 and 2017 Wimbledon is the longest in Open Era history, followed by Navratilova 1975-94 • Owns 14 Grand Slam doubles titles (all w/S.Williams), most recently winning 2016 Wimbledon In mixed doubles, won Australian Open (w/Gimelstob) and Roland Garros (w/Gimelstob, d. S.Willams/ Lobo in F) in 1998

Personal • Owns interior design company, VStarr Interiors. Also set up line called EleVen, designing her own on-court outfits • Chief Brand Officer of Asutra, a self-care line • In 2015 received Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Indiana University East • Coached by Eric Hechtman, Richard Williams and Oracene Price. Split with long-term coach David Witt at end of 2018

AZARENKA: Rome • Making 12th appearance at Rome. R-Up in 2013 (l. S.Williams) and a semifinalist in 2009 (l. Kuznetsova); also a three-time quarterfinalist • One of these QF runs came in 2019 (l. eventual champion Ka.Pliskova); en route recovered from 5-2 down in the third set (saved 1mp at 5-3) to defeat defending champion Svitolina in 2r, then recorded the 500th win of her career (including qualifying, ITF Circuit and Fed Cup) when 3r opponent Muguruza retired w/left thigh injury • Last year also won doubles title here w/Barty (d. Groenefeld/Schuurs in F) • Faces No.70 V.Williams in 1r today; two of three defeats in 2020 have been to players outside Top 50 – No.71 Zidansek (Monterrey) and No.67 V.Williams (Lexington) • Won sole clay court title at Marbella in 2011 • Currently ranked No.14 – her highest ranking since returning to the tour from maternity leave in 2017 • Celebrated 31st birthday this summer – is one of 12 players aged 30 or over in the draw this week

Season • Coming off R-Up showing at US Open (l. Osaka in 3s); now 21-18 in singles finals • Upset No.11 Sabalenka, No.18 Mertens and No.8 S.Williams en route to record the 122nd, 123rd and 124th Top 20 wins of her career and reach first major final since 2013 US Open – seven-year between major finals is second-longest in Open Era behind V.Williams (seven years, 207 days between 2009 Wimbledon and 2017 Australian Open) • Made history alongside S.Williams in New York by becoming the first pair of mothers to reach the semifinals at the same Grand Slam • Lifted 21st career title at Western & Southern Open when final opponent Osaka withdrew w/left hamstring injury • Suffered 1r exit at Lexington (l. V.Williams) in her second WTA event of 2020 • Opened 2020 season with 1r exit at Monterrey (l. Zidansek), having not contested any events in Australia due to personal reasons

Career Milestones • Last tournament of 2019 was the US Open, where she fell to Sabalenka in 1r; also reached the doubles final w/Barty (l. Mertens/Sabalenka) • Highlight of 2019 was 37th singles final at Monterrey (d. No.5 Kerber in SF, l. Muguruza in F via ret. w/leg injury). Also made QFs at Acapulco (l. Kenin), Stuttgart (l. Kontaveit via ret.) and Rome (l. Ka.Pliskova) • On February 2, 2019 returned to Top 50 for first time following the birth of her child, Leo • Highlights of 2018 season included SF at Miami (l. Stephens) and QF at San Jose and Tokyo • Made return to tennis in June 2017 following birth of first child in December 2016 • Comeback tournament was Mallorca, reaching 2r (d. Ozaki, l. Konjuh). Prior to 2017 Mallorca, last tournament contested was 2016 Roland Garros (1r) • Followed this with R16 at Wimbledon (l. Halep). Did not play after Wimbledon due to personal reasons • Ended 2016 ranked No.13, despite missing second half of season after going on maternity leave (announced pregnancy mid-July). Lifted three titles, at Brisbane and ‘Sunshine Double’ of Indian Wells and Miami – third woman to achieve feat after Graf in 1994 and 1996 and Clijsters in 2005 • Posted 26-3 record for first six months of 2016 with losses coming at the Australian Open (QF, l. Kerber), Rome (2r, l. Begu) and Roland Garros (ret. vs. Knapp w/right knee injury)

• Limited to total of 23 events over 2014-15 seasons due to variety of injuries • Posted five consecutive Top 10 finishes between 2009 and 2013, qualifying for the WTA Finals on each occasion (l. Kvitova in 2011 final in Istanbul) • Ascended to World No.1 after 2012 Australian Open and held top spot for a total of 51 weeks • Began 2012 with 26-match win streak – best start since Hingis went 37-0 in 1997. Went on to win tour-leading 69 matches in 2012, season highlighted by six titles, finishing as WTA’s year-end No.1 • Won two medals for Belarus at 2012 Olympics bronze in singles and mixed doubles gold (w/Mirnyi) • Made WTA main draw debut at 2005 Kolkata • ITF Junior World Champion for 2005 – reached first tour-level semifinal at Guangzhou the same year

Grand Slam History • Contested landmark 50th major at 2020 US Open – one of nine active players to reach this milestone • Two-time major champion, winning Australian Open in 2012 (d. Sharapova in F) and 2013 (d. Li in F) • Also a three-time runner-up, at 2012 (l. S.Williams in 3s), 2013 (l. S.Williams in 3s) and 2020 US Open (l. Osaka in 3s) • Advanced to Wimbledon SF in 2011 and 2012, while best result at Roland Garros is also SF run in 2013 • Four-time Grand Slam doubles finalist, at (w/Peer), 2009 Roland Garros (w/Vesnina), (w/Kirilenko) and 2019 US Open (w/Barty) • Two-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, at 2007 US Open (w/ Mirnyi) and 2008 Roland Garros (w/B.Bryan). Most recently finished as mixed doubles R-Up at 2018 Wimbledon (w/J.Murray) • Won girls’ singles titles at the Australian Open and US Open in 2005

Personal • Currently coached by Dorian Descloix. Formerly coached by Wim Fissette, and • Gave birth to son Leo in December 2016 • Introduced to tennis at age 7 by mother Alla; father’s name is Fedor and older brother is Max MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA (RUS #36) vs. ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6)

Head to Head: ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA leads 3-1

2017 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O R3 ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA 7-5 4-6 6-3 152 mins 2016 TOKYO HARD O R16 ELINA SVITOLINA 7-6(5) 6-4 100 mins 2015 BEIJING HARD O R2 ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA 6-4 1-6 6-3 126 mins 2013 SOFIA HARD I R1 ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA 6-2 6-4 83 mins

ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA ELINA SVITOLINA 36 WTA RANKING 6 27 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 37 03-07-1991 (29) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 12-09-1994 (26) $430,456 YTD PRIZE MONEY $225,496 $10,223,275 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $19,460,456 0 / 12 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 14 0 / 5 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 2 7-10 ROME W-L (MD) * 11-4 7-5 / 345-260 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 9-6 / 274-152 3-2 / 117-98 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 82-51 4-3 / 85-71 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 54-44 1-1 / 66-59 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 54-32 2-2 / 30-31 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 24-21 2-1 / 15-35 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 19-18 2-2 / 34-66 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 33-38 3-2 / 65-115 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 59-68 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA (RUS #36) ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6) R64: d. SHUAI ZHANG (CHN #38) 6-4,6-7(5),6-1 (2h09) BYE

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History

ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA ELINA SVITOLINA 2019 2019 R1 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #39) 6-1 7-5 R2 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 4-6 6-1 7-5

2018 2018 R1 L - MADISON KEYS (USA #14) 6-4 6-1 F W - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #1) 6-0 6-4

2017 2017 R16 L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #4) 6-1 4-6 6-0 F W - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #4) 4-6 7-5 6-1 2016 2016 R1 L - ANA IVANOVIC (SRB #16) 6-4 6-4 R1 L - (PUR #57) 6-1 4-6 6-1 2015 2015 R2 L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-1 6-3 R2 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #16) 6-4 6-3 2014 2014 R1 L - BELINDA BENCIC (SUI #96) 6-3 3-6 6-3 R1 L - ELENA VESNINA (RUS #33) 6-2 6-3 2013 R1 L - (SUI #44) 6-2 6-0

2012 R2 L - PETRA KVITOVA (CZE #4) 7-5 6-4 2011 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #4) 6-4 4-6 6-2

2010 R1 L - (ITA #78) 6-4 7-6(5)

PAVLYUCHENKOVA: Rome • Making 11th appearance in Rome this week • Best result were 3r showings in 2011 (l. Azarenka) and 2017 (d. No.18 Sevastova, l. Halep) • Broke serve seven times to see off Zhang in 1r • Faces No.6 Svitolina in 2r today – owns two Top 10 wins this season, over No.2 Ka.Pliskova (Australian Open) and No.4 Bencic (Dubai) • Currently the No.2 ranked Russian woman of eight in Top 100 (also Alexandrova, Kuznetsova, Kudermetova, Blinkova, Kasatkina, Potapova and Gracheva) • Owns three titles on clay, at 2013 Estoril, 2017 Rabat and 2018 Strasbourg

Season • Marked return to tour in August with 1r exit at Prague (l. Rus) • Before tour’s hiatus, made 2r at Dubai (d. defending champion No.4 Bencic in 1r, l. Kontaveit) • Matched last year’s Australian Open result with QF finish, falling to eventual R-Up Muguruza (def. No.2 Ka.Pliskova and No.18 Kerber en route) • Fell to eventual champion Barty in R16 at Adelaide following 1r exit to begin 2020 campaign at Brisbane (l. Kvitova)

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Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 ranked No.30, up from No.42 in 2018 – marking her 12th consecutive Top 50 finish • Advanced to two finals in 2019 – both at the Premier-level – at Osaka (l. Osaka in F) and Moscow (l. Bencic in F) • Fell in qualifying at Cincinnati (l. Diyas) - first time contesting WTA qualifying since 2011 Dubai • Reached QF in Melbourne in 2019 to match best Grand Slam result (l. Collins); took out No.9 Bertens, No.5 Stephens en route • 2018 season highlight was claiming her 12th WTA singles title at Strasbourg (d. Cibulkova in F). Other highlights were QF runs at Stuttgart (l. Kontaveit), Wuhan (d. No.11 Bertens in 2r and No.5 Kvitova in R16, l. Barty), Linz (l. Alexandrova) and Moscow [] (l. Kasatkina) • Owns 12 WTA singles titles, including a career-best three titles in a single season in 2017 at Monterrey, Rabat and Hong Kong • Notched only win over a reigning World No.1 against Kerber en route to fourth Monterrey title in 2017 • Is a winner of five doubles titles from eight finals, most recently at 2017 Sydney (w/Babos) • In addition to reaching last eight at 2016 Wimbledon, reached a further six quarterfinals in 2016: Brisbane (l. Kerber), St. Petersburg (l. Bencic), Acapulco (l.Wickmayer), Montréal (l. Keys), Linz (l. Cibulkova) and Moscow (l. Gavrilova) • Owns 32 Top 10 victories (32-63 record), most recently No.8 Bertens at 2019 Osaka • Represented Russia at Rio Olympics, losing to eventual gold medalist Puig in 2r • Broke into Top 100 in singles on July 7, 2009 and entered Top 50 on November 3, 2008 • Made Top 20 debut on September 13, 2010 and rose as high as No.13 (July 4, 2011) • Played first WTA main draw as a wildcard at 2006 Moscow • Named 2006 ITF Junior World Champion

Grand Slam History

• Has reached QFs at all four majors; 2011 Roland Garros (l. Schiavone) and US Open (l. S.Williams), 2016 Wimbledon (l. eventual champion S.Williams), 2017 Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up V.Williams), and 2019 Australian Open (l. Collins) • One of just five active players to reach QF or better at all four majors in both singles and doubles (also Williams sisters, Kuznetsova and Zvonareva) and is the only player to do so since 2011 • Made Grand Slam debut as 15-year-old wildcard at 2007 Wimbledon (l. Hantuchova 6-0 6-1) • In doubles, is a three-time semifinalist, at Australian Open (2015 w/Groenefeld and 2016 w/Ka.Pliskova) and Wimbledon (2016 w/Ka.Pliskova) • Reached first Grand Slam final of any kind at 2014 Roland Garros, finishing runner-up in mixed doubles (w/Zimonjic; l. Groenefeld/Rojer) • As well as twice winning the girls’ singles at the Australian Open (2006, 2007), won 2006 US Open junior title)

Personal

• Began new coaching partnership with Sam Sumyk in September 2019. • Occasionally works with father, Sergey and brother, Aleks - introduced to tennis at age six by family • Grandmother played basketball for USSR and grandfather was high-level basketball referee; father was Olympic-level canoeist (missed Games due to boycott) and mother a swimmer

SVITOLINA: Rome

• Making her seventh consecutive appearance in Rome, where she is a two-time champion • Defeated three Top 10 opponents here in 2017 to win title (No.2 Ka.Pliskova in QF, No.3 Muguruza in SF and No.6 Halep in F) to secure her eighth career title and the second of her impressive three Premier 5 titles last season – also Dubai and Toronto • Returned in 2018 to defeat three Top 20 players en route to title, including World No.1 Halep in F • After 1r bye, fell to Azarenka in 2r last year • As one of the leading eight seeds, received another 1r bye this year; faces No.36 Pavlyuchenkova in 2r today – has lost to three players ranked outside Top 30 this season, No.32 Muguruza (Australian Open), No.84 Hibino (Hua Hin) and No.52 Brady (Dubai) • Has 26-11 career record in matches immediately following byes, losing the most recent of these to Anisimova at 2020 Doha • Owns four clay titles in her career, winning Marrakech (2015), Istanbul (2017) and Rome (2017-18) • One of two Ukrainians in the draw, also Yastremska (who she played doubles with here – l. 1r vs. Halep/Niculescu)

Season

• During the tour’s break, played exhibitions on hard, grass and clay in Germany and Switzerland • At Monterrey won 14th WTA title of her career (d. Bouzkova in F); now 14-3 in WTA singles finals • Fell 1r at Dubai (l. Brady) and 2r at Doha (after 1r bye, l. Anisimova) • Made QF at Hua Hin (l. Hibino) • In Fed Cup action, lost only singles rubber to Kontaveit even though Ukraine beat Estonia 2-1 in Group 1 promotional play-off • Fell 3r at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Muguruza) • Kicked off season falling in 1r at Brisbane (l. Collins)

Career

• Finished 2019 at No.6, her third consecutive Top 10 finish • Season highlight was reaching the title match as defending champion at the Shiseido WTA Finals (l. Barty) • Loss to Barty ended her nine-match unbeaten run at the year-end championship having gone undefeated in the RR stage from 2018-19 • In 2018, won 13th – and most prestigious – career title at 2018 WTA Finals (d. Stephens in F), after going 3-0 during round robin stage. Ended year ranked No.4. Also won titles at Rome (as defending champion, d. No.1 Halep in F), Dubai (as defending champion, d. Kasatkina in F) and Brisbane (d. Sasnovich in F) • Enjoyed stand-out 2017, finishing year at No.6, winning a tour-leading five titles and posting second-most wins (53, behind Wozniacki with 60) • Season culminated by qualifying for WTA Finals in Singapore, becoming first Ukrainian woman to qualify for the season-ending tournament in singles (fell at round robin stage with 1-2 record) • In 2017, became first player to win three Premier 5 titles in a single season (Dubai, Rome, Toronto), since such tournaments were introduced in 2009 • One of five players to make Top 10 debut in 2017, after winning Dubai in February (also Ostapenko, Garcia, Mladenovic and Vandeweghe). Peaked in rankings at No.3 on September 11, 2017 • On four occasions could have reached World No.1 spot – at 2017 US Open, then needed to win 2017 Beijing (fell in QF), then needed to triumph at 2017 WTA Finals (failed to progress from group stage), or reach final at 2018 Australian Open (fell in QF) • End to 2016 season also saw her reach first SF at Premier Mandatory level at Beijing (l. A.Radwanska) Qualified for 2016 WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai for the second time (l. Kvitova in F) • Reached three finals in 2016, at Kuala Lumpur (d. Bouchard in F) and advancing to finals at New Haven (l. A.Radwanska) and Zhuhai (l. Kvitova) • Other 2016 season highlights included SFs at Dubai, Tokyo [PPO] and Moscow, and QF at Rio Olympics • Owns two career doubles titles: 2014 Istanbul (w/Doi) and 2015 Istanbul (w/Gavrilova) • Made WTA main draw debut at 2012 Baku (lost in 1r but went on to win title there in both 2013 and 2014) • Played first ITF Circuit events of career in 2008 • Ukrainian Fed Cup Team, 2012-15, 2017, 2020

Grand Slam History

• Made 30th consecutive Grand Slam main draw appearance at 2020 Australian Open • Tied best Grand Slam result by reaching 2019 US Open SF (l. S.Williams), also made this stage at 2019 Wimbledon (l. eventual champion Halep) - previous QF record at Slams was 0-4 • Became the first woman from Ukraine to reach a major SF; on the men’s, Medvedev made that stage at Roland Garros in 1993 (SF) and 1999 (R-Up) • Elsewhere, has posted QF showings at 2015 Roland Garros (l. Ivanovic), 2017 Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up Halep), 2018 Australian Open (l. Mertens) and 2019 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Osaka) • Joint-highest seeding at a Slam is No.4 (2017 Wimbledon and US Open, 2018 Australian Open and Roland Garros)

Personal

• Parents are Mykhaylo and Olena; brother is Yulian • Coached by Andrew Bettles and added Marcos Baghdatis to her team during offseason. Has previously worked with Iain Hughes and Thierry Ascione • Won the Jerry Diamond ACES Award in the 2018 WTA Awards, in recognition of promotion of women’s tennis to fans, media, and local communities by performing off-court promotional and charitable activities • Launched the Elina Svitolina Foundation on March 18, 2019 with a mission to encourage children, through the sport of tennis, to learn the values of hard work, self-discipline and the importance of giving 100 percent every day in life

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[6] BELINDA BENCIC (SUI #10) vs. [Q] DANKA KOVINIC (MNE #86)

Head to Head: DANKA KOVINIC leads 1-0

2015 CHARLESTON CLAY O R2 DANKA KOVINIC 4-6 6-3 6-2 118 mins

BELINDA BENCIC DANKA KOVINIC 10 WTA RANKING 86 31 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 98 10-03-1997 (23) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 18-11-1994 (25) $271,401 YTD PRIZE MONEY $175,719 $8,117,609 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $1,685,667 0 / 4 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 0 / 2 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 1 2-3 ROME W-L (MD) * 1-1 8-7 / 156-115 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 4-5 / 53-79 1-3 / 57-38 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-3 / 20-25 4-1 / 40-26 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-1 / 9-21 0-0 / 20-20 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 3-1 / 31-29 0-1 / 15-11 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 0-6 0-0 / 13-8 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 0-1 0-0 / 24-22 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 1-5 0-0 / 30-40 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-2 / 1-13 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

BELINDA BENCIC (SUI #10) DANKA KOVINIC (MNE #86) R64: BYE R2-Q: d. (POL #125) 3-6,6-4,6-3 (2h27) R1-Q: d. (NOR #250) 6-2,6-1 (1h08) R64: d. JULIA GOERGES (GER #40) 6-1,6-0 (1h03)

Total games: 0 Total games: 13 Won/lost: 0-0 Won/lost: 12-1 Sets won/lost: 0-0 Sets won/lost: 2-0 Total time on court: 0h00 Total time on court: 1h03 Average time on court: 0h00 Average time on court: 1h03 Average rank of opponent: 0 Average rank of opponent: 40

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

BELINDA BENCIC DANKA KOVINIC 2019 2016 R2 L - KRISTINA MLADENOVIC (FRA #63) 6-2 2-6 6-1 R1 L - (RUS #29) 6-2 6-2

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

2015 R1 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #78) 6-7(2) 7-5 6-2

2014

R2 L - FLAVIA PENNETTA (ITA #12) 6-2 2-6 6-3

BENCIC:

Rome

• Making her fourth main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Reached 2r in 2014 (as qualifier, d. No.25 Pavlyuchenkova, l. Pennetta) and 2019 (d. No.13 Sevastova, l. Mladenovic) • Fell 1r in 2015 (l. Gavrilova) • After 1r bye, faces No.86 Kovinic today in her first event back following the Tour’s five-month hiatus • Has fallen to players ranked outside the Top 50 twice in 2020 – l. No.58 Blinkova (Shenzhen) and No.185 Fernandez (Fed Cup playoffs in February) • Has won her last three matches following a 1r bye – 2019 Moscow (WON), 2020 St. Petersburg (QF) and 2020 Doha (QF) • Career record on clay stands at 20-20. In 2019, highlights on this surface include SF at Madrid (l. Halep) and QF at Charleston (l. Martic) • Enters this week ranked No.10. Achieved a career high of No.4 on February 17, 2020 • One of two Swiss women to start in the main draw – also Teichmann (l. Blinkova in 1r)

Season

• In last event contested prior to the Tour’s hiatus, reached QF at Doha (l. Kuznetsova). Also reached QF in doubles field (w/Kenin, l. eventual champions Hsieh/Strycova) • As the defending champion, fell 1r at Dubai (l. Pavlyuchenkova) • Produced QF visit in St. Petersburg (l. Sakkari in 3s) • Split Fed Cup singles matches vs Team Canada (def. Dabrowski, l. Fernandez) • Made QF exit at Adelaide (l. Collins) and fell 3r at Melbourne Park (l. Kontaveit) • Opened 2020 season with 1r exit at Shenzhen (l. Blinkova)

Career Milestones

• Enjoyed a stellar season in 2019, in which she lifted two titles – at Dubai (d. Kvitova in F) and Moscow (d. Pavlyuchenkova in F) • Posted a career-best 49 Tour-level match wins in 2019 - only Ka.Pliskova (52), Barty (54) and Bertens (55) scored more. By contrast, posted a combined total of 37 wins at this level across 2016-18 • Victory in Moscow ensured she became first Swiss to compete in singles at the WTA Finals since Hingis in 2006, going on to reach SF at the season-ending showpiece in Shenzhen

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from • Equaled her then-career high ranking of No.7 following Moscow title run (October 21, 2019) • Also in 2019, marked 20th Grand Slam main draw by reaching her maiden major SF at US Open (l. eventual champion Andreescu), finished R-Up at Mallorca (l. Kenin after holding 3mp at 5-4 in second set) and advanced to SF at Hobart, Indian Wells and Madrid • Led the WTA with six victories over Top 5 players last season, including upsets over No.1 Osaka at Indian Wells, Madrid and US Open • Standout results in 2018 were R-Up finish at Luxembourg (as qualifier, l. Goerges), QF at New Haven and Washington, D.C., and R16 run at Wimbledon • In first round at 2018 Australian Open, defeated No.5 V.Williams. Having also upset then-No.1 S.Williams in SF at 2015 Toronto is one of seven women to defeat both Williams sisters before their 21st birthday (also Hingis, Sharapova, Clijsters, Henin, Chakvetadze and Osaka) • Underwent left wrist surgery in spring 2017, missing five months – ranking fell outside Top 300 • Run to 2016 St. Petersburg final saw her break into Top 10 (at No.9) for the first time in her career; became 116th player to break into the Top 10 since computerized rankings were introduced in 1975. In the last 20 years, 11 players have made their Top 10 debut before their 19th birthday • At 2015 Eastbourne, at 18y 109d, became second youngest player to win a WTA Premier level final (Wozniacki won 2008 New Haven aged 18y 43d) • With 2015 Toronto triumph, became first teenager to win an event at Premier 5 level or higher since Azarenka at 2009 Miami • Qualified for 2015 WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai however withdrew due to hand injury • Won second WTA doubles title of career in 2015 at Washington, DC (w/Mladenovic), the first coming • earlier in the year at Prague (w/Siniakova) • Voted 2014 WTA Newcomer of the Year after a campaign highlighted by R-Up finish at Tianjin (l. Riske) and QF run at 2014 US Open (defeated No.7 Kerber in 3r, No.10 Jankovic in R16); at 17 years of age, was youngest player through to last eight at Flushing Meadows since 1997 when Hingis won the title • Played first WTA qualifying event at Luxembourg in October 2011, and first WTA main draw 12 months later at same event as WC (l. V.Williams, 1r); only 15 years, 7 months at the time • Won junior singles titles at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in 2013; was named ITF Junior World Champion for 2013

Grand Slam History

• 2020 Australian Open marked 21st Grand Slam main draw appearance • Best result came with SF run at 2019 US Open (l. eventual champion Andreescu) • Next best Grand Slam singles result was QF at 2014 US Open; defeated two Top 10 players en route (No.7 Kerber in 3r, No.10 Jankovic in R16) • Has made R16 at Australian Open in 2016 (l. Sharapova) and at Wimbledon in 2015 (l. Azarenka) and 2018 (l. eventual champion Kerber). Best result at Roland Garros is 3r in 2019 (l. Vekic)

Personal

• Fitness trainer is Martin Hromkovic, a former football player from • Coached primarily by father, Ivan. Split from coach Vlado Platenik at the end of 2018; has worked extensively with Melanie Molitor and Martina Hingis

• Also holds Slovak citizenship through her parents • Includes Nike, Yonex and Rolex among her sponsors

KOVINIC:

Rome

• Making second appearance at Rome following a 1r exit in 2016 (l. Makarova) • Defeated Eikeri and Kawa in qualifying to enter this week’s main draw • In 1r on Monday, dropped just one game to oust No.41 Goerges in 1hr 4min, winning 83% of her first service points • Win over Goerges marked her first Top 50 victory since 2016 Tianjin (d. No.33 Puig) • Faces No.10 Bencic today in their second career meeting, having defeated the Swiss over five years ago at Charleston • Owns one career win over a Top 10 ranked opponent over No.8 Vinci at 2016 Madrid (1-5 career record) • Is the sole player from Montenegro within the WTA Top 500 (currently ranked No.86). Reached a career high of No.46 on February 22, 2016 • In 2019, captured three ITF singles titles on clay at $25K ITF/Campinas-BRA, $25K ITF/Ystad-SWE and $100K ITF/Szekesfehervar 3-HUN. Also reached the final at WTA 125K event at Bastad (l. Doi in F)

Season

• Coming off QF showing at Istanbul (l. eventual R-Up Bouchard) – her first Tour-level QF since 2019 Tashkent (l. Cirstea in QF) • Made 2r at US Open (l. Linette) following a qualifying exit at Western & Southern Open (l. Zvonareva) • Prior to Tour’s five-month hiatus, fell 1r in back-to-back weeks at Acapulco (l. Bondarenko) and Monterrey (l. eventual champion Svitolina) • Opened 2020 campaign at Australian Open, falling to Mertens in 1r

Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 at No.88, returning to the Top 100 after finishing 2017 at No.118 and 2018 at No.182 • Reached career-best year-end finish in 2015 at No.58 followed by 2016 finish at No.74 • Highlights from 2019 include lifting titles at $100K ITF/Szekesfehervar-HUN, $25K ITF/Campinas-BRA and $25K ITF/Ystad-SWE • Now owns 11 singles and four doubles titles on the ITF Circuit • Additionally, in 2019, made R-Up appearance at 125K event in Bastad, Sweden (l. Doi in F) and QF run at (l. Cirstea) • Spent majority of 2018 competing on the ITF Circuit, though advanced through qualifying at WTA International tournaments Lugano and Istanbul to record back-to-back R16 runs • 2016 season highlight was reaching second career singles final at Istanbul (l. Buyukakcay). Is now 0-2 in WTA singles finals, having also finished as R-Up at 2015 Tianjin (l. A.Radwanska) • Set career-high ranking of No.46 on February 22, 2016 • Made Top 100 debut on May 4, 2015 at No.95

• Reached QF at 2013 Budapest, which was her WTA main draw debut

Grand Slam History

• Recorded 13th Grand Slam main draw appearance at 2020 US Open, reaching the 2r of a Slam for the fifth time in her career (but never further) • 2020 Australian Open marked her first main draw appearance at a major since 2017 Wimbledon • At 2015 Roland Garros became first player – man or woman – from Montenegro to advance to 2r of a Grand Slam (already set the national record for first player to appear in 1r at major at 2014 Roland Garros)

Personal

• Her mother, Snjezana, hoped she would play handball, but when she was five Danka began asking to play tennis. She eventually started tennis lessons when she was seven • Growing up she idolized Jelena Jankovic – would have played her in 3r at 2015 Charleston, however Jankovic withdrew due to injury • Describes herself as an aggressive baseliner; likes to control the point. Goal is to improve her net game; also working on improving her hard court game, having grown up playing mostly on clay • Favorite tournament is the Australian Open; favorite surface is clay

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[1] SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. [WC] JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99)

Head to Head: 0-0

SIMONA HALEP JASMINE PAOLINI 2 WTA RANKING 99 5 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 96 27-09-1991 (28) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 04-01-1996 (24) $1,469,594 YTD PRIZE MONEY $148,034 $36,577,615 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $534,894 2 / 21 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 0 / 1 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 15-7 ROME W-L (MD) * 1-1 15-2 / 385-170 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 3-5 / 12-23 5-0 / 115-57 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 2-1 / 6-2 5-1 / 52-56 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 2-2 5-0 / 125-45 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 3-3 / 10-15 0-0 / 35-15 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 1-1 0-0 / 12-29 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 0-1 0-0 / 39-49 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 0-1 3-1 / 102-76 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 1-3 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99) R64: BYE R64: d. ANASTASIJA SEVASTOVA (LAT #45) 6-2,6-3 (1h06)

Total games: 0 Total games: 17 Won/lost: 0-0 Won/lost: 12-5 Sets won/lost: 0-0 Sets won/lost: 2-0 Total time on court: 0h00 Total time on court: 1h06 Average time on court: 0h00 Average time on court: 1h06 Average rank of opponent: 0 Average rank of opponent: 45

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ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SIMONA HALEP JASMINE PAOLINI 2019 2019 R2 L - MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #44) 2-6 7-5 6-3 R1 L - SOFIA KENIN (USA #37) 6-1 6-2

2018 2015 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-0 6-4 R1-Q L - MONICA NICULESCU (ROU #67) 7-6(1) 2-6 6-0

2017 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-6 7-5 6-1

2016 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #32) 6-3 4-6 6-3

2015 SF L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #10) 2-6 6-3 7-5

2014 R16 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #14) W/O

2013 SF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-3 6-0

2012 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #63) 6-3 6-4

2011 R1-Q L - (FRA #95) 7-6(3) 6-0

HALEP:

Rome

• Making ninth main draw appearance at Rome (10th overall) • R-Up on two occasions, in 2017 and 2018 (l. Svitolina in both finals) • Also made SF twice, in 2013 (l. eventual champion S.Williams) and 2015 (l. Suárez Navarro) • Reached R16 in 2014 (l. Suárez Navarro), 2r in 2016 (l. Gavrilova) and 2019 (l. Vondrousova), and 1r in 2012 (l. V.Williams). Fell in qualifying on tournament debut in 2011 • Second time contesting Rome as No.1 seed (also in 2018, l. Svitolina in F) • Faces Italian wildcard and No.99 Paolini today in their career first meeting. A loss today would mark her worst-by-ranking since falling to No.116 Townsend at 2019 US Open 2r • Last time she faced an Italian woman was Vinci en route to 2017 Madrid title • Currently on a nine-match winning streak, including titles at Dubai (four wins) and Prague (five wins) • Among active players, owns the third-most clay court titles with eight, behind V.Williams (9) and S.Williams (13) • Since 2013, when Halep won her first of 21 titles, only Serena Williams (27) has won more titles than the Romanian • Playing doubles this week w/Niculescu. The pair defeated Svitolina/Yastremska in 1r on Tuesday 6-1, 6-0

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Season

• Last month, captured her 21st career title at Prague (d. Mertens in F). Tied with Azarenka for fifth-most titles among active players, behind Serena (73), Venus (49), Clijsters (41) and Kvitova (27) • Prior to Tour’s five-month hiatus, clinched her 20th career title at Dubai (d. Rybakina in F) • Reached eighth career Grand Slam SF at Australian Open (l. Muguruza) bringing record in major SF matches to 5-3 • Opened 2020 season with QF appearance at Adelaide (l. Sabalenka)

Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 ranked No.4 for sixth consecutive year in the Top 5 • 2019 highlighted by winning second career Grand Slam title at Wimbledon (d. S.Williams) • Also finished R-Up at Madrid (l. Bertens) and QF at Roland Garros (as defending champion, l. Anisimova) and Toronto (ret. vs. Bouzova w/Achilles pain) • Ended 2018 season as World No.1 for the second time in her career, with season highlighted by maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F) • Also won titles last year at Shenzhen (d. Siniakova in F) and Montréal (d. Stephens in F) and was R-Up at Australian Open (l. Wozniacki), Rome (l. Svitolina) and Cincinnati (l. Bertens). Is 18-16 in career finals • Won first career WTA doubles title at 2018 Shenzhen (w/Begu). Now 1-1 in career doubles finals • Finished 2017 as the year-end World No.1, having ascended to the No.1 spot for first time in career on October 9, 2017 – became the 25th woman to reach the top spot, and the 13th to hold year-end No.1 • Defended Madrid title in 2017 (d. Mladenovic in F); reached four more finals in 2017: Rome, Roland Garros, Cincinnati and Beijing. 2016 season highlighted by three titles, at Madrid, Bucharest and Montréal • Between May 2013 and August 2014, improved ranking from No.64 to No.2, winning seven titles • Has qualified six times for WTA Finals in Singapore (2014-19, although withdrew injured in 2018), reaching final in 2014 (l. S.Williams, having defeated the World No.1 in the round robin stage) • Named 2013 WTA Most Improved Player, winning her first six WTA titles and ending year ranked No.11 • Made WTA main draw debut at 2010 Marbella as a qualifier, reaching quarterfinals

Grand Slam History

• Contested 39th Grand Slam main draw of her career at 2020 Australian Open • Winner of two Grand Slam titles, lifting first at 2018 Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F) followed by an historic 2019 Wimbledon run (d. S.Williams in F) • Became first Romanian to lift the singles title at the All England Club, defeating S.Williams in 56 minutes • Posted three runner-up finishes in Paris in 2014 (l. Sharapova in 3s), 2017 (l. Ostapenko in 3s) and at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki in 3s) • Was the first Romanian woman to advance to final at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki) • Best result at US Open is SF run in 2015 (l. eventual champion Pennetta)

Personal

• Reunited with long-time coach, Darren Cahill during offseason after taking a 12-month break

• Formerly coached by Wim Fissette and Victor Ionita • Sponsorship portfolio includes deals with Mercedes, Unilever and is an Ambassador for Dubai Duty Free • Sponsors a children’s hockey team back in Romania through the Simona Halep Foundation

PAOLINI:

Rome

• Making second main draw appearance as a wildcard at Rome and third appearance overall • Suffered 1r exit to Kenin last year and fell during qualifying in 2015 • One of five wildcards in this year’s singles draw; best result by a wildcard here were SF showings from Pierce in 1995 and S.Williams in 2010 • Defeated No.46 Sevastova in 1r on Monday; now owns 3-13 career record against Top 50-ranked opponents, with other wins coming over No.15 Kasatkina at 2018 Prague and No.37 S.Zheng at 2019 Guangzhou • Faces No.2 Halep today in her second career meeting vs. a Top 10 ranked player (l. No.5 Bertens at 2019 Palermo) • In 2019, posted a 4-6 record on clay at Tour-level, highlighted by QF run at Palermo • Enters this week’s tournament ranked No.99, just six spots shy of her career-high ranking of No.93 achieved on March 2, 2020. Last year, entered Rome ranked No.210

Season

• Coming off 2r showing at Istanbul (l. Hercog) • Fell 1r at Prague (l. eventual R-Up Mertens) and during qualifying at Western & Southern Open • Advanced to 2r at Palermo (d. Kasatkina, l. Sasnovich) • Suffered 1r exit at Australian Open (l. Blinkova) • Fell during qualifying at Shenzhen, Adelaide, Dubai and Monterrey

Grand Slam History

• 2020 US Open marked her third Grand Slam main draw appearance • Appeared in maiden Grand Slam main draw at 2019 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Kasatkina) • Has fallen in qualifying on 11 occasions, most recently at 2019 US Open • Contested Australian and US Opens as a junior

Career Highlights

• Posted career-high ranking of No.93 on March 2, 2020 • 2019 season highlights include QF showings at Guangzhou and Palermo, a SF run at WTA 125K Series event at Karlsruhe, lifting seventh, eighth and ninth ITF Circuit title of her career, at $60K Brescia-ITA, $25K ITF/Curtiba-BRA and $100K ITF/Tokyo-JPN, and qualifying for maiden Grand Slam main draw at Roland Garros (l. Kasatkina in 1r) • Ended 2018 ranked No.180, with season highlight a maiden WTA singles QF at Prague (d. No.15 Kasatkina, l. Zhang) • Also in 2018, made 2r at Bogota and fell 1r at Shenzhen, Acapulco and Bucharest • Posted first Top 200 season in 2017, finishing at No.137. During campaign made WTA main draw debut at Bastad (l. Suarez Navarro in 1r) and also fell 1r at Guangzhou and in qualifying a further three times • Posted career-high ranking of No.130 on June 19, 2017 • Made WTA qualifying debut at 2015 Rome • Part of Italy Fed Cup team 2017-19 • Owns nine singles and one doubles title on ITF Circuit • Made professional debut on ITF Circuit in Italy in 2011

Personal

• Currently coached by Renzo Furlan • Father Ugo Paolini is Italian and mother Jacqueline Gardiner is of Ghanaian and Polish descent • Favorite shot is her forehand and favorite surface is clay

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

BARBORA STRYCOVA (CZE #37) vs. KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Head to Head: KAROLINA PLISKOVA leads 4-1

2018 EASTBOURNE GRASS O R16 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-3 6-4 83 mins 2018 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O R16 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-7(5) 6-3 6-2 161 mins 2017 MIAMI HARD O R16 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-1 6-4 71 mins 2016 BIRMINGHAM GRASS O R1 BARBORA STRYCOVA 6-4 7-6(7) 122 mins 2015 DUBAI HARD O R2 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-4 6-2 86 mins

BARBORA STRYCOVA KAROLINA PLISKOVA 37 WTA RANKING 4 115 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 18 28-03-1986 (34) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 21-03-1992 (28) $451,557 YTD PRIZE MONEY $599,371 $11,785,003 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $20,111,889 0 / 2 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 16 3 / 30 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 5-6 ROME W-L (MD) * 7-4 4-6 / 293-293 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 9-5 / 318-164 3-0 / 98-76 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-1 / 103-59 1-3 / 65-75 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-6 / 64-70 1-1 / 77-84 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 53-36 0-1 / 27-34 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 31-20 0-0 / 7-31 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 18-19 0-0 / 10-58 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 32-39 2-2 / 31-94 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 3-1 / 62-72 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

BARBORA STRYCOVA (CZE #37) KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

R64: d. VERONIKA KUDERMETOVA (RUS #42) 6-3,6-3 (1h31) R64: BYE

Total games: 18 Won/lost: 12-6 Total games: 0 Sets won/lost: 2-0 Won/lost: 0-0 Total time on court: 1h31 Sets won/lost: 0-0 Average time on court: 1h31 Total time on court: 0h00 Average rank of opponent: 42 Average time on court: 0h00 Average rank of opponent: 0

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ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

BARBORA STRYCOVA KAROLINA PLISKOVA 2019 2019 R1 L - MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #44) 1-6 6-4 7-6(4) F W - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 6-4

2018 2018 R1 L - SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #10) 6-7(4) 6-3 6-1 R2 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #42) 3-6 6-3 7-5

2017 2017 R2 L - (SUI #34) 6-4 6-2 QF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 6-2 7-6(9) 2016 2016 QF L - MADISON KEYS (USA #24) 6-4 4-6 6-3 R1 L - DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #33) 6-4 6-4 2015 2015 R1 L - CHRISTINA MCHALE (USA #65) 7-6(5) 6-1 R1 L - TIMEA BACSINSZKY (SUI #24) 6-4 6-0 2011 R1 L - LOURDES DOMÍNGUEZ LINO (ESP #46) 6-1 0-6 7-6(4)

STRYCOVA:

Dubai

• Making seventh main draw appearance at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Deepest run was making QF in 2016 (l. Keys) • Has fallen 1r here on four occasions (2011, 2015, 2018 and 2019) and 2r in 2017 • Eased past Kudermetova in opening round action • Squares off against No.4 Ka.Pliskova in 2r today. Looking to record eighth Top 5 win of her career with most recent scalp coming against No.4 Bertens at 2019 Wimbledon • Looking to record back-to-back match wins for the first time since SF run at 2019 Wimbledon • One of five Czech players to contest main draw, also today’s opponent Ka.Pliskova, and Bouzkova, Siniakova and Vondrousova

Season

• First event back following the hiatus was at Prague – lost 1r to Sorribes Tormo • Prior to the hiatus, advanced to 2r at Dubai (l. Martic) and Doha (d. No.14 Martic, l. Ostapenko) • In doubles, lifted her first trophy of the season with partner Hsieh Su-Wei at Brisbane (d. Barty/Bertens in F) before going on to make the final round at the Australian Open (l. Babos/Mladenovic in F). Then, lifted back-to-back doubles titles with Hsieh at Dubai (d. Krejcikova/S.Zheng in F) and Doha (d. Dabrowski/Ostapenko in F) • Made 1r exits at Adelaide (l. Pera) and Australian Open (l. Cirstea) • Began 2020 campaign by recording thirtieth Top 20 scalp of her career against No.12 Konta at Brisbane before falling to Riske in R16

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• Finished 2019 ranked No.33, her sixth consecutive Top 50 finish • Season highlight was Grand Slam breakthrough at Wimbledon, reaching SF (l. S.Williams) on what was her 53rd major appearance • During SW19 run, upset three seeds to become the oldest first-time Grand Slam semifinalist in the Open Era • Enjoyed stellar season in doubles, winning first Grand Slam doubles title at Wimbledon w/Hsieh (d. Dabrowski/Xu in F) and rose to World No.1 ranking following the tournament (July 15, 2019). • Wimbledon title was one of four doubles crowns from five finals, also winning Dubai, Madrid, Birmingham (all w/Hsieh) • Team finished as R-Up at WTA Finals, ensuring Strycova finished the year as the WTA Year No.1 Doubles player presented by Dubai Duty Free • In 2018, reached R16 at Roland Garros – her best result in Paris to date (l. Putintseva). Was also part of Czech Republic team that beat USA 3-0 in Fed Cup final (d. Kenin in day 1 singles rubber) • Clinched second tour-level singles title at 2017 Linz (d. No.1 seed Rybarikova in F). Holds a 2-6 record in singles finals, with other title coming at 2011 Québec City (d. Erakovic in F) • Posted career-high singles ranking of No.16 on January 16, 2017 • Owns seven career Top 5 wins, having defeated No.2 Li (2014 Wimbledon), No.3 Sharapova (2015 Wuhan), No.3 Muguruza (2016 Australian Open), No.3 Kerber (2016 Madrid) and No.1 Muguruza (2017 Beijing), No.3 Muguruza (2018 Birmingham) and No.4 Bertens (2019 Wimbledon) • Won doubles bronze medal at 2016 Rio Olympics (w/Safarova) • Played first events of career on ITF Circuit in Czech Republic in 2000. Won nine singles and 10 doubles titles on ITF Circuit • Crowned ITF Junior World Champion in 2002

Grand Slam History

• Contested 56th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 Australian Open. One of six active players who’ve contested more than 50 Slams, behind V.Williams, S.Williams, Kuznetsova, Stosur and Cornet • Breakthrough Slam result was SF run at 2019 Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) • Before this, best result at Slam was QF run at 2014 Wimbledon (d. Li Na in the last match of the Chinese star’s career, as well as Wozniacki en route, l. eventual champion Kvitova). Occasion marked first time in Open Era that three Czech women advanced to QF at a Slam (also Safarova, Kvitova) • Advanced to R16 at Australian Open in 2016 (l. Azarenka), 2017 (l. S.Williams) and 2018 (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Roland Garros in 2018 (l. Putintseva) • Reached 3r at US Open in 2014 (l. Bouchard), 2015 (l. Lisicki) and 2018 (l. Mertens) • At played what was then the longest Grand Slam match (d. Kulikova in four hours and 19 minutes – since surpassed by Kuznetsova-Schiavone at 2011 Australian Open) • In doubles, won 2019 Wimbledon w/Hsieh (d. Dabrowski/Xu in F). Reached the final at 2020 Australian Open (w/Hsieh) and is a five-time semifinalist, at 2014 US Open (w/Date), 2015 Australian Open (w/Krajicek), 2017 US Open (w/Safarova), 2018 Roland Garros (w/Sestini Hlavackova) and 2019 Australian Open (w/Vondrousova) • In successful junior career, won back-to-back Australian Open girls’ singles titles in 2002 (d. Sharapova in F) and 2003 (d. Kutuzova in F) and was R-Up at the 2002 US Open (l. Kirilenko). Also won three junior Slams in doubles: 2001 Australian Open (w/Cetkovska), 2002 Roland Garros (w/Groenefeld) and 2002 Wimbledon (w/E.Clijsters)

Personal

• Previously coached by David Kotyza (former coach of Petra Kvitova and Karolina Pliskova) • Parents are Jindrich and Ilona; sister, Ivona, studied law and lives in US • Started playing tennis at age 5 • Born in Plzen, Czech Republic – same hometown as frequent doubles partner Andrea Sestini Hlavackova

KA.PLISKOVA:

Rome

• Making sixth consecutive appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Enters this week’s tournament as defending champion, having defeated Konta in last year’s final to lift the crown • Second best run was advancing to QF in 2017 (l. Svitolina) • Faces Strycova in 2r today following 1r bye - career record in matches following byes stands at 41-8 • Owns three career clay court titles at 2015 Prague, 2018 Stuttgart and 2019 Rome • One of five Czech players to contest main draw, also today’s opponent Strycova, and Bouzkova, Siniakova and Vondrousova • During the hiatus, contested the Mutua Virtual competition, undertook charity work by sup-porting key workers with free coffee, kept fit with bike rides (her first in 15 years), held her Foundation’s first junior tournament as well as played several exhibition events in the Czech Republic

Season • Coming off 2r loss at US Open (l. Garcia) • First event back following the hiatus was the Western & Southern Open – as No.1 seed, fell 2r (after 1r bye, l. Kudermetova) • Prior to his, last event was in Doha, reaching the 3r (l. Jabeur) • Fell to eventual finalist Rybakina in QF of Dubai • Advanced to 3r at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova) • Began 2020 by winning 16th career title at (d. Keys in F), defending her title from 2019 – has now won at least one WTA title for eight consecutive seasons. Was also first time successfully defending one of her previous 15 titles • Brisbane marked first event working with new coach Daniel Vallverdu

Grand Slam History • Advanced to career first Grand Slam final at 2016 US Open (l. Kerber), simultaneously making debuts in R16, QF, SF and title match at the majors. Became first Czech to reach US Open final since Helena Sukova in 1993 (l. Graf in F) • At Australian Open, best result was SF run in 2019 (l. Osaka), also reached last four at 2017 Roland Garros (l. Halep) • Reached R16 at Wimbledon in 2018 (l. Bertens) and 2019 (l. Muchova) • Made Grand Slam main draw debut at 2012 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Bartoli in 1r)

Career Milestones • Finished 2019 ranked No.2 for career-best year-end finish • Lifted a Tour-leading four title across the season (tied with Barty), taking tally to 15 – triumphed at Brisbane, Rome, Eastbourne and Zhengzhou • Dropped 19 games across five matches during Eastbourne title win (d. Kerber in F) – most economic title run in 2019 • Also reached first Premier Mandatory final at Miami, losing to Barty in straight sets • Produced best Australian Open performance of career, reaching SF (l. eventual champion Osaka in 3s); saved four match points to beat S.Williams in QF • Lost to twin sister Kr.Pliskova in R16 at Birmingham, in what was their first career main draw encounter • Made fourth straight appearance at the WTA Finals in 2019, reaching SF for the third year in a row • Won two titles in 2018 from three finals contested, triumphing at Stuttgart (d. Vandeweghe in F) and Tokyo [PPO] (d. Osaka in F). Posted R-Up finish in Tianjin (l. Garcia in F) • At Grand Slam level in 2018 season, made QF run at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Halep), reached 3r at Roland Garros (l. Sharapova), made R16 for first time at Wimbledon (l. Bertens) and had QF showing at US Open (d. No.17 Barty in R16, l. S.Williams) • Also in 2018, made the SF at Brisbane (as defending champion, l. eventual champion Svitolina), Madrid (l. eventual champion Kvitova) and WTA Finals (l. Stephens). Enjoyed QF runs at four other tournaments • Claimed No.1 ranking on July 17, 2017 despite making 2r exit at Wimbledon (l. Rybarikova). Was the first Czech woman to achieve the No.1 ranking since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975 (Martina Navratilova became No.1 on July 10, 1978 while representing USA) • Won three titles in 2017, at Brisbane (d. Cornet in F), Doha (d. Wozniacki in F) and Eastbourne (d. Wozniacki in F) • Owns 15-12 record in singles finals, having won having titles on all three surfaces • Captured fifth WTA doubles title of career at 2016 Birmingham (w/Strycova). Is now 5-2 in doubles finals. At 2013 Linz, with sister Kristyna, became first set of twins to ever win a tour-level doubles title • Made Top 10 debut after 2015 Stanford R-Up finish; was first time in WTA history that three Czech women ranked inside Top 10 at the same time (also Kvitova and Safarova) • Won first career WTA title at 2013 Kuala Lumpur (d. Mattek-Sands) and followed it up with two more in 2014 Seoul (d. Lepchenko) and 2014 Linz (d. Giorgi) • Made professional debut on ITF circuit in 2006

Personal • Born in Louny, north of Prague, but now trains at Sparta Praha tennis club • Has a twin sister – Kristyna. In 2013, became the first set of twins to capture a WTA doubles title • Married Michal Hrdlicka after 2018 Wimbledon • Currently coached by Daniel Vallverdu and , and previously coached by Conchita Martínez, , Tomas Krupa and David Kotyza • Away from the court, enjoys fresh-water fishing, as well as contributing to her foundation which benefits various causes, including pediatric oncology and children battling cancer in her native Czech Republic MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – DAY FOUR

[9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) vs. COCO GAUFF (USA #53)

First meeting Both players suffered surprise early exits at US Open… Gauff bidding for fourth career win over a Top-20 player… Muguruza reached SF here in 2016 and 2017

[3] SOFIA KENIN (USA #5) vs. VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) Kenin leads 1-0 Kenin won in three tight sets when the two met at 2019 Acapulco… Azarenka’s last win over a member of the Top 5 came at 2019 Stuttgart… Kenin has never reached a WTA-level QF on clay

[14] ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #21) vs. SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #38)

Kontaveit leads 1-0 Kontaveit triumphed when they met in Rome two years ago… Kuznetsova is one of nine major winners in the draw… Kontaveit has made at least QF here on two of previous three visits

[Q] IRINA CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #77) vs. [8] JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13) First meeting Six of Begu’s last seven Top-20 wins have come on clay… Konta finished runner-up in the Italian capital last year… Begu is one of six qualifiers to reach second round

[5] KIKI BERTENS (NED #8) vs. POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50) Series tied 1-1 Bertens won their most recent encounter, at 2019 Beijing… All six of Hercog’s career finals have come on clay… Bertens has reached SF here on two of previous three appearances

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WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY • As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. • Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play. • WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities. • Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer. • “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among others. • In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants. • For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

• One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3) • Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington) • Lowest-ranked player to triumph: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul) • Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up) • Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul) • Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d) • Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d) • Aces leaders: Serena Williams – 167, Elena Rybakina – 164, Naomi Osaka – 141, Garbiñe Muguruza – 131 • Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF) • Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 25, Elena Rybakina – 24, Anett Kontaveit – 20, Sofia Kenin – 18 • Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha) • Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul) • Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF) • Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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[9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) vs. COCO GAUFF (USA #53)

Head to Head: First meeting

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA CORI GAUFF 17 WTA RANKING 53 4 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 55 08-10-1993 (26) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 13-03-2004 (16) $1,703,605 YTD PRIZE MONEY $362,908 $20,921,334 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $914,920 0 / 7 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 1 0 / 5 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 2 11-6 ROME W-L (MD) * 1-0 18-5 / 254-142 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 8-5 / 19-10 7-3 / 80-62 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-3 / 9-3 6-0 / 41-50 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 6-0 1-0 / 54-29 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 1-0 0-0 / 18-14 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 0-0 2-1 / 11-18 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 1-1 3-1 / 35-34 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 2-2 3-2 / 61-60 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 2-1 / 3-3

* Updated entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) COCO GAUFF (USA #53) R64: d. SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #33) 6-3,6-3 (1h21) R64: d. ONS JABEUR (TUN #34) 6-4,6-3 (1h22)

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 2019 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 6-4 3-1

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2018 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #24) 5-7 6-2 7-6(6)

2017 SF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-1

2016 SF L - MADISON KEYS (USA #24) 7-6(5) 6-4

2014 R2 L - FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE (ITA #61) 3-6 6-1 7-6(5)

2013 R2 L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-2 6-2 MUGURUZA:

Rome

 Making seventh main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Best result here were SF runs in 2016 (d. No.10 Bacsinszky in QF, l. Keys) and 2017 (ret. w/neck injury vs. eventual champion Svitolina)  Defeated Stephens in 1r on Tuesday for her first win over the American since 2015 Wuhan  Added three aces to her season count of 131 – the fourth-most on Tour in 2020, behind S.Williams (167), Rybakina (164) and Osaka (141)  Faces No.53 Gauff today in their career first meeting. Has won 11 of her last 13 matches against players ranked outside the Top 50, only falling to No.52 Brady at Dubai in February and un-ranked Pironkova last week at US Open  Last time she faced back-to-back Americans was en route to 2019 Indian Wells QF (d. Davis and S.Williams via ret.)  Has reached the QF or better at five of six events played in 2020, going 18-5 across the season – joint-fourth most main draw wins this year, behind Mertens (25), Rybakina (24), Kontaveit (20) and Kenin (18)  Sole career final on clay was 2016 Roland Garros victory over S.Williams

Season

 Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. Pironkova)  Withdrew from Western & Southern Open w/ left ankle injury  Prior to tour’s hiatus, was enjoying her best ever start to a season and for the first time in her career made the QF or better at five straight tournaments - is the only player to achieve this feat in 2020  Last event played was Doha, reaching QF (l. Barty)  Also made QFs at Dubai (l. Brady in 3s). Defeated former No.1 and four-time Grand Slam singles champion Clijsters in the 1r at Dubai which was the Belgian’s first professional match since 2012  Finished R-Up at Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – her fourth career major final  Defeated four seeds en route to Melbourne final, including three of the Top 10 (No.4 Halep, No.5 Svitolina, No.9 Bertens)  Forced to withdraw with viral illness prior to QF match against Kudermetova at Hobart International  Began 2020 campaign posting SF appearance (l. eventual champion Alexandrova) at Shenzhen Open

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 season at No.36 for first non-Top 20 finish since 2014  Successfully defended her title in Monterrey for seventh career WTA trophy (d. Azarenka in F)  Also in 2019, reached QF at Indian Wells defeating No.10 S.Williams and No.7 Bertens en route (l. eventual champion Andreescu) and R16 at Australian Open (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Roland Garros (l. Stephens)  Is a two-time Grand-Slam champion winning titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F). Dropped only one set in Roland Garros title run  Is only player to ever beat both Williams sisters in a Grand Slam final and one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles  Also finished R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) to make Top 10 debut. Is one of two players to meet both Williams sisters in the final of the same Grand Slam – also Hingis at US Open (1997, d. V.Williams; 1999, l. S.Williams)  First Spaniard to reach Wimbledon final since Sánchez Vicario in 1996 and first to reach any Slam final since Conchita Martínez at 2000 Roland Garros  Rose to World No.1 on September 11, 2017 to become the 24th woman in history to hold the top spot and second from Spain (after Sánchez Vicario in 1995). Also named ITF World Champion for 2017  In 2015, became first Spanish player to compete at the WTA Finals in singles since 2001 (Sánchez Vicario) and reached doubles final (w/Suárez Navarro, l. Hingis/Mirza)  Made WTA main draw debut at Miami in 2012, defeating No.9 Zvonareva for first Top 10 win of career

Grand Slam History  Appeared in 30th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open  Won titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F dropping just one set en route to lifting the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F)  Reached title match at 2020 Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – Grand Slam final record now stands at 2-2 (also R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon – l. S.Williams)  One of just eight players all-time to defeat Serena in a Grand Slam final  Is one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles  Is the second player to face both Williams sisters in the final of the same major (also Hingis, at US Open in 1997 – d. V.Williams, and 1999 – l. S.Williams)  By winning 2017 Wimbledon, became only player to defeat both sisters in Grand Slam final, at Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in 2016) and Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in 2017)  Best result at US Open came in 2017 with R16 showing  In doubles, best result was SF run at 2014 Roland Garros w/Suárez Navarro

Personal  Began playing tennis at age three; first memory of the sport was playing with her brothers  Mother, Scarlet is from Venezuela and father, José Antonio, is from Spain  Coached by Conchita Martínez GAUFF: Rome

 Making tournament debut this week at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  This week marks the first Tour level clay event of her career. Last year fell in qualifying at Roland Garros (l. Juvan)  Ousted No.34 Jabeur in 1r on Tuesday, having also defeated the Tunisian last month at Lexington QF  Has now posted 4-4 record against Top 50 ranked players this season, with other wins over No.4 Osaka (Australian Open), No.11 Sabalenka and No.39 Jabeur (both at Lexington)  Faces No.17 Muguruza today for a spot in the R16. Owns three career wins over Top 20 ranked opponents, over No.8 Bertens (2019 Linz), No.4 Osaka (2020 Australian Open) and No.11 Sabalenka (2020 Lexington)  Enters Rome ranked No.53. Broke into the WTA Top 50 (at No.49) on February 24, 2020  Competing in doubles this week (w/McHale, d. L.Kichenok/N.Kichenok in 1r); faces Carter/Stefani in 2r

Season

 Coming off back-to-back 1r exits at Western & Southern Open (l. Sakkari) and US Open (l. Sevastova)  Made R16 in doubles at Western & Southern Open and US Open (w/McNally, l. Melichar/Xu at both events)  Returned to tennis at Lexington, reaching the SF (l. eventual champion Brady)  Won 12 of the last 15 points of the match to upset No.11 Sabalenka in 2r at Lexington; now owns three career Top 20 wins, having also defeated No.4 Osaka earlier this year at Australian Open and No.8 Bertens at 2019 Linz  At 2h 50m, match against Sabalenka was the longest of her career – five minutes longer than her win over Hercog at 2019 Wimbledon  Opened 2020 season by reaching 2r at Auckland (l. Siegemund) and R16 at Australian Open (l. eventual champion Kenin in 3s)

Career Milestones

 Enjoyed breakout season in 2019, highlighted by maiden WTA singles title at Linz (as lucky loser, d. Ostapenko in F) - earned her first Top 10 win en route to title over No.8 Bertens in QF  At 15y214d, her title run in Linz made her youngest to win a WTA tour-level title since Vaidisova (15y177d) won Tashkent in 2004  Also claimed maiden WTA doubles titles at Washington, DC (w/McNally, d. Sanchez/Stollar in F) and Luxembourg (w/McNally, d. Christian/Guarachi in F)  By winning the doubles title at Washington, DC at 15 yrs, 144 days, became the youngest player to win a doubles title since May 1995 (Martina Hingis won Hamburg at 14 yrs, 219 days)  Reached R16 at 2019 Wimbledon on Grand Slam main draw debut (l. eventual champion Halep) - followed with 3r showing at US Open (as WC, l. Osaka)  Finished 2019 season ranked No.69, having started the year ranked No.685  Made WTA main draw debut at 2019 Miami (as WC, l. Kasatkina in 2r)  Made ITF debut in May 2018 as a qualifier into the $25K ITF/Osprey, FL—USA, where she won her first professional match (as qualifier, l. Stewart in R16)  Finished 2018 season with a WTA ranking of No.875  Former junior World No.1 (July 2018) Grand Slam History

 On Grand Slam main draw debut, became first 15-year-old to reach R16 at Wimbledon - and also appear on - since Hingis in 1996 (l. eventual champion Halep)  In 1r, defeated No.44 Venus Williams to become the youngest player (15y123d at end of tournament) to win a main draw match at Wimbledon since Capriati (15y100d) reached SF in 1991; and youngest at all Slams since Kournikova (15y93d) advanced to R16 at 1996 US Open (l. Graf)  Also competed at 2019 US Open (as WC, l. then-No.1 Osaka in 3r)  At 2020 Australian Open, Defeated No.4 Osaka in 3r, becoming the youngest woman to beat a Top 5 opponent at WTA level since Capriati (15y163d) defeated No.3 Sabatini in QF of 1991 US Open  Fell in qualifying at 2019 Roland Garros  Is only the third player in last 30 years to win seven or more Grand Slam matches before her 16th birthday - also Capriati (28) and Hingis (20)  Is the first American woman in 30 years to reach the 3r in her first three majors  Won girls’ singles title at Roland Garros in 2018 (d. McNally); youngest to win the title since Hingis1993  Won US Open girls’ doubles title in 2018 (w/McNally)  Reached US Open girls’ singles final in 2017, aged 13 – youngest finalist in history (l. Anisimova)

Personal

 Began playing tennis at age 7  Grew up in Atlanta, Georgia before moving to Florida to pursue tennis; main residence is now Delray Beach, Florida  Currently coached by her father Corey Gauff (played basketball for Georgia State University) and is part of ‘Team Mouratoglou’ along with rising male players Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexei Popyrin, Rudi Molleker and Jason Tseng – has trained at Mouratoglou Academy in France since age of 10  Mother, Candi was a track and field athlete at Florida State University. Has two younger brothers, Cody and Cameron  Favorite subject at school is literature  Cites Serena Williams as the reason she plays tennis and also admires Venus  Signed first multi-year sponsorships in 2018 with New Balance, Head and Barilla, an Italian food company known for its pasta MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

SOFIA KENIN (USA #5) vs. VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14)

Head to Head: SOFIA KENIN leads 1-0

2019 ACAPULCO HARD O QF SOFIA KENIN 6-4 4-6 7-5 152 mins

SOFIA KENIN VICTORIA AZARENKA 5 WTA RANKING 14 2 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 3 14-11-1998 (21) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 31-07-1989 (31) $3,306,173 YTD PRIZE MONEY $1,819,530 $6,224,905 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $32,175,035 2 / 5 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 21 0 / 2 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 8 2-1 ROME W-L (MD) * 20-10 18-7 / 87-51 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 12-3 / 463-181 6-3 / 32-22 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-1 / 88-63 8-6 / 25-16 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 69-44 0-0 / 5-9 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 94-46 2-0 / 4-3 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 46-14 1-1 / 3-7 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 30-41 1-1 / 8-14 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-1 / 68-73 1-3 / 15-24 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 4-1 / 124-101 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

SOFIA KENIN (USA #5) VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) BYE R64: d. VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #70) 7-6(7),6-2 (2h01)

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SOFIA KENIN VICTORIA AZARENKA 2019 2019 R16 L - KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #7) 4-6 6-4 6-3 QF L - KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #7) 6-7(5) 6-2 6-2

2018 2018 R1-Q L - KAIA KANEPI (EST #59) 2-6 6-2 6-2 R1 L - NAOMI OSAKA (JPN #21) 6-0 6-3

2016 R2 L - IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #35) 6-3 6-2

2015 QF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #3) 6-3 6-2

2013 F L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-1 6-3

2012 R16 L - DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA (SVK #17) W/O

2011 QF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #8) 4-6 3-0

2010 R2 L - ANA IVANOVIC (SRB #58) 6-4 6-4

2009 SF L - SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #8) 6-2 6-4

2008 R16 L - TSVETANA PIRONKOVA (BUL #64) 6-2 1-0

2006 R1 L - ANASTASIA MYSKINA (RUS #13) 6-3 3-6 7-6(6)

KENIN: Rome • Making second main draw appearance (third overall) at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia this year following a 3r showing last year and a qualifying exit in 2018 • During 2019’s run upset No.14 Keys in 2r and then led eventual champion Ka.Pliskova 6-4 2-0 before losing in 3s • Has posted 18 wins this season – only Mertens (25), Rybakina (24) and Kontaveit (20) have registered more • After 1r bye, faces No.14 Azarenka in 2r today – win would be second Top 20 victory of season (also d. No.1 Barty at 2020 Australian Open) • One of seven Americans to begin this year’s draw (also Anisimova, Gauff, Pera, Riske, Stephens, and V.Williams) • Has won two titles this season (Australian Open and Lyon) – only other woman to win more than one is Halep (Dubai and Prague) • Has never reached a WTA QF on clay, with her best result on the surface last year’s R16 run at Roland Garros (l. eventual champion Barty)

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from Season • Coming off R16 showing at US Open (l. Mertens) – the deepest run of her career at Flushing Meadows • Made 2r exit at Western & Southern Open (l. Cornet) • Before hiatus, lifted fifth WTA singles title at Lyon (d. Friedsam in F) • Suffered 1r exit at Dubai (l. Rybakina) before falling 2r at Doha (l. Yastremska) • Won deciding doubles rubber w/Mattek-Sands to help USA beat Latvia 3-2 and qualify for next year’s Fed Cup finals in Budapest; also went 1-1 in singles (d. Sevastova, l. Ostapenko) • Made her Top 10 debut at No.7 and US No.1 on February 3 • Won maiden major at Australian Open (d. Muguruza in F) to become the youngest champion (21y, 80d) in Melbourne since Sharapova (20y, 283d) in 2008 • Kicked off season with 2r showings at Brisbane (l. Osaka) and Adelaide (l. Collins)

Career Milestones  Produced incredible 2019 campaign, winning three singles titles, a career-best Slam performance, qualification into both WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai and WTA Finals (as alternate, played one match), and a career-high singles ranking of No.12  Finished the year as US No.2 (behind No.9 S.Williams) and leader in hard court wins (38-tied w/Barty)  Registered back-to-back SF runs at Cincinnati and Toronto, subsequently leading to Top 20 debut  During this run, defeated No.1 Barty (Toronto) and No.1 Osaka (Cincinnati), to become first player since October 2001 to defeat reigning No.1s in consecutive weeks (Davenport); also became youngest American to defeat reigning No.1 in eight years (after McHale)  Advanced to R16 for first time at a Slam at Roland Garros (d. S.Williams), becoming first American to defeat Serena at the majors since Stephens at 2013 Australian Open QF  Broke into the Top 100 on March 19, 2018, Top 50 on October 8, 2018 and Top 20 on August 19, 2019  Made first WTA level SF in 2018 at Mallorca as a qualifier, also reaching this stage later in the season at Québec City  Represented the USA in the Fed Cup final vs. the Czech Republic in November 2018  In 2017, won the US Open Challenge, reaching the third round (l. Sharapova) and posting career first Top 50 win over No.34 Davis  Made WTA main draw debut at 2015 US Open as a wildcard (l. Duque-Mariño in 1r)  Owns four ITF singles titles and two doubles titles  Played first matches of career on ITF Circuit in 2013, climbing to No.2 in ITF World Junior Rankings  Represented the USA at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games and competed at the 2016 ITF Junior Masters, both held in China

Grand Slam History  Won maiden Grand Slam in Melbourne, defeating two-time major champion Muguruza to become the youngest champion (21y, 80d) at Australian Open since Sharapova (20y, 283d) in 2008  Before 2020 Australian Open, best Slam result was R16 run at 2019 Roland Garros (l. eventual champion Barty); in 3r became first American to beat S.Williams at a majors since Stephens at 2013 AO QF  Made Slam main draw debut at 2015 US Open as a wildcard – received for being crowned USTA Girls’ 18s National Champion. Fell 1r to Duque Mariño  Reached 3r at 2017 US Open as a wildcard (l. Sharapova), in what was only fourth tour-level main draw outing. Has since posted best US Open result with R16 run in 2020  Made 2r at Wimbledon in 2018-19 Personal  Born in Moscow, moved to New York as a baby before family settled in Florida. Now resides in Pembroke Pines, Florida, where she was home-schooled  Known as ‘Sonya’  Coached by father Alexander Kenin with support Lorenzo Cava; trains at at ProWorld Academy in Delray Beach, Florida  Best tennis memory is playing idol Maria Sharapova on Arthur Ashe (US Open 2017)  If not a tennis player would be a fashion designer  Dream doubles partners would be Serena Williams and Grigor Dimitrov  Good friends with CiCi Bellis and  Likes rap music, especially Drake  Treat food is Froyo - cookies and cream with Hershey’s on top

AZARENKA: Rome  Making 12th appearance at Rome. R-Up in 2013 (l. S.Williams) and a semifinalist in 2009 (l. Kuznetsova); also a three-time quarterfinalist  One of these QF runs came in 2019 (l. eventual champion Ka.Pliskova); en route recovered from 5-2 down in the third set (saved 1mp at 5-3) to defeat defending champion Svitolina in 2r, then recorded the 500th win of her career (including qualifying, ITF Circuit and Fed Cup) when 3r opponent Muguruza retired w/left thigh injury  Last year also won doubles title here w/Barty (d. Groenefeld/Schuurs in F)  Won six of 10 return games to see off fellow multiple-major winner V.Williams in 1r on Tuesday  Faces No.5 Kenin in 2r today; served for the match before eventually losing their only previous encounter at 2019 Acapulco  Most recent Top 5 win came over No.4 Ka.Pliskova at 2019 Stuttgart  Won sole clay court title at Marbella in 2011  Currently ranked No.14 – her highest ranking since returning to the tour from maternity leave in 2017  Celebrated 31st birthday this summer – is one of 12 players aged 30 or over in the draw this week

Season  Coming off R-Up showing at US Open (l. Osaka in 3s); now 21-18 in singles finals  Upset No.11 Sabalenka, No.18 Mertens and No.8 S.Williams en route to record the 122nd, 123rd and 124th Top 20 wins of her career and reach first major final since 2013 US Open – seven-year between major finals is second-longest in Open Era behind V.Williams (seven years, 207 days between 2009 Wimbledon and 2017 Australian Open)  Made history alongside S.Williams in New York by becoming the first pair of mothers to reach the semifinals at the same Grand Slam  Lifted 21st career title at Western & Southern Open when final opponent Osaka withdrew w/left hamstring injury  Suffered 1r exit at Lexington (l. V.Williams) in her second WTA event of 2020  Opened 2020 season with 1r exit at Monterrey (l. Zidansek), having not contested any events in Australia due to personal reasons Career Milestones  Last tournament of 2019 was the US Open, where she fell to Sabalenka in 1r; also reached the doubles final w/Barty (l. Mertens/Sabalenka)  Highlight of 2019 was 37th singles final at Monterrey (d. No.5 Kerber in SF, l. Muguruza in F via ret. w/leg injury). Also made QFs at Acapulco (l. Kenin), Stuttgart (l. Kontaveit via ret.) and Rome (l. Ka.Pliskova)  On February 2, 2019 returned to Top 50 for first time following the birth of her child, Leo  Highlights of 2018 season included SF at Miami (l. Stephens) and QF at San Jose and Tokyo  Made return to tennis in June 2017 following birth of first child in December 2016  Comeback tournament was Mallorca, reaching 2r (d. Ozaki, l. Konjuh). Prior to 2017 Mallorca, last tournament contested was 2016 Roland Garros (1r)  Followed this with R16 at Wimbledon (l. Halep). Did not play after Wimbledon due to personal reasons  Ended 2016 ranked No.13, despite missing second half of season after going on maternity leave (announced pregnancy mid-July). Lifted three titles, at Brisbane and ‘Sunshine Double’ of Indian Wells and Miami – third woman to achieve feat after Graf in 1994 and 1996 and Clijsters in 2005  Posted 26-3 record for first six months of 2016 with losses coming at the Australian Open (QF, l. Kerber), Rome (2r, l. Begu) and Roland Garros (ret. vs. Knapp w/right knee injury)  Limited to total of 23 events over 2014-15 seasons due to variety of injuries  Posted five consecutive Top 10 finishes between 2009 and 2013, qualifying for the WTA Finals on each occasion (l. Kvitova in 2011 final in Istanbul)  Ascended to World No.1 after 2012 Australian Open and held top spot for a total of 51 weeks  Began 2012 with 26-match win streak – best start since Hingis went 37-0 in 1997. Went on to win tour-leading 69 matches in 2012, season highlighted by six titles, finishing as WTA’s year-end No.1  Won two medals for Belarus at 2012 Olympics bronze in singles and mixed doubles gold (w/Mirnyi)  Made WTA main draw debut at 2005 Kolkata  ITF Junior World Champion for 2005 – reached first tour-level semifinal at Guangzhou the same year

Grand Slam History  Contested landmark 50th major at 2020 US Open – one of nine active players to reach this milestone  Two-time major champion, winning Australian Open in 2012 (d. Sharapova in F) and 2013 (d. Li in F)  Also a three-time runner-up, at 2012 (l. S.Williams in 3s), 2013 (l. S.Williams in 3s) and 2020 US Open (l. Osaka in 3s)  Advanced to Wimbledon SF in 2011 and 2012, while best result at Roland Garros is also SF run in 2013  Four-time Grand Slam doubles finalist, at 2008 Australian Open (w/Peer), 2009 Roland Garros (w/Vesnina), 2011 Australian Open (w/Kirilenko) and 2019 US Open (w/Barty)  Two-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, at 2007 US Open (w/ Mirnyi) and 2008 Roland Garros (w/B.Bryan). Most recently finished as mixed doubles R-Up at 2018 Wimbledon (w/J.Murray)  Won girls’ singles titles at the Australian Open and US Open in 2005

Personal  Currently coached by Dorian Descloix. Formerly coached by Wim Fissette, Sam Sumyk and Michael Joyce  Gave birth to son Leo in December 2016  Introduced to tennis at age 7 by mother Alla; father’s name is Fedor and older brother is Max MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #21) vs. SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #38)

Head to Head: ANETT KONTAVEIT leads 1-0

2018 ROME CLAY O R2 ANETT KONTAVEIT 7-5 7-5 109 mins

ANETT KONTAVEIT SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA 21 WTA RANKING 38 13 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 36 24-12-1995 (24) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 27-06-1985 (35) $783,890 YTD PRIZE MONEY $257,925 $4,782,651 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $25,393,282 0 / 1 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 18 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 16 9-3 ROME W-L (MD) * 24-15 20-8 / 123-96 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 6-5 / 605-319 6-3 / 43-32 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 2-1 / 199-129 3-3 / 31-31 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-4 / 130-105 5-1 / 33-21 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 167-79 1-0 / 12-10 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 44-23 1-1 / 3-11 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 29-62 2-4 / 11-20 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-1 / 62-101 3-6 / 19-33 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 2-2 / 135-173 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #21) SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #38) R64: d. CAROLINE GARCIA (FRA #45) 6-3,7-6(1) (1h38) R64: d. BERNARDA PERA (USA #60) 3-6,7-6(3),6-3 (2h15)

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History

ANETT KONTAVEIT SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA 2019 2018 R2 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #39) 6-3 6-2 R2 L - ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #26) 7-5 7-5

2018 2017 SF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-4 6-3 R16 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #33) 2-6 7-5 6-4

2017 2016 QF L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #4) 6-2 6-4 QF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-2 6-0

2014 R2 L - JELENA JANKOVIC (SRB #8) 6-2 4-0

2013 R1 L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #64) 6-1 6-1

2012 R1 L - ANA IVANOVIC (SRB #15) 6-4 6-3

2011 R1 L - GRETA ARN (HUN #48) 3-6 7-6(4) 7-6(9) 2010 R2 L - (RUS #37) 6-2 3-6 6-4

2009 F L - DINARA SAFINA (RUS #1) 6-3 6-2

2008 R16 L - ALIZÉ CORNET (FRA #34) 6-2 6-4

2007 F L - JELENA JANKOVIC (SRB #5) 7-5 6-1

2006 SF L - DINARA SAFINA (RUS #19) 3-6 6-4 7-5

2005 R2 L - PAOLA SUÁREZ (ARG #32) 6-2 6-4

2004 QF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #7) 7-5 6-0

2003 R16 L - ANASTASIA MYSKINA (RUS #11) 6-4 7-5 KONTAVEIT:

Rome

• Making fourth appearance at Rome where her best result was SF run in 2018 (l. eventual champion Svitolina) • During run to the last four in 2018, defeated today’s opponent Kuznetsova in 2r before upsetting No.9 V.Williams and No.2 Wozniacki • Also made QF here in 2017 (as qualifier, d. No.1 Kerber in 2r, l. Halep) • In 1r this year, won a 66-minute second set to close out victory over Garcia • Faces No.38 Kuznetsova in 2r today; only two of her eight defeats this year have been at the hands of players outside Top 20, against No.31 Pavlyuchenkova (Adelaide) and No.44 Ferro (Palermo) • Best career results on clay are R-Up finishes at 2017 Gstaad, 2019 Stuttgart and 2020 Palermo Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from Season

 Coming off R16 showing at US Open (l. eventual champion Osaka)  Made QF at Western & Southern Open (l. Osaka) – 20th time she has reached last eight or better at a WTA event  Posted R-Up finish at Palermo (d. No.15 Martic in SF, l. Ferro); career record in finals is now 1-5  In Middle East, advanced to QF at Dubai (l. Martic) and fell 2r at Doha (l. eventual champion Sabalenka)  Won four singles rubbers on Fed Cup duty (including over No.4 Svitolina), leading Estonia to within one win of victory over Ukraine in the promotional play-off  Made Grand Slam breakthrough by reaching maiden major QF at Australian Open (l. Halep), became the first Estonian to make the last eight in Melbourne`  Kicked off 2020 season by reaching 2r in Brisbane (l. Bertens) and falling 1r in Adelaide (l. Pavlyuchenkova)

Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 ranked No.26 – her second straight Top 30 finish (No.21 in 2018) – despite missing final two months of the season w/viral illness  Reached her fifth career final in 2019 at Stuttgart (l. Kvitova). Also in 2019, advanced to her first Premier Mandatory SF at Miami (l. eventual champion Barty), which propelled her to a career high ranking of No.14 (April 1, 2019)  In 2018, season highlighted by fourth WTA singles final at Wuhan (l. Sabalenka); posted 33 main draw wins – the first time she had registered 30 or more wins in a season – finishing No.21 in the rankings  Enjoyed fruitful clay swing in 2018, including a R16 at Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up Stephens) and SF showings at Rome (l. eventual champion Svitolina) and Stuttgart (l. eventual champion Ka.Pliskova)  Breakthrough season came in 2017, finishing on a ranking of No.34, up from No.110 in 2016 – first year-end finish inside Top 50 and second non-consecutive year in Top 100  Won first career singles title at 2017 ‘s-Hertogenbosch (d. Vikhlyantseva in F). Also reached finals at Biel/Benne (l. Vondrousova) and Gstaad (l. Bertens)  Broke into Top 30 for first time at No.27 following run at Gstaad (July 24, 2017)  Also advanced to QF at Premier-level tournaments at Stuttgart, where she beat No.6 Muguruza en route, and Rome, where she posted her first career win over a reigning No.1 with defeat of Kerber in 2r  In 2016, played main draw at all four Grand Slams for first time, but dropped out of Top 100  One of five teenagers in 2015 year-end Top 100  Made Top 100 debut on September 14, 2015 at No.96, up from No.152  Scored first Top 20 win of career over No.17 Errani at 2016 Monterrey (2r)  Has won 11 singles titles and five doubles titles on ITF Circuit  Made WTA main draw debut at 2013 Miami as WC (l. McHale, 1r)  Played first events of career on ITF Circuit in 2010  Junior highlights included winning 2012 US Open and 2011 Orange Bowl

Grand Slam History

 Played landmark 20th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 Australian Open, where she made history by becoming the first Estonian to reach QF (l. Halep) – only other Estonian to reach the last eight at a major is Kanepi (on six occasions)  Earned her first Grand Slam victories at 2015 US Open where she reached R16 (as qualifier, l. V.Williams) – only seventh qualifier in Open Era to reach US Open R16  Also made R16 at 2018 Australian Open (l. Suárez Navarro), 2018 Roland Garros (l. Stephens) and 2020 US Open (l. Osaka)  Best showings at Wimbledon are 3r runs in 2017 (l. Wozniacki), 2018 (l. Van Uytvanck) and 2019 (l. Muchova)

Personal

 Coached by Nigel Sears  Grew up in Tallinn, Estonia  World No.1 Estonian player  Mother, Ulle, is a tennis coach and started her in tennis (was her coach until the age of 11, then began working other Estonian coaches). Father, Andrus, is a manager at the Port of Tallinn KUZNETSOVA:

Rome

• Making 16th appearance at Rome where she is a two-time R-Up in 2007 (l. Jankovic) and 2009 (l. Safina) • Also reached SF twice and QF on one occasion • In 1r this week, won seven straight points in the second-set tie-break to turn around match against Pera • Faces No.21 Kontaveit in 2r today; in terms of ranking, a win today would be here third best of the season, after No.16 Vondrousova (Australian Open) and No.9 Bencic (Doha) • One of seven Russians in the main draw

Season

 Coming off 2r exit at Istanbul (after 1r bye, l. Bouchard)  Reached SF at Doha (d. No.9 Bencic, l. eventual champion Sabalenka); after tournament returned to Top 40 for the first time since May 2018  Made 2r exit at St. Petersburg (place of her birth), falling to top seed Bencic  Defeated No.15 seed Vondrousova in 1r at Australian Open, before falling to Giorgi in 2r  Fell 1r at Hobart (l. Linette)  Withdrew from scheduled season opener at Auckland due to illness

Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 season at No.54, up from No.107 in 2018, which was her first finish outside Top 100 since 2001 (No.259)  Season highlight in 2019 was reaching final at Cincinnati (l. Keys) as a WC ranked No.153 – defeated four Top 20 seeds en route to the final (No.11 Sevastova, No.10 Stephens, No.3 Ka.Pliskova and No.1 Barty). Returned to Top 100 after tournament  Missed first few months of 2019 season due to knee injury – returned at Lugano, where she reached QF  At 2018 Washington, DC won first title since October 2016 (d. Vekic in F after saving 4mp). Is now 18-24 in WTA singles finals  After falling 2r at 2018 Wimbledon (l. Strycova), dropped out of the Top 100 for the first time since August 12, 2002 (ending a run of 831 consecutive weeks)  Missed opening two months of 2018 (w/wrist injury)  Season highlight in 2017 was reaching final of Indian Wells (l. Vesnina)  Posted consistent results at Slams in 2017, reaching QF at Wimbledon for first time since 2007 (l. eventual champion Muguruza), and R16 at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova) and Roland Garros (l. Wozniacki)  Secured 600th match win (all levels) at 2017 Brisbane – is one of seven active players to reach the milestone, along with V.Williams, S.Williams, Jankovic, Sharapova, Wozniacki and Kerber  Won two titles in 2016, at Sydney and Moscow, and qualified for WTA Finals for sixth time in career (reached SF)  One of five Russians to rank in Top 2; had a chance to become No.1 by winning 2008 Roland Garros (fell two matches short with semifinal loss to Safina)  Ranked continuously in Top 20 from March 1, 2004 to July 11, 2010 (including over four years ranked continuously in Top 10 – April 2006 to June 2010)  Owns seven wins over reigning world No.1s (7-20 record), most recently defeating S.Williams at 2016 Miami. Also Mauresmo, Safina and Henin twice each when they were No.1; one of only two players (also S.Williams) to beat Henin twice when she was No.1  Haul of 16 tour level doubles titles includes two Australian Open crowns, won in 2005 (w/Molik) and 2012 (w/Zvonareva). Rose as high as No.3 in doubles (week of June 7, 2004)  Member of victorious Russia Fed Cup sides in 2004 and 2007-08 and Russian Olympic Team in 2004, 2008, 2016

Grand Slam History

 2020 Australian Open marked 67th main draw appearance at a Grand Slam  Is a two-time Grand Slam singles champion, winning at 2004 US Open (d. Dementieva in F) and 2009 Roland Garros (d. Safina in F). Also a two-time finalist, reaching the title bouts at Roland Garros in 2006 (l. Henin) and 2007 US Open (l. Henin)  One of three Russian women to lift a Grand Slam singles title (also Myskina, Sharapova)  Has made QF stage at Australian Open on three occasions and Wimbledon on four occasions  At 2011 Australian Open, played her part in setting the record for the longest women’s match at a Slam, eventually succumbing to Schiavone in 4h 44min  Has two major doubles titles, at Australian Open – in 2005 (w/Molik) and 2012 (w/Zvonareva)

Personal

 Father is Alexandr Kuznetsov, cycling coach of six Olympic champions and world champions, including Svetlana’s mother, Galina Tsareva (six-time world champion and holder of 20 world records) and Svetlana’s brother, Nikolai Kuznetsov (silver medalist at 1996 Atlanta Olympics)  Moved at the age of seven to Spain to attend the Sanchez-Casal Academy  Currently coached by Andrey Stepanov. Previously worked with Guillermo Cañas

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #77) vs. JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13)

Head to Head: First meeting

IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU JOHANNA KONTA 77 WTA RANKING 13 38 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 26 26-08-1990 (30) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 17-05-1991 (29) $190,661 YTD PRIZE MONEY $283,003 $5,345,617 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $9,637,367 0 / 4 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 3 0 / 9 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 8-5 ROME W-L (MD) * 10-4 4-5 / 173-176 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 7-7 / 171-108 2-0 / 65-57 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-3 / 44-45 1-2 / 40-42 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-2 / 38-31 4-2 / 87-62 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 22-19 0-2 / 10-18 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 13-13 0-1 / 2-17 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 7-11 0-2 / 6-29 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 21-22 0-3 / 12-45 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 38-36 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #77) JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13) R2-Q: d. ANNA-LENA FRIEDSAM (GER #109) 6-1,6-1 (1h02) BYE R1-Q: d. SARA ERRANI (ITA #151) 6-1,6-3 (1h18) R64: d. ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO (ITA #128) 6-2,6-2 (1h24)

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History

IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU JOHANNA KONTA 2019 2019 R1 L - DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #21) 6-2 7-6(5) F L - KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #7) 6-3 6-4

2018 2018 R2 L - ANGELIQUE KERBER (GER #12) 3-6 7-5 7-5 R16 L - JELENA OSTAPENKO (LAT #6) 2-6 6-3 6-4

2017 2017 R1 L - ANASTASIJA SEVASTOVA (LAT #18) 6-4 6-4 R16 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #12) 6-1 3-6 6-1

2016 2016 SF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-4 6-1 R16 L - (JPN #45) 4-6 7-5 6-2 2015 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #29) 6-4 5-7 6-1

BEGU:

Rome

 Making sixth consecutive appearance at Rome where she made SF in 2016  During 2016 run, defeated No.6 Azarenka before falling to then-No.1 and eventual champion S.Williams  Has fallen 1r twice here, including last year (as qualifier, l. Kasatkina)  Came through qualifying again this year, beating former Rome finalist Errani and Friedsam  Eased past No.128 Cocciaretto in 1r on Monday; this season has compiled 15-1 record against players ranked outside Top 100, with sole loss coming via retirement against No.231 Snigur at $60 ITF/Cairo-EGY  Faces No.13 Konta in 2r today; last time defeated a Top 20 opponent was a win over No.5 Ostapenko at 2018 Madrid; six of her seven recent Top 20 wins came on clay (seven out of twelve overall)  Is one of two Romanians in the draw (also two-time Rome R-Up and this year’s top seed Halep)  One of six qualifiers advanced to the second round this year  Owns fine record on clay, winning 2017 Bucharest – her most recent WTA title – finishing R-Up at 2011 Marbella and 2011 Budapest and also reaching eight other SFs on the surface

Season

 Coming off 1r exit at US Open (l. Kvitova)  Made first WTA SF in over two years at Prague in mid-August (l. eventual champion Halep); win over No.43 Sevastova in 1r was first over a Top 50 player since 2018 Roland Garros  Fell 1r at Palermo (l. Siegemund)  Prior to tour’s hiatus was in good form, winning the title at WTA 125K Series event at Indian Wells and another title at $100K ITF/Cairo-EGY  In opening month of the season, fell 1r at Shenzhen (as qualifier, l. Kr.Pliskova) and Australian Open (l. Bertens). Also contested qualifying at Hobart

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Career Milestones

 Ended 2019 at No.99 – sixth straight Top 100 finish  Season highlight was 3r run at Roland Garros (l. Anisimova) and three QF runs at Hobart (l. Schmiedlova), Budapest (l. Vondrousova) and Bucharest (l. Siegemund)  In doubles in 2019, won Hua Hin (w/Niculescu), her ninth doubles title  Won two doubles titles in 2018 – Shenzhen and Bucharest – finishing the year at a career-best No.23 in the WTA Doubles Rankings. Reached SF stage of 2018 Australian Open doubles event w/Niculescu  Reached two singles SFs - Shenzhen and Istanbul - and one QF in 2018. Also defeated No.5 Ostapenko at 2018 Madrid for second Top 5 win of career having also beaten No.4 Muguruza at 2016 Madrid  Highlight of 2017 was lifting fourth singles title of her career at Bucharest without dropping a set (d. Goerges in F); also took home the doubles trophy without dropping a set w/Olaru  Also in 2017 reached two SFs: Istanbul (l. Mertens) and Moscow (l. Kasatkina), and one QF at Charleston (l. eventual champion Kasatkina)  Represented Romania at 2016 Rio Olympics, making 1r exits in singles (l. Hibino) and doubles (w/Niculescu, l. Chan/Chan)  Other notable results in 2016 included SF at Rome (l. S.Williams), QF at Charleston (l. Kerber) and QF at Madrid (l. Halep)  Posted career-best ranking at No.22 (August 22, 2016)  In run to QF at 2016 Madrid was one of four Romanians for reach QF – which was first time this had occurred at a Premier Mandatory event (also Halep, Cirstea and Tig). Secured two milestones during Madrid: career-best win vs. No.4 Muguruza, and 300th match win of career (all levels) with R16 defeat of McHale  Owns four WTA singles titles from seven finals, lifting the trophies at 2012 Tashkent, 2015 Seoul, 2016 Florianopolis and 2017 Bucharest  Owns nine WTA doubles titles from 16 finals, most recently at 2019 Hua Hin (w/Niculescu)  Struggled with right shoulder injury in 2013 – first felt pain at 2013 Australian Open and missed three months of action  Holds 12 singles titles and 19 doubles titles on ITF Circuit • Voted WTA Newcomer of the Year in 2011 (media vote)

Grand Slam History

 Contested 34th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open  Best results at the majors are R16 showings at 2015 Australian Open (l. Bouchard) and 2016 Roland Garros (l. Rogers)  Also made 3r at Wimbledon in 2015, Roland Garros in 2015 and 2018-19, and 2r at US Open in 2012 and 2014  Made Grand Slam debut at 2011 Roland Garros, reaching 2r (d. Rezai, l. Kuznetsova)  In doubles, reached SF stage at 2018 Australian Open (w/Niculescu), and QF at 2017 Roland Garros (w/Zheng), 2018 Wimbledon (w/Buzarnescu) and 2012 Australian Open (w/Niculescu)

Personal

 Coached by Teador Bolanu  Started playing tennis at age 3 with aunt, who was a coach  Did gymnastics and played handball when younger  Idol growing up was Martina Hingis

KONTA: Rome

 Making fifth consecutive appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Last year, reached the final as an unseeded player, defeating No.8 Stephens and No.4 Bertens en route, eventually falling to No.7 Ka.Pliskova  Previous results were R16 showings in 2016 (l. Doi), 2017 (l. V.Williams) and 2018 (l. Ostapenko)  Faces No.77 Begu in 2r today; owns a 6-5 record against players outside Top 50 this year  Enjoyed the most successful clay season to date last year, posting a 15-4 record on the surface – prior to 2019, her overall win-loss record on clay stood at 7-15 (tour level main draw); returned to Top 20 after the clay campaign  Last year, reached her first two clay finals at Rabat (l. Sakkari after leading by a set and a break) and Rome (l, Ka.Pliskova) – had never previously passed QF stage on the surface on tour level  Also became the first British woman to reach SF at Roland Garros since ’s run in 1983, thus becoming the ninth active player to reach a Grand Slam SF on all three surfaces

Season

 Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. Cirstea)  Posted SF showing at the Western & Southern Open (l. eventual champion Azarenka); did not drop serve in any of her three matches en route to SF  Suffered 1r defeat at Lexington (l. Bouzkova)  Before tour’s hiatus, ended losing streak by advancing to SF at Monterrey (l. Bouzkova)  Returned to Europe in February to make 2r exit at St. Petersburg (after 1r bye, l. qualifier Dodin)  Opened campaign by falling 1r at Brisbane (l. Strycova) and Australian Open (l. Jabeur)

Career Milestones

 Ended 2019 campaign at No.12 (up from No.39 in 2018), despite not playing after US Open due to knee injury  Last season was highlighted by historic run at Roland Garros; recording first ever main draw win in Paris before becoming the first British woman to reach SF since Jo Durie’s run to the same stage in 1983, eventually falling to Vondrousova  Re-entered Top 20 on June 10, 2019 for first time since March 2018 (dropped as low as No.50)  Other highlights in 2019 included QF run at Wimbledon (d. No.9 Stephens and No.6 Kvitova; l. Strycova) and US Open (l. Svitolina), R-Up finish in Rome (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Rabat (l. Sakkari, after leading by a set and a break)  Highlights in 2018 included a second successive R-Up finish at Nottingham (l. Barty) and SF at Moscow [Kremlin Cup] (l. eventual champion Kasatkina)  Began 2017 season by lifting title at Sydney (d. A. Radwanska in F), before landing biggest title of career at Miami (d. Wozniacki in F)  At 2017 Wimbledon became first British player since in 1978 to reach Wimbledon SF (l. eventual R-Up V.Williams)  Reached third final of 2017 season at Nottingham (l. Vekic). Also in 2017, reached SF for second year in a row at home event of Eastbourne – QF defeat of World No.1 Kerber was first by a British woman over a reigning No.1 since Barker d. Evert at 1979 Boston  Reached first Premier Mandatory final of career at 2016 Beijing (l. A.Radwanska)  Was the non-playing alternate for WTA Finals in Singapore in 2016, narrowly missing qualification in the Top 8  By virtue of reaching 2016 Beijing final, made WTA Top 10 debut – becoming the first British woman to feature in the elite group since Durie in 1984, and the fourth British woman overall to do so (also Wade and Barker)

 Won career-first singles title at 2016 Stanford in maiden final (d. V.Williams in F). First British woman to reach final of a Premier event since WTA Roadmap was introduced in 2009  Broke into Top 20 on June 6, 2016 (at No.18) – first British woman in Top 20 for nearly 30 years (the week of October 13, 1986, with Durie at No.20)  Was voted WTA Most Improved Player in 2016 by international media and fans  Made tour-level main draw debut at 2011 Copenhagen

Grand Slam History

 Is a three-time Grand Slam semifinalist. Made Slam breakthrough with historic run to SF at 2016 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Kerber); became first British woman to reach the last four at Melbourne Park since in December 1977, and at any Slam since Jo Durie at 1983 US Open  Has since reached SF at 2017 Wimbledon (l. R-Up V.Williams), becoming the first British woman to reach the last four since Wade in 1978 (l. Evert), and at 2019 Roland Garros (l. Vondrousova)  One of nine active players to reach a major SF on hard, grass and clay: also Azarenka, Bouchard, Clijsters, Halep, Kvitova, Muguruza, S.Williams and V.Williams  Also advanced to QF at 2017 Australian Open, 2019 Wimbledon and 2019 US Open

Personal

 Born in Sydney, Australia; became a British citizen in May 2012. Parents are Gabor (hotelier) and Gabriella (dentist); older sister is Eva (works in fashion)  Grandfather Tamas Kertesz played football for the Hungarian ‘Golden Team’ with Ferenc Puskas in 1955  Switched clothing sponsor from Asics to at end of 2018  Currently working with Thomas Hogstedt, formerly worked with Dimitri Zavialoff, Michael Joyce and Wim Fissette

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

KIKI BERTENS (NED #8) vs. POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50)

Head to Head: Series tied 1-1

2019 BEIJING HARD O R16 KIKI BERTENS 7-6(6) 2-6 6-3 138 mins 2012 DALLAS HARD O R1 POLONA HERCOG 6-4 ret. 55 mins

KIKI BERTENS POLONA HERCOG 8 WTA RANKING 50 17 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 133 10-12-1991 (28) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 20-01-1991 (29) $461,143 YTD PRIZE MONEY $115,036 $11,191,293 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $3,692,802 1 / 10 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 3 0 / 10 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 2 7-5 ROME W-L (MD) * 4-4 12-3 / 221-162 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 4-5 / 158-196 4-2 / 64-62 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-2 / 47-68 2-1 / 47-51 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 0-2 / 33-52 2-0 / 98-40 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 3-3 / 89-65 0-0 / 28-11 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 14-22 0-1 / 11-13 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-2 / 0-14 0-1 / 23-25 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-2 / 1-31 1-1 / 36-46 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-2 / 9-49 * Updated entering 2020 Rome 2r

ROAD TO THE SECOND ROUND

KIKI BERTENS (NED #8) POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50) R64: BYE R64: d. (SLO #102) 4-6,6-4,6-1 (2h20)

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ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

KIKI BERTENS POLONA HERCOG 2019 2019 SF L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 5-7 7-5 6-2 R1 L - MADISON KEYS (USA #14) 6-4 7-6(3)

2018 2018 R1 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #42) 6-2 4-6 6-3 R1 L - SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #39) 6-2 6-4

2017 2016 SF L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #4) 7-5 6-1 R1-Q L - JULIA GOERGES (GER #62) 6-4 6-3

2016 2015 R1 L - TIMEA BABOS (HUN #48) 6-1 6-4 R1-Q L - MISAKI DOI (JPN #111) 6-7(2) 6-4 6-4 2013 2014 R2 L - SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #17) 4-6 6-3 6-2 R1-Q L - BELINDA BENCIC (SUI #96) 6-7(5) 6-3 6-4

2011 R16 L - SAMANTHA STOSUR (AUS #7) 6-3 6-4 2010 R2 L - SHAHAR PEER (ISR #21) 2-6 7-5 6-3

BERTENS:

Rome  Making sixth appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Reached SF last year (l. Konta) and in 2017 (l. Halep)  After 1r bye, faces No.50 Hercog in her first event back following the Tour’s five-month hiatus  Currently owns 13-8 career record in matches immediately following byes  A loss today would be worse by ranking since falling to then-No.110 Gauff at 2019 Linz  Played doubles this week w/Rus (l. Aoyama/Shibahara in 1r on Tuesday)  Six of her 10 career titles have come on clay – the fifth most among active players after S.Williams, V.Williams, Halep and Errani – at 2012 Fés, 2016-17 Nürnberg, 2017 Gstaad, 2018 Charleston and 2019 Madrid

Season  Prior to the Tour’s hiatus, made an early 2r exit at Doha (l. S.Zheng)  Won 10th career title at St. Petersburg (d. Rybakina in F); now owns 10-5 record in WTA finals  Participated thrilling Fed Cup tie against Belarus; scored wins in both singles matches (d. Sasnovich and Sabalenka), lost deciding doubles rubber w/partner Schuurs 10-8 in third set  Advanced to R16 at Melbourne, falling to eventual finalist Muguruza in straight sets  Opened 2020 campaign at Brisbane International with QF run (l. Osaka)

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Career  Ended 2019 ranked No.9, her joint-best finish of career (also No.9 in 2018)  Reached a career high ranking of World No.4 in 2019 following her first Premier Mandatory title at Madrid (defeated four Grand Slam champion en route - Ostapenko, Kvitova, Stephens and Halep in F).  Also became first woman to win Madrid title without dropping a set  Other season highlights included lifting the trophy at St. Petersburg (d. Vekic in F) and final runs at Palermo (l. Teichmann), Zhuhai (l. Sabalenka), and on home soil in ‘s-Hertogenbosch (could not convert five championship points in loss to Riske)  Also in 2019 became the third alternate to win a match at the WTA Finals since the round robin format was introduced in 2003 - also Bartoli (2007, 2011) and A.Radwanska (2008-09). Defeated No.1 Barty in Shenzhen to record her first win over the Australian and second win over a reigning World No.1, having also defeated Halep in 2018 Cincinnati final  Won 55 matches in 2019 – the second most of the season, behind Barty (56)  Struck 457 aces in 2019 - the second most on Tour behind Ka.Pliskova with 488  Won the WTA Jerry Diamond ACES Award in 2019, granted to the player who consistently goes above and beyond in promoting the sport of women’s tennis to fans, media and local communities by performing off-court promotional and charitable initiatives  Enjoyed a break-out year in 2018, reaching a career-best four singles finals across the season and breaking into the Top 10 (October 8, 2018) – first Dutch woman to be ranked in the Top 10 since Brenda Schultz-McCarthy in 1996  Won the WTA’s Most Improved Player Award in 2018  Lifted three titles in 2018, at Charleston (d. Goerges in F), Cincinnati (d. World No.1 Halep in F – saved 1mp) and Seoul (d. Tomljanovic in F). Reached one further final, at Premier Mandatory Madrid (l. Kvitova)  Scored WTA-leading 12 Top 10 wins in 2018. Prior to 2018, only had three Top 10 wins in her career  Also reached SF on WTA Finals debut in 2018 (l. Svitolina)  Season highlights in 2017 were titles at Nürnberg and Gstaad, and posted first Premier Mandatory QF at Madrid  Finished 2016 ranked No.22 in singles – big jump from her season-ending ranking of No.101 in 2015  Played on Netherlands Olympic team at 2016 Rio Olympics – fell in 1r (l. Errani)  Won maiden career singles title at 2012 Fès as a qualifier in just her second main draw appearance; currently owns 10-5 career record in singles finals (most recently 2020 St. Petersburg)  Owner of 10 WTA doubles titles, most recently at 2018 Brisbane (w/Schuurs)  Made WTA main draw debut as a wildcard at 2011 ‘s-Hertogenbosch (l. 1r)  Played first event of career on ITF Circuit in the Netherlands in 2006; has won seven singles titles and 11 doubles titles at this level  Netherlands Fed Cup Team, 2011-2012, 2014-2020

Grand Slam History

 Contested 31st Grand Slam main draw appearance at 2020 Australian Open  Deepest run across the Slams came with SF showing at 2016 Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up S.Williams)  Enjoyed her best result at Wimbledon in 2018 by reaching her second career Grand Slam QF (l. Goerges). Became first Dutch woman to reach QF at Wimbledon since Krajicek in 2007  In 2018 reached 3r for first time at both Australian Open (l. eventual champion Wozniacki) and US Open (l. Vondrousova)  Is a two-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist in doubles, at 2015 Australian Open (w/Larsson, l. Goerges/Groenefeld) and 2016 Roland Garros (w/Larsson, l. eventual champions Garcia/Mladenovic)

Personal

 Coached by former WTA player Elise Tamaela. Formerly coached by Raemon Sluiter (announced the end of their four-year partnership in November)  In November 2019, married her husband Remko de Rijke, who has been involved as part of her team as a physio and fitness coach. The two announced their engagement in November 2018  Won the 2019 WTA Jerry Diamond ACES Award and the 2018 WTA Most Improved Player of the Year Award  Fan-voted as May 2019 WTA Player of the Month  Parents are Rob and Doré; sisters are Joyce and Daisy  Started playing at age 6. Tennis idol growing up was Kim Clijsters

HERCOG: Rome

 Making fifth main draw appearance at Rome and eighth appearance overall  Deepest run was R16 showing in 2011 (l. Stosur)  Suffered 1r exits the past two years, falling to Kuznetsova (2018) and Keys (2019)  After recovering from a set down to defeat fellow Slovenian Jovan, advances to 2r here for the first time in nine years  Today, faces No.8 Bertens in 2r; sole career Top 10 win came over No.7 Bartoli at 2012 Charleston  All six of her career tour-level finals have come on clay, including title runs 2011 and 2012 Bastad and 2019 Lugano. Also nine of her 12 semifinal appearances have also been on the surface

Season

 Coming off QF showing at Istanbul (l. Badosa) – deepest run so far in 2020  Suffered 1r exits at Doha (l. Van Uytvanck), Palermo (l. Cocciaretto) and Prague (l. eventual champion Halep)  Fell during qualifying at Dubai  Kicked off 2020 season with 2r run at Australian Open (l. Barty)

Career Milestones

 Recorded ninth Top 100 season in 2019, at No.49  2019 saw the end of a near-seven-year wait for a WTA title, winning Lugano (d. Swiatek)  Other highlights last year were 3r runs at Roland Garros (l. Stephens), Wimbledon (l. Gauff), Eastbourne (l. Halep) and Beijing (l. Bertens)  Best result of 2018 was R-Up showing at Istabul (l. Parmentier). Also made SF at Bucharest and QF at Auckland  Began comeback in 2017 at Roland Garros qualifying, winning $60k ITF/Brescia-ITA in her second tournament back. neded campaign outside Top 100 after competing in only 10 tournaments, with best result a 3r run at Wimbledon Suffered three injuring following 2016 US Open (l. Kerber in 1r via ret.) including a scapula stress facture, left knee injury and right wrist injury  Season highlights in 2016 included a R-Up finish at WTA 135K Series event at Bol (l. Minella in F) and QF run at Bucharest (l. Siegemund)  Represented Slovenia at the Rio Olympics, losing in 1r in singles (l. eventual gold medalist Puig)

 Singles highlights during 2015 were SF at Bucharest (l. Schmiedlova) and QF at Bad Gastein (l. Knapp)  Sole career Top 10 win came over No.7 Bartoli at 2012 Charleston  Breakthrough season in 2011, highlighted by first singles final. Successfully defended her title at 2012 Bastad  Played first WTA event (in qualifying, as a WC) at 2006 Portoroz

Grand Slam History

 Contested 38th career Grand Slam main draw appearance at 2020 Australian Open  Has advanced to 3r on four occasions: at Roland Garros in 2010 (l. Pennetta) and 2019 (l. Stephens) and at Wimbledon in 2017 (l. Kuznetsova) and 2019 (l. Gauff)  Has reached 2r at both Australian Open and US Open

Personal

 Mother is Romana (a florist); father is Vojko (bar owner)  Family has many pets and Polona’s favorite is Roxi (Jack Russell Terrier)  Started playing tennis at age 4. Her favorite shot is forehand and favorite surface is clay  Initially trained in Slovenia but moved to Italy at age 14 and trained there before turning pro  Speaks Slovenian, English and Italian  Admires for her game, attitude and giving back to the sport  Tennis goal is to reach the Top 10

MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-21, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – DAY FIVE

[1] SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29)

First meeting Halep is currently on a 10-match winning streak including titles at Dubai and Prague… Yastremska is eyeing her third career win over a Top 5 ranked player, and second of 2020

POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50) vs. [12] MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) First meeting Hercog recorded her second career Top 10 victory over No.8 Bertens on Thursday… Vondrousova claimed her first three-set victory since 2019 Rome over Doi in 1r on Tuesday

[Q] (RUS #65) vs. [2] KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Pliskova leads 1-0

Blinkova is aiming to reach the biggest QF of her career and first Tour-level QF on clay… Pliskova is looking to win back-to-back matches for the first time since this year’s Australian Open

[9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) vs. [8] JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13) Konta leads 2-1 Muguruza is two matches away from her 400th career main draw match (255-142 career record)… Konta is facing her first Top 20 ranked opponent of the season (38-36 career record)

SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #38) vs. [4] ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6) Svitolina leads 3-1 Kuznetsova has won her 199th and 200th career three-set matches en route to R16 this week… Svitolina played her 99th career tiebreak against Pavlyuchenkova on Wednesday (55-44 record)

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1

MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-21, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY

• As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March. • Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play. • WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities. • Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer. • “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among others. • In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants. • For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

• One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3) • Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington) • Lowest-ranked player to triumph: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul) • Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up) • Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul) • Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d) • Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d) • Aces leaders: Serena Williams – 167, Elena Rybakina – 164, Naomi Osaka – 141, Garbiñe Muguruza – 137 • Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF) • Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 25, Elena Rybakina – 24, Anett Kontaveit – 20, Sofia Kenin – 18 • Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha) • Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul) • Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF) • Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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2 MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[1] SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29)

Head to Head: 0-0

SIMONA HALEP DAYANA YASTREMSKA 2 WTA RANKING 29 5 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 21 27-09-1991 (28) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 15-05-2000 (20) $1,469,594 YTD PRIZE MONEY $369,565 $36,577,615 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $1,997,142 2 / 21 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 3 0 / 1 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 16-7 ROME W-L (MD) * 2-1 16-2 / 386-170 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 15-8 / 58-40 5-0 / 115-57 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 5-3 / 12-19 5-1 / 52-56 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 5-4 / 14-14 6-0 / 126-45 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 4-1 / 11-8 0-0 / 35-15 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 4-2 0-0 / 12-29 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-1 / 2-3 0-0 / 39-49 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-3 / 2-9 3-1 / 102-76 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 4-4 / 11-15 * Updated entering 2020 Rome R16

ROAD TO THE ROUND OF 16

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29) R32: d. JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99) 6-3,6-4 (1h23) R32: d. AMANDA ANISIMOVA (USA #27) 4-6,7-6(3),6-4 (2h18) R64: BYE R64: d. CAMILA GIORGI (ITA #74) 7-5,6-7(5),6-4 (2h33)

Total games: 19 Total games: 68 Won/lost: 12-7 Won/lost: 36-32 Sets won/lost: 2-0 Sets won/lost: 4-2 Total time on court: 1h23 Total time on court: 4h51 Average time on court: 1h23 Average time on court: 2h26 Average rank of opponent: 99 Average rank of opponent: 51

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SIMONA HALEP DAYANA YASTREMSKA 2019 2019 R2 L - MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #44) 2-6 7-5 6-3 R1 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #31) 6-4 1-6 6-3

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2018 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-0 6-4 2017 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-6 7-5 6-1 2016 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #32) 6-3 4-6 6-3

2015 SF L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #10) 2-6 6-3 7-5

2014 R16 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #14) W/O

2013 SF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-3 6-0

2012 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #63) 6-3 6-4

2011 R1-Q L - VIRGINIE RAZZANO (FRA #95) 7-6(3) 6-0

HALEP:

Rome

• Making ninth main draw appearance at Rome (10th overall) • R-Up on two occasions, in 2017 and 2018 (l. Svitolina in both finals) • Also made SF twice, in 2013 (l. eventual champion S.Williams) and 2015 (l. Suárez Navarro) • Reached R16 in 2014 (l. Suárez Navarro), 2r in 2016 (l. Gavrilova) and 2019 (l. Vondrousova), and 1r in 2012 (l. V.Williams). Fell in qualifying on tournament debut in 2011 • Second time contesting Rome as No.1 seed (also in 2018, l. Svitolina in F) • Converted eight of 10 break points to send off Italian wildcard and No.99 Paolini, improving win-loss record this season to an impressive 16-2 • Today, faces No.29 Yastremska for their first career meeting. Having been pushed to three sets in both of her previous matches, the Ukrainian (4h51) has spent over three times the amount of time Halep (1h23) has on court so far this week • Currently on a 10-match winning streak, including titles at Dubai (four wins) and Prague (five wins) • Among active players, owns the third-most clay court titles with eight, behind V.Williams (9) and S.Williams (13) • Since 2013, when Halep won her first of 21 titles, only Serena Williams (27) has won more titles than the Romanian • Played doubles this week w/Niculescu (l. Shibahara/Aoyama in 2r)

Season

• Last month, captured her 21st career title at Prague (d. Mertens in F). Tied with Azarenka for fifth-most titles among active players, behind Serena (73), Venus (49), Clijsters (41) and Kvitova (27)

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from • Prior to Tour’s five-month hiatus, clinched her 20th career title at Dubai (d. Rybakina in F) • Reached eighth career Grand Slam SF at Australian Open (l. Muguruza) bringing record in major SF matches to 5-3 • Opened 2020 season with QF appearance at Adelaide (l. Sabalenka)

Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 ranked No.4 for sixth consecutive year in the Top 5 • 2019 highlighted by winning second career Grand Slam title at Wimbledon (d. S.Williams) • Also finished R-Up at Madrid (l. Bertens) and QF at Roland Garros (as defending champion, l. Anisimova) and Toronto (ret. vs. Bouzova w/Achilles pain) • Ended 2018 season as World No.1 for the second time in her career, with season highlighted by maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F) • Also won titles last year at Shenzhen (d. Siniakova in F) and Montréal (d. Stephens in F) and was R-Up at Australian Open (l. Wozniacki), Rome (l. Svitolina) and Cincinnati (l. Bertens). Is 18-16 in career finals • Won first career WTA doubles title at 2018 Shenzhen (w/Begu). Now 1-1 in career doubles finals • Finished 2017 as the year-end World No.1, having ascended to the No.1 spot for first time in career on October 9, 2017 – became the 25th woman to reach the top spot, and the 13th to hold year-end No.1 • Defended Madrid title in 2017 (d. Mladenovic in F); reached four more finals in 2017: Rome, Roland Garros, Cincinnati and Beijing. 2016 season highlighted by three titles, at Madrid, Bucharest and Montréal • Between May 2013 and August 2014, improved ranking from No.64 to No.2, winning seven titles • Has qualified six times for WTA Finals in Singapore (2014-19, although withdrew injured in 2018), reaching final in 2014 (l. S.Williams, having defeated the World No.1 in the round robin stage) • Named 2013 WTA Most Improved Player, winning her first six WTA titles and ending year ranked No.11 • Made WTA main draw debut at 2010 Marbella as a qualifier, reaching quarterfinals

Grand Slam History

• Contested 39th Grand Slam main draw of her career at 2020 Australian Open • Winner of two Grand Slam titles, lifting first at 2018 Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F) followed by an historic 2019 Wimbledon run (d. S.Williams in F) • Became first Romanian to lift the singles title at the All England Club, defeating S.Williams in 56 minutes • Posted three runner-up finishes in Paris in 2014 (l. Sharapova in 3s), 2017 (l. Ostapenko in 3s) and at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki in 3s) • Was the first Romanian woman to advance to final at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki) • Best result at US Open is SF run in 2015 (l. eventual champion Pennetta)

Personal

• Reunited with long-time coach, Darren Cahill during offseason after taking a 12-month break • Formerly coached by Wim Fissette and Victor Ionita • Sponsorship portfolio includes deals with Mercedes, Unilever and is an Ambassador for Dubai Duty Free • Sponsors a children’s hockey team back in Romania through the Simona Halep Foundation

YASTREMSKA:

Rome • Making second appearance here in Rome • Suffered 1r exit on only previous run in 2019 (l. Suarez Navarro) • Avenged Palermo loss to No.69 Giorgi in the opening round here in Rome after a 2h33 thriller – both players struggled on serve with 14 double faults each however Yastremska struck more winners (25 to 15) and was able to close out the match • Rallied from a set down to dispatch No.27 Anisimova in another two-hour battle; improved career record against Top 30 players to 16-17 • In today’s R16 match, squares off against No.2 Halep where she looks to record her third career Top 5 win. Currently 2-3 vs. Top 5 opposition with wins coming against No.2 Ka.Pliskova (2019 Wuhan) and No.5 Kenin (2020 Doha) • Enters tournament ranked No.29, eight spots off career-high ranking of No.21, which she set the week of January 20 following R-Up finish at Adelaide • After a slow start to last year’s clay season, falling 1r at Istanbul, Madrid and Rome, went on to capture her third career WTA title at Strasbourg (d. Garcia in F)

Season • Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. Brengle) • Made 3r run at Western & Southern Open (d. V.Williams in 1r, l. eventual R-Up Osaka) • In first event of tour’s resumption, made QF career WTA QF at Palermo (l. Giorgi, having held 2MP) • Highlight of opening months of season reaching first Premier-level SF and then F at Adelaide (l. Barty in F). Posted three Top 20 wins en route, over No.18 Kerber, No.20 Vekic and No.12 Sabalenka • Also made 3r at Doha (d. No.5 Kenin, l. Muguruza) and 2r at Australian Open (l. Wozniacki). Fell 1r at Brisbane (l. Bertens) and Dubai (l. Kudermetova) • In February, won all three singles rubbers to help Ukraine see off Estonia, Croatia and Bulgaria to earn a trip to Japan for the rescheduled Fed Cup by BNP Paribas Play-offs for a place in the 2022 Qualifiers

Grand Slam History • Advanced to second week of a major for the first time at 2019 Wimbledon, falling to S.Zhang in R16 • Reached 3r at 2019 US Open (l. Svitolina) and 2019 Australian Open (l. S.Williams) • Made 1r exit at 2019 Roland Garros (l. Suárez Navarro) in first appearance in Paris • Runner-up in 2016 Wimbledon junior girls’ event (l. Potapova)

Career Highlights • Posted second Top 100 and first Top 30 season finish in 2019, at No.22 • Captured two WTA singles titles in 2019 at Hua Hin (d. Tomljanovic in F after trailing 5-2 in third set) and Strasbourg (d. Garcia after saving 1mp) • Advanced to QF at 2019 Wuhan, where she recorded maiden Top 5 win against No.2 Ka.Pliskova in R16 (l. Kvitova), and made Grand Slam breakthrough with R16 run at 2019 Wimbledon (l. Zhang) • Qualified for WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai in 2019, going 1-1 in RR stage (d. No.20 Vekic, l. eventual R-Up Bertens) and reached maiden doubles final, at Beijing (w/Ostapenko, l. Kenin/Mattek-Sands) • Posted first Top 100 season in 2018, at No.60, winning first career title at Hong Kong (d. Q.Wang in F) • Also in 2018, reached SF at Luxembourg (l. Bencic), 2r at New Haven (as qualifier, l. Goerges) and Charleston (as LL, l. Pera) and fell 1r at US Open (l. Muchova), Acapulco (as qualifier, l. Puig) Québec City (l. McHale) and Beijing (as qualifier, l. S.Zheng) • Became first woman born in the 2000s to crack the Top 100 on the WTA rankings, debuting at No.100 (week of July 16, 2018) • Won third ITF singles title in at $60k ITF/Rome-ITA and reached two more finals in 2018•Posted first Top 200 season in 2017, at No.189 – rose more than 200 places during the year • Won first WTA main draw match and reached first tour-level QF at 2017 Istanbul, defeating former World No.9 Petkovic en route (l. Cepelova) • Made WTA main draw debut as a WC at 2016 Istanbul (l. Hibino in 1r) • Played first matches of career on ITF Circuit in 2015 • In juniors, rose as high as No.6 in the world • On ITF Circuit, winner of three singles titles and three doubles titles

Personal • Split with coach Sascha Bajin (former coach of Naomi Osaka and Kristina Mladenovic) following 2020 US Open; plans to announce new coach this November • Previously coached by Olivier Jeunehomme • Nominated for 2019 WTA Newcomer of the Year • Born and resides in Odessa, Ukraine • Trained as a junior in Istanbul, at Koza WOS

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50) vs. [12] MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19)

Head to Head: 0-0

POLONA HERCOG MARKETA VONDROUSOVA 50 WTA RANKING 19 133 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 93 20-01-1991 (29) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 28-06-1999 (21) $115,036 YTD PRIZE MONEY $252,464 $3,692,802 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $3,308,044 0 / 3 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 1 0 / 2 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 5-4 ROME W-L (MD) * 5-1 5-5 / 159-196 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 6-8 / 59-41 1-2 / 47-68 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-6 / 11-23 0-2 / 33-52 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 18-10 4-3 / 90-65 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 2-1 / 26-12 0-0 / 14-22 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 4-0 0-2 / 0-14 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 2-3 1-2 / 2-31 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 2-9 1-2 / 10-49 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 9-11 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome R16

ROAD TO THE ROUND OF 16

POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50) MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) R32: d. [5] KIKI BERTENS (NED #8) 6-4,6-4 (1h36) R32: d. (NED #71) 6-3,6-3 (1h58) R64: d. KAJA JUVAN (SLO #102) 4-6,6-4,6-1 (2h20) R64: d. MISAKI DOI (JPN #80) 6-1,4-6,6-4 (2h33)

Total games: 47 Total games: 45 Won/lost: 28-19 Won/lost: 28-17 Sets won/lost: 4-1 Sets won/lost: 4-1 Total time on court: 3h56 Total time on court: 4h31 Average time on court: 1h58 Average time on court: 2h16 Average rank of opponent: 55 Average rank of opponent: 76

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

POLONA HERCOG MARKETA VONDROUSOVA 2019 2019 R1 L - MADISON KEYS (USA #14) 6-4 7-6(3) QF L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 3-6 6-1

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

2018 R1 L - SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #39) 6-2 6-4

2016

R1-Q L - JULIA GOERGES (GER #62) 6-4 6-3 2015 R1-Q L - MISAKI DOI (JPN #111) 6-7(2) 6-4 6-4

2014 R1-Q L - BELINDA BENCIC (SUI #96) 6-7(5) 6-3 6-4 2011 R16 L - SAMANTHA STOSUR (AUS #7) 6-3 6-4

2010 R2 L - SHAHAR PEER (ISR #21) 2-6 7-5 6-3

HERCOG: Rome

• Making fifth main draw appearance at Rome and eighth appearance overall • Has matched her best showing here by advancing to R16, having also reached this stage in 2011 (l. Stosur) • Suffered 1r exits the past two years, falling to Kuznetsova (2018) and Keys (2019) • After recovering from a set down to defeat fellow Slovenian Juvan, advanced to 2r here for the first time in nine years • Recorded her second career Top 10 win over No.8 Bertens in 2r on Thursday. Previously defeated No.7 Bartoli at 2012 Charleston (2-31 career record) • Has now won back-to-back main draw matches for the second time in 2020, having also done so last week at Istanbul (d. Cengiz and Paolini, l. Badosa). In 2019, claimed back-to-back wins five times, at Lugano (WON), Roland Garros (3r), Eastbourne (3r), Wimbledon (3r) and Beijing (3r) • Faces No.19 Vondrousova today in their career first meeting. Owns 10 career wins over Top 20 ranked players. Prior to her win over Bertens in 2r, her last such win came over No.13 Kerber at 2019 Beijing • Holds 14-22 career record vs. left-handed opponents (0-0 in 2020), most recently defeating Kerber at 2019 Beijing • All six of her career tour-level finals have come on clay, including title runs 2011 and 2012 Bastad and 2019 Lugano. Also nine of her 12 semifinal appearances have been on the surface

Season

• Coming off QF showing at Istanbul (l. Badosa) – deepest run so far in 2020 • Suffered 1r exits at Doha (l. Van Uytvanck), Palermo (l. Cocciaretto) and Prague (l. eventual champion Halep) • Fell during qualifying at Dubai • Kicked off 2020 season with 2r run at Australian Open (l. Barty)

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Career Milestones

• Recorded ninth Top 100 season in 2019, at No.49 • 2019 saw the end of a near-seven-year wait for a WTA title, winning Lugano (d. Swiatek) • Other highlights last year were 3r runs at Roland Garros (l. Stephens), Wimbledon (l. Gauff), Eastbourne (l. Halep) and Beijing (l. Bertens) • Best result of 2018 was R-Up showing at Istabul (l. Parmentier). Also made SF at Bucharest and QF at Auckland • Began comeback in 2017 at Roland Garros qualifying, winning $60k ITF/Brescia-ITA in her second tournament back. neded campaign outside Top 100 after competing in only 10 tournaments, with best result a 3r run at Wimbledon Suffered three injuring following 2016 US Open (l. Kerber in 1r via ret.) including a scapula stress facture, left knee injury and right wrist injury • Season highlights in 2016 included a R-Up finish at WTA 135K Series event at Bol (l. Minella in F) and QF run at Bucharest (l. Siegemund) • Represented Slovenia at the Rio Olympics, losing in 1r in singles (l. eventual gold medalist Puig) • Singles highlights during 2015 were SF at Bucharest (l. Schmiedlova) and QF at Bad Gastein (l. Knapp) • Sole career Top 10 win came over No.7 Bartoli at 2012 Charleston • Breakthrough season in 2011, highlighted by first singles final. Successfully defended her title at 2012 Bastad • Played first WTA event (in qualifying, as a WC) at 2006 Portoroz

Grand Slam History

• Contested 38th career Grand Slam main draw appearance at 2020 Australian Open • Has advanced to 3r on four occasions: at Roland Garros in 2010 (l. Pennetta) and 2019 (l. Stephens) and at Wimbledon in 2017 (l. Kuznetsova) and 2019 (l. Gauff) • Has reached 2r at both Australian Open and US Open

Personal

• Mother is Romana (a florist); father is Vojko (bar owner) • Family has many pets and Polona’s favorite is Roxi (Jack Russell Terrier) • Started playing tennis at age 4. Her favorite shot is forehand and favorite surface is clay • Initially trained in Slovenia but moved to Italy at age 14 and trained there before turning pro • Speaks Slovenian, English and Italian • Admires Justine Henin for her game, attitude and giving back to the sport • Tennis goal is to reach the Top 10

VONDROUSOVA:

Rome • Making second appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia. Reached QF on debut last year (l. Konta in 3s) • Defeated No.2 Halep during last year’s run in 2r, having also defeated the Romanian, also ranked No.2, earlier in the year at Indian Wells – marked her career first wins over a Top 2 ranked player • Opened her 2020 Rome campaign with 3s victory over No.80 Doi, which marked her first 3s win since 2019 Rome (d. Strycova, Halep and Kasatkina all in 3s, l. Konta in 3s). Had previously lost all six 3s matches in 2020 • In 2r, ousted No.71 Rus in straight sets to notch back-to-back wins for the first time since her season opener at Adelaide (d. Maria and Ar.Rodionova, l. Barty) • Faces No.50 Hercog today for a spot in her first QF since Adelaide in January (l. Barty) • Today marks just her fourth meeting vs. a Top 50 ranked player in 2020, having defeated No.41 Sevastova (Dubai) and falling to No.1 Barty (Adelaide) and No.37 S.Zheng (Doha) • One of five Czechs to contest this year’s main draw (also Bouzkova, Ka.Pliskova, Siniakova and Strycova)

Season • Coming off 2r showing at US Open (l. Sasnovich) and 1r exit at Western & Southern Open (l. Siegemund) • Suffered 1r exit at Palermo (l. Juvan – was two points from victory in second set) • During June and July, played a series of exhibitions against, among others, Bencic, Kvitova and Strycova • Before tour’s hiatus, made 2r at Dubai (l. Brady) and fell 1r at Doha (l. Zheng) • Fell 1r at Australian Open (l. Kuznetsova) and St. Petersburg (l. Tomljanovic) • In January, made positive return from six-month layoff w/left wrist injury to reach QF at Adelaide (l. eventual champion Barty)

Career Milestones • Enjoyed break-out season in 2019, reaching three finals across the year and making Top 20 debut • Finished R-Up at Budapest (l. Van Uytvanck) and Istanbul (l. Martic) before reaching championship match at Roland Garros (l. Barty); did not drop a set en route to final in Paris • Posted first win of career over a Top 2 player in 2019, defeating No.2 Halep at Indian Wells and then Rome • Forced to end 2019 season down early due to left wrist injury – did not play again following 1r exit at Wimbledon • At 2018 US Open, became the first teenager to reach the R16 at Flushing Meadows since 2016 (Konjuh, QF – 18) and the youngest Czech player to advance to this stage in New York since 2005 (Vaidisova, R16 – 16) • Was the biggest ranking mover on tour in 2017, from No.376 to No.67 (309 places) • Made WTA breakthrough by winning International-level title at 2017 Biel/Bienne (d. Kontaveit in F). At No.233, was the lowest-ranked title winner in 2017 and aged 17 years, 293 days was the youngest since Konjuh (17 years, 169 days) at 2015 Nottingham • Reached doubles QF at 2017 Wimbledon (w/Bellis, l. eventual finalists H.Chan/Niculescu) • Advanced to 2r on tour-level debut at 2016 Prague – as wildcard • On ITF Circuit, winner of seven singles and four doubles titles • Made professional debut at 2014 $100k ITF/Prague-CZE (d. Suk, l. Brengle in 2r) • Ranked junior No.1 in 2015

Grand Slam History • Contested 12th and most recent major at 2020 US Open • Breakthrough came during R-Up finish at 2019 Roland Garros; ranked No.38, was joint-third lowest-ranked woman to reach Roland Garros final, and aged 19, was first teenager to reach title match there since Ivanovic in 2007 • Previous best result at the majors was reaching R16 at 2018 US Open (l. Tsurenko). Was youngest Czech player to reach R16 at Flushing Meadows since 2005 (Nicole Vaidisova, R16 at 16yrs, 140 days) • Made Grand Slam debut at 2017 Roland Garros, where she advanced to 2r. Has also reached 2r at 2018 and 2019 Australian Opens • Fell 1r on debut at Wimbledon in 2017 • Reached doubles QF at 2017 Wimbledon (w/Bellis, l. eventual finalists H.Chan/Niculescu) • In juniors won doubles at Australian Open and Roland Garros in 2015 (both w/Kolodziejova). In singles, was semifinalist at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon

Personal • Coached by former ATP Pro Jan Hernych. Fitness trainer is Michal Vagner • Mother, Jindriska Anderlova, played volleyball in the top Czech league • Born in Skolov but moved to Prague alone at age 15 to train full-time • Chose tennis over soccer as she prefers the individual nature of the sport • Describes herself as quiet and calm

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[Q] ANNA BLINKOVA (RUS #65) vs. [2] KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Head to Head: KAROLINA PLISKOVA leads 1-0

2017 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O R2 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-0 6-2 59 mins

ANNA BLINKOVA KAROLINA PLISKOVA 65 WTA RANKING 4 120 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 18 10-09-1998 (22) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 21-03-1992 (28) $262,120 YTD PRIZE MONEY $599,371 $1,385,037 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $20,111,889 0 / 0 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 16 0 / 1 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 2-0 ROME W-L (MD) * 8-4 5-5 / 27-41 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 10-5 / 319-164 3-2 / 14-21 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-1 / 103-59 2-0 / 9-8 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-6 / 64-70 2-0 / 5-5 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 54-36 0-0 / 1-3 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 31-20 0-0 / 0-2 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 18-19 1-0 / 1-4 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 32-39 1-0 / 3-12 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 3-1 / 62-72 * Updated entering 2020 Rome R16

ROAD TO THE ROUND OF 16

ANNA BLINKOVA (RUS #65) KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4) R2-Q: d. STEFANIE VOEGELE (SUI #114) 7-5,6-3 (1h39) R32: d. BARBORA STRYCOVA (CZE #37) 6-3,6-3 (1h15)

R1-Q: BYE R64: BYE

R32: d. (ESP #107) 4-6,6-1,7-6(4) (2h22) R64: d. JIL BELEN TEICHMANN (SUI #52) 6-3,6-3 (1h15)

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ROME Tournament History

KAROLINA PLISKOVA 2019 F W - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 6-4

2018 R2 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #42) 3-6 6-3 7-5

2017 QF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 6-2 7-6(9)

2016 R1 L - DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #33) 6-4 6-4

2015 R1 L - TIMEA BACSINSZKY (SUI #24) 6-4 6-0

BLINKOVA:

Rome • Making debut appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • In qualifying, received 1r bye, then beat Voegele to make the main draw • Broke serve six times to see off Teichmann in 1r • Despite hitting 12 double faults, fought back from a set down and won third set tie-break against fellow qualifier Bolsova in 2r; recorded back-to-back main draw wins for the first time since SF run at 2019 Luxembourg • One of three qualifiers advanced to 3r this week, also Kasatkina and Kovinic • One of three Russians remaining in the draw, also Kasatkina and Kuznetsova • Faces No.4 Ka.Pliskova in 3r today, bidding to reach the biggest QF of her career and first WTA QF on clay • Looking for second ever Top 10 win – upset No.8 Bencic at Shenzhen in January for her only previous Top 10 win • Last year on clay, achieved best Grand Slam result on Roland Garros debut by advancing to 3r (as qualifier, d. Garcia, l. Keys); also posted R-Up finish at $100K ITF/Trnava 3-SVK (l. Pera) and SF run at $60K ITF/Wiesbaden-GER (l. Krejcikova); fell in qualifying at Stuttgart • Also contested in doubles this week (w/Rybakina, l. Carter/Stefani in 1r)

Season

• Coming off 1r exit at US Open (l. Brady) • Reached 2r at Lexington (l. Bouzkova) and contested qualifying at Western & Southern Open • In final outing before tour’s break, fell 2r at WTA 125K Series event at Indian Wells (after 1r bye, l. Boulter) • Failed to negotiate qualifying at either Doha or Dubai • Also reached 2r at Australian Open (l. Diyas) and fell 1r at Hobart (l. Jabeur) • Opened season with 2r showing at Shenzhen (l. Diyas); upset No.8 Bencic in 1r to register first Top 10 win of her career

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Career Milestones

• Posted second Top 100 season in 2019 (at No.59, up from No.98 in 2018) • Reached first WTA SFs of her career at Guangzhou (l. eventual champion Kenin) and Luxembourg (l. eventual champion Ostapenko). Earlier in the season, also made maiden QF at the Bronx (as LL, l. Q.Wang) and reached 3r at Roland Garros (l. Keys) • Also in 2019, lifted singles title at WTA 125K Series event at New Haven (d. Arconada in F) • Contested 13 WTA main draws in 2018, highlighted by run through qualifying to 3r at Doha, where she registered first Top 20 win, over No.13 Mladenovic • Also in 2018 won maiden WTA doubles title at Rabat (w/Olaru) • Reached 2r on two occasions in 2017, at Australian Open and Budapest • Posted significant ranking jump at end of 2016, finishing the year at No.206, up from No.826 in 2015 • Made WTA main draw debut at 2016 Rabat (as wildcard, l. Bacsinszky). Posted first main draw win at 2016 Moscow (as qualifier, d. Sevastova, conceded w/o to Konjuh in 2r) • Clinched first two ITF Circuit titles in 2016, at $10K ITF/Stuttgart-GER and $25K ITF/Westende-BEL. Also owns 10 ITF doubles titles • Reached as high as No.3 in junior singles rankings, winning the ITF Junior Masters in Chengdu in April 2016 (d. Swann in F)

Grand Slam History

• Achieved best Grand Slam result on Roland Garros debut in 2019 by advancing to 3r (as qualifier, l. Keys) • Has also reached 2r at Australian Open in 2017 (as qualifier, l. Ka.Pliskova) and 2020 (l. Diyas) and 2018 Wimbledon (l. Bertens). Has never been beyond 1r at US Open • Made Grand Slam main draw debut at 2017 Australian Open, coming through qualifying to reach 2r (d. Niculescu, l. Ka.Pliskova) • In juniors finished runner-up at 2015 Wimbledon (l. Zhuk)

Personal • Mother Elena travels on tour and is now coaching her; father’s name is Vladimir. Formerly coached by Thomas Drouet and Mislav Hizak • Introduced to tennis aged four; did not win a single game in first match as a junior • Played both tennis and chess to a high level as a teenager before concentrating on tennis • Likes to read – Jack London and Erich Maria Remarque are her favorite authors. Also fond of classic Russian literature and sports autobiographies (Andre Agassi, Usain Bolt, Rafa Nadal, ) • Speaks Russian, Slovak, French and English

KA.PLISKOVA:

Rome • Making sixth consecutive appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Enters this week’s tournament as defending champion, having defeated Konta in last year’s final to lift the crown • Second best run was advancing to QF in 2017 (l. Svitolina) • Following 1r bye, struck 26 winners and broke serve four times to triumph over compatriot Strycova in 2r; career record in matches following byes now stands at 42-8 • One of two Czech players left in the draw from five in the starting field (also Vondrousova) • Faces No.65 Blinkova today in 3r; last time fell to a player outside Top 50 was at 2019 Beijing in 1r (l. No.73 Ostapenko) • Bidding to win back-to-back matches for the first time since this year’s Australian Open • Prior to Rome, posted a 9-5 record in six tournaments played this year; the least wins gathered from the opening six tournaments of a season since 2016 (not including Fed Cup) • Owns three career clay court titles at 2015 Prague, 2018 Stuttgart and 2019 Rome • During the hiatus, contested the Mutua Madrid Open Virtual competition, undertook charity work by sup-porting key workers with free coffee, kept fit with bike rides (her first in 15 years), held her Foundation’s first junior tournament as well as played several exhibition events in the Czech Republic

Season • Coming off 2r loss at US Open (l. Garcia) • First event back following the hiatus was the Western & Southern Open – as No.1 seed, fell 2r (after 1r bye, l. Kudermetova) • Prior to his, last event was in Doha, reaching the 3r (l. Jabeur) • Fell to eventual finalist Rybakina in QF of Dubai • Advanced to 3r at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova) • Began 2020 by winning 16th career title at Brisbane International (d. Keys in F), defending her title from 2019 – has now won at least one WTA title for eight consecutive seasons. Was also first time successfully defending one of her previous 15 titles • Brisbane marked first event working with new coach Daniel Vallverdu

Grand Slam History • Advanced to career first Grand Slam final at 2016 US Open (l. Kerber), simultaneously making debuts in R16, QF, SF and title match at the majors. Became first Czech to reach US Open final since Helena Sukova in 1993 (l. Graf in F) • At Australian Open, best result was SF run in 2019 (l. Osaka), also reached last four at 2017 Roland Garros (l. Halep) • Reached R16 at Wimbledon in 2018 (l. Bertens) and 2019 (l. Muchova) • Made Grand Slam main draw debut at 2012 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Bartoli in 1r)

Career Milestones • Finished 2019 ranked No.2 for career-best year-end finish • Lifted a Tour-leading four title across the season (tied with Barty), taking tally to 15 – triumphed at Brisbane, Rome, Eastbourne and Zhengzhou • Dropped 19 games across five matches during Eastbourne title win (d. Kerber in F) – most economic title run in 2019 • Also reached first Premier Mandatory final at Miami, losing to Barty in straight sets • Produced best Australian Open performance of career, reaching SF (l. eventual champion Osaka in 3s); saved four match points to beat S.Williams in QF • Lost to twin sister Kr.Pliskova in R16 at Birmingham, in what was their first career main draw encounter • Made fourth straight appearance at the WTA Finals in 2019, reaching SF for the third year in a row • Won two titles in 2018 from three finals contested, triumphing at Stuttgart (d. Vandeweghe in F) and Tokyo [PPO] (d. Osaka in F). Posted R-Up finish in Tianjin (l. Garcia in F) • At Grand Slam level in 2018 season, made QF run at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Halep), reached 3r at Roland Garros (l. Sharapova), made R16 for first time at Wimbledon (l. Bertens) and had QF showing at US Open (d. No.17 Barty in R16, l. S.Williams) • Also in 2018, made the SF at Brisbane (as defending champion, l. eventual champion Svitolina), Madrid (l. eventual champion Kvitova) and WTA Finals (l. Stephens). Enjoyed QF runs at four other tournaments • Claimed No.1 ranking on July 17, 2017 despite making 2r exit at Wimbledon (l. Rybarikova). Was the first Czech woman to achieve the No.1 ranking since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975 (Martina Navratilova became No.1 on July 10, 1978 while representing USA) • Won three titles in 2017, at Brisbane (d. Cornet in F), Doha (d. Wozniacki in F) and Eastbourne (d. Wozniacki in F) • Owns 15-12 record in singles finals, having won having titles on all three surfaces • Captured fifth WTA doubles title of career at 2016 Birmingham (w/Strycova). Is now 5-2 in doubles finals. At 2013 Linz, with sister Kristyna, became first set of twins to ever win a tour-level doubles title • Made Top 10 debut after 2015 Stanford R-Up finish; was first time in WTA history that three Czech women ranked inside Top 10 at the same time (also Kvitova and Safarova) • Won first career WTA title at 2013 Kuala Lumpur (d. Mattek-Sands) and followed it up with two more in 2014 Seoul (d. Lepchenko) and 2014 Linz (d. Giorgi) • Made professional debut on ITF circuit in 2006

Personal • Born in Louny, north of Prague, but now trains at Sparta Praha tennis club • Has a twin sister – Kristyna. In 2013, became the first set of twins to capture a WTA doubles title • Married Michal Hrdlicka after 2018 Wimbledon • Currently coached by Daniel Vallverdu and Olga Savchuk, and previously coached by Conchita Martínez, Rennae Stubbs, Tomas Krupa and David Kotyza • Away from the court, enjoys fresh-water fishing, as well as contributing to her foundation which benefits various causes, including pediatric oncology and children battling cancer in her native Czech Republic MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

[9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) vs. [7] JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13)

Head to Head: JOHANNA KONTA leads 2-1

2019 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O R2 GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 6-4 6-7(3) 7-5 162 mins 2015 US OPEN HARD O R2 JOHANNA KONTA 7-6(4) 6-7(4) 6-2 203 mins 2015 EASTBOURNE GRASS O R16 JOHANNA KONTA 6-4 4-6 6-3 116 mins

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA JOHANNA KONTA 17 WTA RANKING 13 4 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 26 08-10-1993 (26) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 17-05-1991 (29) $1,703,605 YTD PRIZE MONEY $283,003 $20,921,334 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $9,637,367 0 / 7 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 3 0 / 5 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 12-6 ROME W-L (MD) * 11-4 19-5 / 255-142 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 8-7 / 172-108 8-3 / 81-62 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-3 / 44-45 7-0 / 42-50 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-2 / 38-31 2-0 / 55-29 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 23-19 0-0 / 18-14 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 13-13 2-1 / 11-18 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 7-11 3-1 / 35-34 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 21-22 3-2 / 61-60 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 38-36 * Updated through entering 2020 Rome R16

ROAD TO THE ROUND OF 16

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13) R32: d. COCO GAUFF (USA #53) 7-6(3),3-6,6-3 (2h28) R32: d. IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #77) 6-0,6-4 (1h23) R64: d. SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #33) 6-3,6-3 (1h21) R64: BYE

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

GARBIÑE MUGURUZA JOHANNA KONTA 2019 2019 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 6-4 3-1 F L - KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #7) 6-3 6-4

2018 2018 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #24) 5-7 6-2 7-6(6) R16 L - JELENA OSTAPENKO (LAT #6) 2-6 6-3 6-4

2017 2017 SF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-1 R16 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #12) 6-1 3-6 6-1

2016 2016 SF L - MADISON KEYS (USA #24) 7-6(5) 6-4 R16 L - MISAKI DOI (JPN #45) 4-6 7-5 6-2 2014 R2 L - FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE (ITA #61) 3-6 6-1 7-6(5)

2013 R2 L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-2 6-2

MUGURUZA:

Rome

• Making seventh main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Best result here were SF runs in 2016 (d. No.10 Bacsinszky in QF, l. Keys) and 2017 (ret. w/neck injury vs. eventual champion Svitolina) • Defeated Stephens in 1r on Tuesday for her first win over the American since 2015 Wuhan • In 2r, ousted No.53 Gauff. Has now won 12 of her last 14 matches against players ranked outside the Top 50, only falling to No.52 Brady at Dubai in February and un-ranked Pironkova last week at US Open • Last time she faced back-to-back Americans was en route to 2019 Indian Wells QF (d. Davis and S.Williams via ret.) • Has hit nine aces this week to add to her season count of 137 – the fourth-most on Tour in 2020, behind S.Williams (167), Rybakina (164) and Osaka (141) • Faces No.13 Konta today in their fourth career meeting and first on clay. In their most recent meeting, defeated the British woman at 2019 Australian Open in three grueling sets • Is 3-2 vs. Top 20 ranked opponents in 2020 – all wins came during Australian Open final run (d. No.5 Svitolina, No.10 Bertens and No.3 Halep). Losses came to No.15 Kenin (Australian Open final) and No.1 Barty (Doha) • Has reached the QF or better at five of six events played in 2020, going 19-5 across the season – the fourth-most main draw wins this year, behind Mertens (25), Rybakina (24) and Kontaveit (20) • Is two matches away from her 400th career main draw match (255-142 career record) • Sole career final on clay was 2016 Roland Garros victory over S.Williams

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Season

• Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. un-ranked Pironkova) • Withdrew from Western & Southern Open w/ left ankle injury • Prior to tour’s hiatus, was enjoying her best ever start to a season and for the first time in her career made the QF or better at five straight tournaments - is the only player to achieve this feat in 2020 • Last event played was Doha, reaching QF (l. Barty) • Also made QFs at Dubai (l. Brady in 3s). Defeated former No.1 and four-time Grand Slam singles champion Clijsters in the 1r at Dubai which was the Belgian’s first professional match since 2012 • Finished R-Up at Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – her fourth career major final • Defeated four seeds en route to Melbourne final, including three of the Top 10 (No.4 Halep, No.5 Svitolina, No.9 Bertens) • Forced to withdraw with viral illness prior to QF match against Kudermetova at Hobart International • Began 2020 campaign posting SF appearance (l. eventual champion Alexandrova) at Shenzhen Open

Career Milestones

• Finished 2019 season at No.36 for first non-Top 20 finish since 2014 • Successfully defended her title in Monterrey for seventh career WTA trophy (d. Azarenka in F) • Also in 2019, reached QF at Indian Wells defeating No.10 S.Williams and No.7 Bertens en route (l. eventual champion Andreescu) and R16 at Australian Open (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Roland Garros (l. Stephens) • Is a two-time Grand-Slam champion winning titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F). Dropped only one set in Roland Garros title run • Is only player to ever beat both Williams sisters in a Grand Slam final and one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles • Also finished R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) to make Top 10 debut. Is one of two players to meet both Williams sisters in the final of the same Grand Slam – also Hingis at US Open (1997, d. V.Williams; 1999, l. S.Williams) • First Spaniard to reach Wimbledon final since Sánchez Vicario in 1996 and first to reach any Slam final since Conchita Martínez at 2000 Roland Garros • Rose to World No.1 on September 11, 2017 to become the 24th woman in history to hold the top spot and second from Spain (after Sánchez Vicario in 1995). Also named ITF World Champion for 2017 • In 2015, became first Spanish player to compete at the WTA Finals in singles since 2001 (Sánchez Vicario) and reached doubles final (w/Suárez Navarro, l. Hingis/Mirza) • Made WTA main draw debut at Miami in 2012, defeating No.9 Zvonareva for first Top 10 win of career

Grand Slam History • Appeared in 30th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open • Won titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F dropping just one set en route to lifting the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F) • Reached title match at 2020 Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – Grand Slam final record now stands at 2-2 (also R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon – l. S.Williams) • One of just eight players all-time to defeat Serena in a Grand Slam final

• Is one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles • Is the second player to face both Williams sisters in the final of the same major (also Hingis, at US Open in 1997 – d. V.Williams, and 1999 – l. S.Williams) • By winning 2017 Wimbledon, became only player to defeat both sisters in Grand Slam final, at Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in 2016) and Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in 2017) • Best result at US Open came in 2017 with R16 showing • In doubles, best result was SF run at 2014 Roland Garros w/Suárez Navarro

Personal • Began playing tennis at age three; first memory of the sport was playing with her brothers • Mother, Scarlet is from Venezuela and father, José Antonio, is from Spain • Coached by Conchita Martínez

KONTA: Rome

• Making fifth consecutive appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia • Last year, reached the final as an unseeded player, defeating No.8 Stephens and No.4 Bertens en route, eventually falling to No.7 Ka.Pliskova • Has now reached the R16 (or better) in each appearance at Rome, having also reached this stage in 2016 (l. Doi), 2017 (l. V.Williams) and 2018 (l. Ostapenko) • Following 1r bye, defeated No.77 Begu in 2r to improve record vs. players ranked outside the Top 50 this season to 7-5 • Faces No.17 Muguruza today for a spot in her third QF of 2020 (also Monterrey, SF, and Western & Southern Open, SF) • Has yet to face a Top 20 ranked opponent in 2020 (career record vs. such players stands at 38-36). The highest ranked player she has faced this season was No.21 Sakkari, who she defeated in the QF at Western & Southern Open • Enjoyed the most successful clay season to date last year, posting a 15-4 record on the surface – prior to 2019, her overall win-loss record on clay stood at 7-15 (tour level main draw); returned to Top 20 after the clay campaign • Last year, reached her first two clay finals at Rabat (l. Sakkari after leading by a set and a break) and Rome (l. Ka.Pliskova) – had never previously passed QF stage on the surface on tour level • Also became the first British woman to reach SF at Roland Garros since Jo Durie’s run in 1983, thus becoming the ninth active player to reach a Grand Slam SF on all three surfaces

Season

• Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. Cirstea) • Posted SF showing at the Western & Southern Open (l. eventual champion Azarenka); did not drop serve in any of her three matches en route to SF • Suffered 1r defeat at Lexington (l. Bouzkova) • Before tour’s hiatus, ended losing streak by advancing to SF at Monterrey (l. Bouzkova) • Returned to Europe in February to make 2r exit at St. Petersburg (after 1r bye, l. qualifier Dodin) • Opened campaign by falling 1r at Brisbane (l. Strycova) and Australian Open (l. Jabeur)

Career Milestones

• Ended 2019 campaign at No.12 (up from No.39 in 2018), despite not playing after US Open due to knee injury • Last season was highlighted by historic run at Roland Garros; recording first ever main draw win in Paris before becoming the first British woman to reach SF since Jo Durie’s run to the same stage in 1983, eventually falling to Vondrousova • Re-entered Top 20 on June 10, 2019 for first time since March 2018 (dropped as low as No.50) • Other highlights in 2019 included QF run at Wimbledon (d. No.9 Stephens and No.6 Kvitova; l. Strycova) and US Open (l. Svitolina), R-Up finish in Rome (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Rabat (l. Sakkari, after leading by a set and a break) • Highlights in 2018 included a second successive R-Up finish at Nottingham (l. Barty) and SF at Moscow [Kremlin Cup] (l. eventual champion Kasatkina) • Began 2017 season by lifting title at Sydney (d. A. Radwanska in F), before landing biggest title of career at Miami (d. Wozniacki in F) • At 2017 Wimbledon became first British player since Virginia Wade in 1978 to reach Wimbledon SF (l. eventual R-Up V.Williams) • Reached third final of 2017 season at Nottingham (l. Vekic). Also in 2017, reached SF for second year in a row at home event of Eastbourne – QF defeat of World No.1 Kerber was first by a British woman over a reigning No.1 since Barker d. Evert at 1979 Boston • Reached first Premier Mandatory final of career at 2016 Beijing (l. A.Radwanska) • Was the non-playing alternate for WTA Finals in Singapore in 2016, narrowly missing qualification in the Top 8 • By virtue of reaching 2016 Beijing final, made WTA Top 10 debut – becoming the first British woman to feature in the elite group since Durie in 1984, and the fourth British woman overall to do so (also Wade and Barker) • Won career-first singles title at 2016 Stanford in maiden final (d. V.Williams in F). First British woman to reach final of a Premier event since WTA Roadmap was introduced in 2009 • Broke into Top 20 on June 6, 2016 (at No.18) – first British woman in Top 20 for nearly 30 years (the week of October 13, 1986, with Durie at No.20) • Was voted WTA Most Improved Player in 2016 by international media and fans • Made tour-level main draw debut at 2011 Copenhagen

Grand Slam History

• Is a three-time Grand Slam semifinalist. Made Slam breakthrough with historic run to SF at 2016 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Kerber); became first British woman to reach the last four at Melbourne Park since Sue Barker in December 1977, and at any Slam since Jo Durie at 1983 US Open • Has since reached SF at 2017 Wimbledon (l. R-Up V.Williams), becoming the first British woman to reach the last four since Wade in 1978 (l. Evert), and at 2019 Roland Garros (l. Vondrousova) • One of nine active players to reach a major SF on hard, grass and clay: also Azarenka, Bouchard, Clijsters, Halep, Kvitova, Muguruza, S.Williams and V.Williams • Also advanced to QF at 2017 Australian Open, 2019 Wimbledon and 2019 US Open

Personal

• Born in Sydney, Australia; became a British citizen in May 2012. Parents are Gabor (hotelier) and Gabriella (dentist); older sister is Eva (works in fashion) • Grandfather Tamas Kertesz played football for the Hungarian ‘Golden Team’ with Ferenc Puskas in 1955 • Switched clothing sponsor from Asics to Ellesse at end of 2018 • Currently working with Thomas Hogstedt, formerly worked with Dimitri Zavialoff, Michael Joyce and Wim Fissette

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #38) vs. [4] ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6)

Head to Head: ELINA SVITOLINA leads 3-1

2019 WUHAN HARD O R16 ELINA SVITOLINA 6-4 6-2 77 mins 2018 CINCINNATI HARD O R2 ELINA SVITOLINA 7-6(1) 4-6 6-4 161 mins 2016 MOSCOW HARD I SF SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA 6-1 6-7(2) 6-4 152 mins 2014 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O R1 ELINA SVITOLINA 6-3 6-3 81 mins

SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA ELINA SVITOLINA 38 WTA RANKING 6 36 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 37 27-06-1985 (35) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 12-09-1994 (26) $257,925 YTD PRIZE MONEY $225,496 $25,393,282 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $19,460,456 0 / 18 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 14 0 / 16 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 2 25-15 ROME W-L (MD) * 12-4 7-5 / 606-319 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 10-6 / 275-152 3-1 / 200-129 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 82-51 2-4 / 130-105 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 55-44 2-1 / 168-79 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 55-32 1-0 / 44-23 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 24-21 0-1 / 29-62 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 19-18 1-1 / 62-101 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 33-38 2-2 / 135-173 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 59-68 * Updated entering 2020 Rome R16

ROAD TO THE ROUND OF 16

SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #38) ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6) R32: d. [14] ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #21) 4-6,7-5,6-3 (2h45) R32: d. ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA (RUS #36) 6-3,7-6(4) (1h45) R64: d. BERNARDA PERA (USA #60) 3-6,7-6(3),6-3 (2h15) R64: BYE

Total games: 62 Total games: 22 Won/lost: 33-29 Won/lost: 13-9 Sets won/lost: 4-2 Sets won/lost: 2-0 Total time on court: 5h00 Total time on court: 1h45 Average time on court: 2h30 Average time on court: 1h45 Average rank of opponent: 41 Average rank of opponent: 36

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA ELINA SVITOLINA 2018 2019 R2 L - ANETT KONTAVEIT (EST #26) 7-5 7-5 R2 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 4-6 6-1 7-5

2017 2018 R16 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #33) 2-6 7-5 6-4 F W - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #1) 6-0 6-4

2016 2017 QF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-2 6-0 F W - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #4) 4-6 7-5 6-1

2014 2016 R2 L - JELENA JANKOVIC (SRB #8) 6-2 4-0 R1 L - MONICA PUIG (PUR #57) 6-1 4-6 6-1 2013 2015 R1 L - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #64) 6-1 6-1 R2 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #16) 6-4 6-3 2012 2014 R1 L - ANA IVANOVIC (SRB #15) 6-4 6-3 R1 L - ELENA VESNINA (RUS #33) 6-2 6-3 2011 R1 L - GRETA ARN (HUN #48) 3-6 7-6(4) 7-6(9) 2010 R2 L - MARIA KIRILENKO (RUS #37) 6-2 3-6 6-4 2009 F L - DINARA SAFINA (RUS #1) 6-3 6-2

2008 R16 L - ALIZÉ CORNET (FRA #34) 6-2 6-4

2007 F L - JELENA JANKOVIC (SRB #5) 7-5 6-1 2006 SF L - DINARA SAFINA (RUS #19) 3-6 6-4 7-5

2005 R2 L - PAOLA SUÁREZ (ARG #32) 6-2 6-4

2004 QF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #7) 7-5 6-0 2003 R16 L - ANASTASIA MYSKINA (RUS #11) 6-4 7-5

KUZNETSOVA: Rome • Making her 16th appearance in Rome where she is a two-time R-Up in 2007 (l. Jankovic) and in 2009 (l. Safina) • Other notable results here include SF run in 2006 (l. Safina) and QF showings in 2004 (l. S.Williams) and 2016 (l. eventual champion S.Williams) • One of three Russians remaining in the draw, also Blinkova and Kasatkina • Recovered from a set down in both matches en route to today’s R16 showing, closing out match against Pera after 2h15 and against Kontaveit in 2h45

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from • Faces No.6 Svitolina in today’s match; sole win over the Ukrainian was en route to the crown at 2016 Moscow • A win today would mark her second Top 10 win of the season (also No.9 Bencic at Doha) and see her through to her second QF this season after posting SF run at Doha (l. Sabalenka) • Enters this week’s tournament ranked No.38, sitting within the Top 40 for the first time since May 2018

Season • Coming off 2r loss at Istanbul (l. eventual R-Up Bouchard) • Prior to the Tour’s hiatus, advanced to SF at Doha (d. No.9 Bencic, l. Sabalenka) • Made 2r exit at St. Petersburg (place of her birth), falling to top seed Bencic • Defeated No.15 seed Vondrousova in 1r at Australian Open, before falling to Giorgi in 2r • Fell 1r at Hobart (l. Linette) • Withdrew from scheduled season opener at Auckland due to illness

Career Milestones • Finished 2019 season at No.54, up from No.107 in 2018, which was her first finish outside Top 100 since 2001 (No.259) • Season highlight in 2019 was reaching final at Cincinnati (l. Keys) as a WC ranked No.153 – defeated four Top 20 seeds en route to the final (No.11 Sevastova, No.10 Stephens, No.3 Ka.Pliskova and No.1 Barty). Returned to Top 100 after tournament • Missed first few months of 2019 season due to knee injury – returned at Lugano, where she reached QF • At 2018 Washington, DC won first title since October 2016 (d. Vekic in F after saving 4mp). Is now 18-24 in WTA singles finals • After falling 2r at 2018 Wimbledon (l. Strycova), dropped out of the Top 100 for the first time since August 12, 2002 (ending a run of 831 consecutive weeks) • Missed opening two months of 2018 (w/wrist injury) • Season highlight in 2017 was reaching final of Indian Wells (l. Vesnina) • Posted consistent results at Slams in 2017, reaching QF at Wimbledon for first time since 2007 (l. eventual champion Muguruza), and R16 at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova) and Roland Garros (l. Wozniacki) • Secured 600th match win (all levels) at 2017 Brisbane – is one of seven active players to reach the milestone, along with V.Williams, S.Williams, Jankovic, Sharapova, Wozniacki and Kerber • Won two titles in 2016, at Sydney and Moscow, and qualified for WTA Finals for sixth time in career (reached SF) • One of five Russians to rank in Top 2; had a chance to become No.1 by winning 2008 Roland Garros (fell two matches short with semifinal loss to Safina) • Ranked continuously in Top 20 from March 1, 2004 to July 11, 2010 (including over four years ranked continuously in Top 10 – April 2006 to June 2010) • Owns seven wins over reigning world No.1s (7-20 record), most recently defeating S.Williams at 2016 Miami. Also Mauresmo, Safina and Henin twice each when they were No.1; one of only two players (also S.Williams) to beat Henin twice when she was No.1 • Haul of 16 tour level doubles titles includes two Australian Open crowns, won in 2005 (w/Molik) and 2012 (w/Zvonareva). Rose as high as No.3 in doubles (week of June 7, 2004) • Member of victorious Russia Fed Cup sides in 2004 and 2007-08 and Russian Olympic Team in 2004, 2008, 2016

Grand Slam History • 2020 Australian Open marked 67th main draw appearance at a Grand Slam • Is a two-time Grand Slam singles champion, winning at 2004 US Open (d. Dementieva in F) and 2009 Roland Garros (d. Safina in F). Also a two-time finalist, reaching the title bouts at Roland Garros in 2006 (l. Henin) and 2007 US Open (l. Henin) • One of three Russian women to lift a Grand Slam singles title (also Myskina, Sharapova) • Has made QF stage at Australian Open on three occasions and Wimbledon on four occasions • At 2011 Australian Open, played her part in setting the record for the longest women’s match at a Slam, eventually succumbing to Schiavone in 4h 44min • Has two major doubles titles, at Australian Open – in 2005 (w/Molik) and 2012 (w/Zvonareva)

Personal • Father is Alexandr Kuznetsov, cycling coach of six Olympic champions and world champions, including Svetlana’s mother, Galina Tsareva (six-time world champion and holder of 20 world records) and Svetlana’s brother, Nikolai Kuznetsov (silver medalist at 1996 Atlanta Olympics) • Moved at the age of seven to Spain to attend the Sanchez-Casal Academy • Currently coached by Marcaccio Gustavo Alejandro. Previously worked with Guillermo Cañas

SVITOLINA: Rome • Making her seventh consecutive appearance in Rome, where she is a two-time champion • Defeated three Top 10 opponents here in 2017 to win title (No.2 Ka.Pliskova in QF, No.3 Muguruza in SF and No.6 Halep in F) to secure her eighth career title and the second of her impressive three Premier 5 titles last season – also Dubai and Toronto • Returned in 2018 to defeat three Top 20 players en route to title, including World No.1 Halep in F • As one of the leading eight seeds, received 1r bye this year and went on to defeat No.36 Pavlyuchenkova in 2r, improving career record in matches immediately following byes to 27-11 • Today, faces No.38 Kuznetsova for their fourth career meeting where she looks to improve 3-1 record against the Russian • Has lost to three players ranked outside Top 30 this season, No.32 Muguruza (Australian Open), No.84 Hibino (Hua Hin) and No.52 Brady (Dubai) • Owns four clay titles in her career, winning Marrakech (2015), Istanbul (2017) and Rome (2017-18) • One of two Ukrainians in the draw, also Yastremska (who she played doubles with here, l. Halep/Niculescu in 1r)

Season • During the tour’s break, played exhibitions on hard, grass and clay in Germany and Switzerland • At Monterrey won 14th WTA title of her career (d. Bouzkova in F); now 14-3 in WTA singles finals • Fell 1r at Dubai (l. Brady) and 2r at Doha (after 1r bye, l. Anisimova) • Made QF at Hua Hin (l. Hibino) • In Fed Cup action, lost only singles rubber to Kontaveit even though Ukraine beat Estonia 2-1 in Group 1 promotional play-off • Fell 3r at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Muguruza) • Kicked off season falling in 1r at Brisbane (l. Collins)

Career • Finished 2019 at No.6, her third consecutive Top 10 finish • Season highlight was reaching the title match as defending champion at the Shiseido WTA Finals (l. Barty) • Loss to Barty ended her nine-match unbeaten run at the year-end championship having gone undefeated in the RR stage from 2018-19 • In 2018, won 13th – and most prestigious – career title at 2018 WTA Finals (d. Stephens in F), after going 3-0 during round robin stage. Ended year ranked No.4. Also won titles at Rome (as defending champion, d. No.1 Halep in F), Dubai (as defending champion, d. Kasatkina in F) and Brisbane (d. Sasnovich in F) • Enjoyed stand-out 2017, finishing year at No.6, winning a tour-leading five titles and posting second-most wins (53, behind Wozniacki with 60) • Season culminated by qualifying for WTA Finals in Singapore, becoming first Ukrainian woman to qualify for the season-ending tournament in singles (fell at round robin stage with 1-2 record) • In 2017, became first player to win three Premier 5 titles in a single season (Dubai, Rome, Toronto), since such tournaments were introduced in 2009 • One of five players to make Top 10 debut in 2017, after winning Dubai in February (also Ostapenko, Garcia, Mladenovic and Vandeweghe). Peaked in rankings at No.3 on September 11, 2017 • On four occasions could have reached World No.1 spot – at 2017 US Open, then needed to win 2017 Beijing (fell in QF), then needed to triumph at 2017 WTA Finals (failed to progress from group stage), or reach final at 2018 Australian Open (fell in QF) • End to 2016 season also saw her reach first SF at Premier Mandatory level at Beijing (l. A.Radwanska) Qualified for 2016 WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai for the second time (l. Kvitova in F) • Reached three finals in 2016, winning Kuala Lumpur (d. Bouchard in F) and R-Up at New Haven (l. A.Radwanska) and Zhuhai (l. Kvitova) • Other 2016 season highlights included SFs at Dubai, Tokyo [PPO] and Moscow, and QF at Rio Olympics • Owns two career doubles titles: 2014 Istanbul (w/Doi) and 2015 Istanbul (w/Gavrilova) • Made WTA main draw debut at 2012 Baku (lost in 1r but went on to win title there in both 2013 and 2014) • Played first ITF Circuit events of career in 2008 • Ukrainian Fed Cup Team, 2012-15, 2017, 2020

Grand Slam History • Made 30th consecutive Grand Slam main draw appearance at 2020 Australian Open • Tied best Grand Slam result by reaching 2019 US Open SF (l. S.Williams), also made this stage at 2019 Wimbledon (l. eventual champion Halep) - previous QF record at Slams was 0-4 • Became the first woman from Ukraine to reach a major SF; on the men’s, Medvedev made that stage at Roland Garros in 1993 (SF) and 1999 (R-Up) • Elsewhere, has posted QF showings at 2015 Roland Garros (l. Ivanovic), 2017 Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up Halep), 2018 Australian Open (l. Mertens) and 2019 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Osaka) • Joint-highest seeding at a Slam is No.4 (2017 Wimbledon and US Open, 2018 Australian Open and Roland Garros)

Personal • Parents are Mykhaylo and Olena; brother is Yulian • Coached by Andrew Bettles and added Marcos Baghdatis to her team during offseason. Has previously worked with Iain Hughes and Thierry Ascione • Won the Jerry Diamond ACES Award in the 2018 WTA Awards, in recognition of promotion of women’s tennis to fans, media, and local communities by performing off-court promotional and charitable activities • Launched the Elina Svitolina Foundation on March 18, 2019 with a mission to encourage children, through the sport of tennis, to learn the values of hard work, self-discipline and the importance of giving 100 percent every day in life MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – QUARTERFINALS

[1] SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. YULIA PUTINTSEVA (KAZ #30)

Halep leads 1-0 Halep won when the pair met at Australian Open in January… Putintseva recovered from 6-4 5-2 down against Rybakina in the last round… Halep is on an 11-match winning streak

VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) vs. [9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17)

Azarenka leads 2-1 Muguruza retired with a left thigh injury when they met at Rome last year… Azarenka is through to QF in Rome for a sixth time… Muguruza has struck the third-most aces this season

[12] MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) vs. [4] ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6)

Svitolina leads 3-0 Svitolina came from a set down to win their previous encounter at 2019 Indian Wells… Vondrousova bidding for third career Top 10 win… Svitolina was champion here in 2017 and 2019

[11] ELISE MERTENS (BEL #20) vs. [2] KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Pliskova leads 1-0 Pliskova beat the Belgian en route to 2019 Eastbourne title… Mertens has won more matches than any other woman in 2020… Pliskova attempting to become the 11th woman to defend Rome title

A AT THE QUARTERFINALISTS ROME SEASON CAREER CAREER CAREER PLAYER RANK AGE NAT (MD) W/L* (MD) W/L* W/L* PRIZE $^ TITLES [1] Simona Halep 2 28 ROU 17-7 17-2 510-215 36,577,615 21 [2] Karolina Pliskova 4 28 CZE 9-4 11-5 538-294 20,111,889 16 [4] Elina Svitolina 6 26 UKR 13-4 11-6 379-197 19,460,456 14 [9] Garbiñe Muguruza 17 26 ESP 13-6 20-5 392-198 20,921,334 7 [11] Elise Mertens 20 24 BEL 3-1 26-9 315-168 6,844,409 5 [12] Marketa Vondrousova 19 21 CZE 6-1 7-8 164-64 3,308,044 1 Victoria Azarenka 14 31 BLR 22-10 14-3 520-201 32,175,035 20 Yulia Putintseva 30 25 KAZ 5-2 15-9 299-230 4,608,313 1 *Includes current tournament / ^ Does not include current tournament

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1 MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY

 As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March.  Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play.  WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities.  Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer.  “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among others.  In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants.  For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

 One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3)  Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington)  Lowest-ranked player to triumph: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul)  Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up)  Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul)  Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d)  Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d)  Aces leaders: Elena Rybakina – 171, Serena Williams – 167, Garbiñe Muguruza – 142, Naomi Osaka – 141,  Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF)  Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 26, Elena Rybakina – 24, Anett Kontaveit – 20, Garbiñe Muguruza – 20  Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha)  Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul)  Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF)  Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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2 MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. YULIA PUTINTSEVA (KAZ #30)

Head to Head: SIMONA HALEP leads 1-0

2020 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O R3 SIMONA HALEP 6-1 6-4 78 mins

SIMONA HALEP YULIA PUTINTSEVA 2 WTA RANKING 30 5 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 19 27-09-1991 (28) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 07-01-1995 (25) $1,469,594 YTD PRIZE MONEY $649,826 $36,577,615 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $4,608,313 2 / 21 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 1 0 / 1 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 0 17-7 ROME W-L (MD) * 5-2 17-2 / 387-170 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 15-9 / 132-144 5-0 / 115-57 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 8-1 / 46-45 5-1 / 52-56 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-5 / 35-36 7-0 / 127-45 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 44-30 0-0 / 35-15 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 5-11 0-0 / 12-29 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-1 / 4-15 0-0 / 39-49 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-2 / 8-28 3-1 / 102-76 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 4-3 / 20-48 * Updated entering 2020 Rome QF

ROAD TO THE QUARTERFINALS

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) YULIA PUTINTSEVA (KAZ #30) R16: d. DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29) 7-5,6-4 (1h27) R16: d. [10] ELENA RYBAKINA (RUS #18) 4-6,7-6(3),6-2 (2h39) R32: d. JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99) 6-3,6-4 (1h23) R32: d. [8] PETRA MARTIC (CRO #16) 6-3,6-7(2),6-4 (3h00) R64: d. REBECCA PETERSON (SWE #49) 6-2,6-4 (1h43)

Total games: 41 Total games: 81 Won/lost: 25-16 Won/lost: 47-34 Sets won/lost: 4-0 Sets won/lost: 6-2 Total time on court: 2h50 Total time on court: 7h22 Average time on court: 1h25 Average time on court: 2h27 Average rank of opponent: 64 Average rank of opponent: 28

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SIMONA HALEP YULIA PUTINTSEVA 2019 2019 R2 L - MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #44) 2-6 7-5 6-3 R2 L - PETRA KVITOVA (CZE #5) 6-0 6-1

2018 2018 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-0 6-4 R1-Q L - SU-WEI HSIEH (TPE #50) 1-6 7-5 6-3

2017 2017 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-6 7-5 6-1 R2 L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #6) 6-3 6-0

2016 2016 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #32) 6-3 4-6 6-3 R1-Q L - MARIANA DUQUE-MARIÑO (COL #109) 7-6(3) 6-7(4) 6-1 2015 2013 SF L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #10) 2-6 6-3 7-5 R2-Q L - (ESP #58) 4-6 7-6(3) 7-5 2014 R16 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #14) W/O

2013 SF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-3 6-0 2012 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #63) 6-3 6-4

2011 R1-Q L - VIRGINIE RAZZANO (FRA #95) 7-6(3) 6-0

HALEP: Rome  Making ninth main draw appearance at Rome (10th overall)  R-Up on two occasions, in 2017 and 2018 (l. Svitolina in both finals)  Also made SF twice, in 2013 (l. eventual champion S.Williams) and 2015 (l. Suárez Navarro)  Second time contesting Rome as No.1 seed (also in 2018, l. Svitolina in F)  After 1r bye, converted eight of 10 break points to send off Italian wildcard and No.99 Paolini in 1r  Recovered from a break down in the first set to overcame No.29 Yastremska in 3r; improving win-loss record this season to an impressive 17-2  Now made at least the last eight in all five tournaments played this year  Has won eleven matches in a row, including titles at Dubai (four wins) and Prague (five wins); this tied her winning streak during 2018 Shenzhen and Australian Open, which was the longest since 2016 (13 straight wins, lifted the trophy at Bucharest and Montreal, then made SF run at Cincinnati)  Posted a perfect 4-0 record in QFs here; faces No.30 Putintseva today in their second career meeting - at this year’s Australian Open, struck 26 winners and broke the Kazakh five times to triumph in straight sets  Win-loss record against players outside Top 20 in 2020 stands at 14-1 – the only loss was a defeat against No.32 Muguruza at Australian Open SF  Among active players, owns the third-most clay court titles with eight, behind V.Williams (9) and S.Williams (13)  Since 2013, when Halep won her first of 21 titles, only S.Williams (27) has won more titles than the Romanian  Played doubles this week w/Niculescu (l. Shibahara/Aoyama in 2r)

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Season  Last month, captured her 21st career title at Prague (d. Mertens in F). Tied with Azarenka for fifth-most titles among active players, behind Serena (73), Venus (49), Clijsters (41) and Kvitova (27)  Prior to Tour’s five-month hiatus, clinched her 20th career title at Dubai (d. Rybakina in F)  Reached eighth career Grand Slam SF at Australian Open (l. Muguruza) bringing record in major SF matches to 5-3  Opened 2020 season with QF appearance at Adelaide (l. Sabalenka)

Career Milestones  Ended 2019 ranked No.4 for sixth consecutive year in the Top 5  2019 highlighted by winning second career Grand Slam title at Wimbledon (d. S.Williams)  Also finished R-Up at Madrid (l. Bertens) and QF at Roland Garros (as defending champion, l. Anisimova) and Toronto (ret. vs. Bouzova w/Achilles pain)  Ended 2018 season as World No.1 for the second time in her career, with season highlighted by maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F)  Also won titles last year at Shenzhen (d. Siniakova in F) and Montréal (d. Stephens in F) and was R-Up at Australian Open (l. Wozniacki), Rome (l. Svitolina) and Cincinnati (l. Bertens). Is 18-16 in career finals  Won first career WTA doubles title at 2018 Shenzhen (w/Begu). Now 1-1 in career doubles finals  Finished 2017 as the year-end World No.1, having ascended to the No.1 spot for first time in career on October 9, 2017 – became the 25th woman to reach the top spot, and the 13th to hold year-end No.1  Defended Madrid title in 2017 (d. Mladenovic in F); reached four more finals in 2017: Rome, Roland Garros, Cincinnati and Beijing. 2016 season highlighted by three titles, at Madrid, Bucharest and Montréal  Between May 2013 and August 2014, improved ranking from No.64 to No.2, winning seven titles  Has qualified six times for WTA Finals in Singapore (2014-19, although withdrew injured in 2018), reaching final in 2014 (l. S.Williams, having defeated the World No.1 in the round robin stage)  Named 2013 WTA Most Improved Player, winning her first six WTA titles and ending year ranked No.11  Made WTA main draw debut at 2010 Marbella as a qualifier, reaching quarterfinals

Grand Slam History  Contested 39th Grand Slam main draw of her career at 2020 Australian Open  Winner of two Grand Slam titles, lifting first at 2018 Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F) followed by an historic 2019 Wimbledon run (d. S.Williams in F)  Became first Romanian to lift the singles title at the All England Club, defeating S.Williams in 56 minutes  Posted three runner-up finishes in Paris in 2014 (l. Sharapova in 3s), 2017 (l. Ostapenko in 3s) and at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki in 3s)  Was the first Romanian woman to advance to final at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki)  Best result at US Open is SF run in 2015 (l. eventual champion Pennetta)

Personal

 Reunited with long-time coach, Darren Cahill during offseason after taking a 12-month break  Formerly coached by Wim Fissette and Victor Ionita  Sponsorship portfolio includes deals with Mercedes, Unilever and is an Ambassador for Dubai Duty Free  Sponsors a children’s hockey team back in Romania through the Simona Halep Foundation

PUTINTSEVA: Rome  Making third main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia (sixth overall)  Made 2r in 2017 (l. Konta) and 2019 (l. Kvitova)  Fell in qualifying in 2013, 2016 and 2018  Entering Rome ranked No.30, three places from career high No.27  In 1r, saved six of eight break points and broke serve five times to score the first win in the third career meeting with No.49 Peterson  In a rematch of US Open R16 clash, beat No.16 Martic for the second time in two weeks on two different surfaces – after squandered a 5-1 lead and a match point to lose the second set, regrouped to triumph in a three-hour battle  Hit the court again in less than 24 hours, came back from a set and 5-2 down (two points from defeat on three occasions) to upset No.18 Rybakina in an all-Kazakh 3r – converted only three of the first eighteen break points, but then three of the last five to pull off the escape; also, Rybakina hit 14 double faults in this match  Scored first back-to-back Top 20 wins since 2019 Miami (d. No.20 Bencic and No.12 Sevastova)  Faces No.2 Halep in her first Premier 5 QF, bidding to reach the biggest SF of career; aiming for first Top 5 win since upsetting No.2 Osaka at 2019 Wimbledon and first ever on clay  A win today would be the 300th of her career (including qualifying and ITF Circuit matches)  Now has spent 7 hours and 22 minutes on court this week, while Halep only 2 hours and 50 minutes  Owns fine record on clay: a two-time quarterfinalist (2016 and 2018), won her first career title at Nürnberg last year

Season  Coming off third QF run at Grand Slams in Flushing Meadows, became the first Kazakh to make the last eight at US Open  Posted 2r showings at Western & Southern Open (l. Sakkari) and Lexington (l. Teichmann)  Made 3r at Doha (d. defending champion Mertens, l. Bencic)  Made 1r exit at St. Petersburg (l. Kudermetova)  Part of Kazakhstan team that lost 3-1 away to Belgium in Fed Cup qualifier  Reached 3r at Australian Open (l. Halep)  Opened season with 2r appearance at Brisbane (as qualifier, l. Collins) before a 1r exit at Adelaide (as qualifier, l. Tomljanovic)

Career Milestones  Finished 2019 ranked No.34 for joint- career-best finish (also 2016)  Won first career title at Nürnberg (d. Zidansek in F); afterwards rose to No.28 in rankings – one spot off career best No.27 (achieved February 6, 2017)  Achieved best US Open result of career to date by reaching 3r (l. Vekic)  Has four Top 5 wins in career – after No.5 Cibulkova (2017 St Petersburg), No.5 Stephens (2019 Sydney) and No.1 Osaka (2019 Birmingham and 2019 Wimbledon)  Reached maiden WTA final in 2017 at St Petersburg (l. Mladenovic) after notching two Top 10 wins over No.8 Kuznetsova and No.5 Cibulkova (l. Mladenovic in F) – first woman from Kazakhstan to reach a WTA final since Shvedova at 2015 Bogotá (l. Pereira)  Rose to new career-high ranking of No.27 on February 6, 2017 following St Petersburg  Also in 2017 reached QF at Tokyo [Japan Open] (l. eventual champion Diyas) and Nürnberg (l. Cirstea), and reached 3r at Roland Garros (l. No.5 Muguruza)

 In 2016 became first Kazakh to reach the quarterfinals at Roland Garros – or at any major – since Shvedova in 2012  Also reached SF at two International-level events in 2016: Kaohsiung (l. V.Williams) and Washington, DC  (l. Wickmayer). Defeated No.14 V.Williams en route to first Premier-level quarterfinal of career at 2016 Charleston  Later in season, posted second career win over a Top 10 opponent at 2016 Tokyo [PPO], defeating No.9 Keys in 1r. First Top 10 win came over No.10 Petkovic at 2015 Nürnberg (via ret.)  Reached maiden WTA SF at 2015 Bastad (l. eventual champion Larsson)  Made WTA qualifying debut at 2009 Luxembourg and WTA main draw debut at 2012 Copenhagen  On ITF Circuit, winner of six singles titles and six doubles titles  Kazakhstan Fed Cup Team, 2014-20

Grand Slam History  Best result across the Slams were QF runs at Roland Garros in 2016 (l. S.Williams in 3 sets) and 2018 (l. Keys), and at 2020 US Open (l. Brady). Was the first Kazakhstani to reach QF at Roland Garros – or at any major – since Shvedova in 2012 (l. QF), and the first player from her country ever to make the last eight of the US Open  Other key results include 3r at 2016 Australian Open (l. Gasparyan) and 2020 (l. Halep), R16 at 2020 US Open and 2r at Wimbledon in 2015 (l. V.Williams), 2016 (l. Pavlyuchenkova) and 2019 (l. Golubic)  On her milestone 25th major, at 2020 Australian  Open, made 3r alongside compatriots Diyas and Rybakina - the tournament marked the first time in history three Kazakhstani women have reached this stage at a major  A two-time junior Grand Slam runner-up (2010 US Open, 2012 Australian Open)

Personal  Coached by Roman Kislianskii  Changed representation from Russia to Kazakhstan in May 2012  Practiced at Spartak Club in Moscow as a junior before moving to Paris to attend Mouratoglou Academy  Tennis idols were Martina Hingis and Justine Henin – still watches videos of Henin on YouTube  Enjoys dancing, singing, Sudoku, cards and chess

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) vs. GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17)

Head to Head: VICTORIA AZARENKA leads 2-1

2019 ROME CLAY O R16 VICTORIA AZARENKA 6-4 3-1 ret. 71 mins 2019 MONTERREY HARD O F GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 6-1 3-1 ret. 67 mins 2016 MIAMI HARD O R16 VICTORIA AZARENKA 7-6(6) 7-6(4) 131 mins

VICTORIA AZARENKA GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 14 WTA RANKING 17 3 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 4 31-07-1989 (31) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 08-10-1993 (26) $1,819,530 YTD PRIZE MONEY $1,703,605 $32,175,035 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $20,921,334 1 / 21 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 7 0 / 8 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 22-10 ROME W-L (MD) * 13-6 14-3 / 465-181 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 20-5 / 256-142 3-1 / 88-63 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 8-3 / 81-62 3-1 / 69-45 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 7-0 / 42-50 3-0 / 96-46 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 56-29 0-0 / 46-14 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 18-14 1-0 / 31-41 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 2-1 / 11-18 2-1 / 69-73 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 3-1 / 35-34 5-1 / 125-101 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 4-2 / 62-60 * Updated entering 2020 Rome QF

ROAD TO THE QUARTERFINALS

VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) R16: d. DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #74) 6-6 Ret'd (1h16) R16: d. [7] JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13) 6-4,6-1 (1h22) R32: d. [3] SOFIA KENIN (USA #5) 6-0,6-0 (1h01) R32: d. ( #53) 7-6(3),3-6,6-3 (2h28) R64: d. VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #70) 7-6(7),6-2 (2h01) R64: d. SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #33) 6-3,6-3 (1h21)

Total games: 45 Total games: 66 Won/lost: 31-14 Won/lost: 40-26 Sets won/lost: 4-1 Sets won/lost: 6-1 Total time on court: 4h18 Total time on court: 5h11 Average time on court: 1h26 Average time on court: 1h44 Average rank of opponent: 50 Average rank of opponent: 33

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History

VICTORIA AZARENKA GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 2019 2019 QF L - KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #7) 6-7(5) 6-2 6-2 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 6-4 3-1

2018 2018 R1 L - NAOMI OSAKA (JPN #21) 6-0 6-3 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #24) 5-7 6-2 7-6(6)

2016 2017 R2 L - IRINA-CAMELIA BEGU (ROU #35) 6-3 6-2 SF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-1

2015 2016 QF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #3) 6-3 6-2 SF L - MADISON KEYS (USA #24) 7-6(5) 6-4 2013 2014 F L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-1 6-3 R2 L - FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE (ITA #61) 3-6 6-1 7-6(5) 2012 2013 R16 L - DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA (SVK #17) W/O R2 L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-2 6-2 2011 QF L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #8) 4-6 3-0

2010 R2 L - ANA IVANOVIC (SRB #58) 6-4 6-4 2009 SF L - SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #8) 6-2 6-4

2008 R16 L - TSVETANA PIRONKOVA (BUL #64) 6-2 1-0 2006 R1 L - ANASTASIA MYSKINA (RUS #13) 6-3 3-6 7-6(6)

AZARENKA: Rome  Making 12th appearance at Rome. R-Up in 2013 (l. S.Williams) and a semifinalist in 2009 (l. Kuznetsova); also after run this week now a four-time quarterfinalist  Another of these QF runs came in 2019 (l. eventual champion Ka.Pliskova); en route recovered from 5-2 down in the third set (saved 1mp at 5-3) to defeat defending champion Svitolina in 2r, then recorded the 500th win of her career (including qualifying, ITF Circuit and Fed Cup) when 3r opponent Muguruza retired w/left thigh injury  Last year also won doubles title here w/Barty (d. Groenefeld/Schuurs in F)  Won six of 10 return games to see off fellow multiple-major winner V.Williams in 1r on Tuesday  Against No.5 Kenin in 2r, registered the 10th 6-0 6-0 win of her career. Prior to this, most recent Top 5 victory had been over No.4 Ka.Pliskova at 2019 Stuttgart  In 3r, advanced when opponent Kasatkina retired w/right ankle injury

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 Faces Muguruza for the fourth time today; their past two encounters have been ended early due to injury, at 2019 Monterrey (Azarenka: leg injury) and 2019 Rome (Muguruza: left thigh injury)  Won sole clay court title at Marbella in 2011  Currently ranked No.14 – her highest ranking since returning to the tour from maternity leave in 2017  Celebrated 31st birthday this summer – is the oldest player remaining in the draw

Season  Coming off R-Up showing at US Open (l. Osaka in 3s); now 21-18 in singles finals  Upset No.11 Sabalenka, No.18 Mertens and No.8 S.Williams en route to record the 122nd, 123rd and 124th Top 20 wins of her career and reach first major final since 2013 US Open – seven-year between major finals is second-longest in Open Era behind V.Williams (seven years, 207 days between 2009 Wimbledon and 2017 Australian Open)  Made history alongside S.Williams in New York by becoming the first pair of mothers to reach the semifinals at the same Grand Slam  Lifted 21st career title at Western & Southern Open when final opponent Osaka withdrew w/left hamstring injury  Suffered 1r exit at Lexington (l. V.Williams) in her second WTA event of 2020  Opened 2020 season with 1r exit at Monterrey (l. Zidansek), having not contested any events in Australia due to personal reasons

Career Milestones  Last tournament of 2019 was the US Open, where she fell to Sabalenka in 1r; also reached the doubles final w/Barty (l. Mertens/Sabalenka)  Highlight of 2019 was 37th singles final at Monterrey (d. No.5 Kerber in SF, l. Muguruza in F via ret. w/leg injury). Also made QFs at Acapulco (l. Kenin), Stuttgart (l. Kontaveit via ret.) and Rome (l. Ka.Pliskova)  On February 2, 2019 returned to Top 50 for first time following the birth of her child, Leo  Highlights of 2018 season included SF at Miami (l. Stephens) and QF at San Jose and Tokyo  Made return to tennis in June 2017 following birth of first child in December 2016  Comeback tournament was Mallorca, reaching 2r (d. Ozaki, l. Konjuh). Prior to 2017 Mallorca, last tournament contested was 2016 Roland Garros (1r)  Followed this with R16 at Wimbledon (l. Halep). Did not play after Wimbledon due to personal reasons  Ended 2016 ranked No.13, despite missing second half of season after going on maternity leave (announced pregnancy mid-July). Lifted three titles, at Brisbane and ‘Sunshine Double’ of Indian Wells and Miami – third woman to achieve feat after Graf in 1994 and 1996 and Clijsters in 2005  Posted 26-3 record for first six months of 2016 with losses coming at the Australian Open (QF, l. Kerber), Rome (2r, l. Begu) and Roland Garros (ret. vs. Knapp w/right knee injury)  Limited to total of 23 events over 2014-15 seasons due to variety of injuries  Posted five consecutive Top 10 finishes between 2009 and 2013, qualifying for the WTA Finals on each occasion (l. Kvitova in 2011 final in Istanbul)  Ascended to World No.1 after 2012 Australian Open and held top spot for a total of 51 weeks  Began 2012 with 26-match win streak – best start since Hingis went 37-0 in 1997. Went on to win tour-leading 69 matches in 2012, season highlighted by six titles, finishing as WTA’s year-end No.1  Won two medals for Belarus at 2012 Olympics bronze in singles and mixed doubles gold (w/Mirnyi)  Made WTA main draw debut at 2005 Kolkata  ITF Junior World Champion for 2005 – reached first tour-level semifinal at Guangzhou the same year

Grand Slam History  Contested landmark 50th major at 2020 US Open – one of nine active players to reach this milestone  Two-time major champion, winning Australian Open in 2012 (d. Sharapova in F) and 2013 (d. Li in F)  Also a three-time runner-up, at 2012 (l. S.Williams in 3s), 2013 (l. S.Williams in 3s) and 2020 US Open (l. Osaka in 3s)  Advanced to Wimbledon SF in 2011 and 2012, while best result at Roland Garros is also SF run in 2013  Four-time Grand Slam doubles finalist, at 2008 Australian Open (w/Peer), 2009 Roland Garros (w/Vesnina), 2011 Australian Open (w/Kirilenko) and 2019 US Open (w/Barty)  Two-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion, at 2007 US Open (w/ Mirnyi) and 2008 Roland Garros (w/B.Bryan). Most recently finished as mixed doubles R-Up at 2018 Wimbledon (w/J.Murray)  Won girls’ singles titles at the Australian Open and US Open in 2005

Personal  Currently coached by Dorian Descloix. Formerly coached by Wim Fissette, Sam Sumyk and Michael Joyce  Gave birth to son Leo in December 2016  Introduced to tennis at age 7 by mother Alla; father’s name is Fedor and older brother is Max

MUGURUZA:

Rome

 Making seventh main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Best result here were SF runs in 2016 (d. No.10 Bacsinszky in QF, l. Keys) and 2017 (ret. w/neck injury vs. eventual champion Svitolina)  Defeated Stephens in 1r on Tuesday for her first win over the American since 2015 Wuhan  In 2r, ousted No.53 Gauff. Has now won 12 of her last 14 matches against players ranked outside the Top 50, only falling to No.52 Brady at Dubai in February and unranked Pironkova last week at US Open  Last time she faced back-to-back Americans was en route to 2019 Indian Wells QF (d. Davis and S.Williams via ret.)  Won all nine service games during straight-set 3r win over No.13 Konta  Has hit 14 aces this week to add to her season count of 142 – the third-most on Tour in 2020, behind Rybakina (171) and S.Williams (167) and ahead of Osaka (141)  Faces No.14 Azarenka today in their fourth career meeting – is 4-2 vs. Top 20 ranked opponents in 2020 – wins came over No.14 Konta on Friday and during Australian Open final run (d. No.5 Svitolina, No.10 Bertens and No.3 Halep). Losses came to No.15 Kenin (Australian Open final) and No.1 Barty (Doha)  Has now reached the QF or better at six of seven events played in 2020, going 20-5 across the season – the fourth-most main draw wins this year, behind Mertens (26), Rybakina (24) and Kontaveit (20)  Is one match away from her 400th career main draw match (256-142 career record)  Sole career final on clay was 2016 Roland Garros victory over S.Williams

Season

 Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. unranked Pironkova)  Withdrew from Western & Southern Open w/ left ankle injury  Prior to tour’s hiatus, was enjoying her best ever start to a season and for the first time in her career made the QF or better at five straight tournaments - is the only player to achieve this feat in 2020  Last event played was Doha, reaching QF (l. Barty)  Also made QFs at Dubai (l. Brady in 3s). Defeated former No.1 and four-time Grand Slam singles champion Clijsters in the 1r at Dubai which was the Belgian’s first professional match since 2012  Finished R-Up at Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – her fourth career major final  Defeated four seeds en route to Melbourne final, including three of the Top 10 (No.4 Halep, No.5 Svitolina, No.9 Bertens)  Forced to withdraw with viral illness prior to QF match against Kudermetova at Hobart International  Began 2020 campaign posting SF appearance (l. eventual champion Alexandrova) at Shenzhen Open

Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 season at No.36 for first non-Top 20 finish since 2014  Successfully defended her title in Monterrey for seventh career WTA trophy (d. Azarenka in F)  Also in 2019, reached QF at Indian Wells defeating No.10 S.Williams and No.7 Bertens en route (l. eventual champion Andreescu) and R16 at Australian Open (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Roland Garros (l. Stephens)  Is a two-time Grand-Slam champion winning titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F). Dropped only one set in Roland Garros title run  Is only player to ever beat both Williams sisters in a Grand Slam final and one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles  Also finished R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) to make Top 10 debut. Is one of two players to meet both Williams sisters in the final of the same Grand Slam – also Hingis at US Open (1997, d. V.Williams; 1999, l. S.Williams)  First Spaniard to reach Wimbledon final since Sánchez Vicario in 1996 and first to reach any Slam final since Conchita Martínez at 2000 Roland Garros  Rose to World No.1 on September 11, 2017 to become the 24th woman in history to hold the top spot and second from Spain (after Sánchez Vicario in 1995). Also named ITF World Champion for 2017  In 2015, became first Spanish player to compete at the WTA Finals in singles since 2001 (Sánchez Vicario) and reached doubles final (w/Suárez Navarro, l. Hingis/Mirza)  Made WTA main draw debut at Miami in 2012, defeating No.9 Zvonareva for first Top 10 win of career

Grand Slam History  Appeared in 30th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open  Won titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F dropping just one set en route to lifting the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F)  Reached title match at 2020 Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – Grand Slam final record now stands at 2-2 (also R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon – l. S.Williams)  One of just eight players all-time to defeat Serena in a Grand Slam final  Is one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles  Is the second player to face both Williams sisters in the final of the same major (also Hingis, at US Open in 1997 – d. V.Williams, and 1999 – l. S.Williams)

 By winning 2017 Wimbledon, became only player to defeat both sisters in Grand Slam final, at Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in 2016) and Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in 2017)  Best result at US Open came in 2017 with R16 showing  In doubles, best result was SF run at 2014 Roland Garros w/Suárez Navarro

Personal  Began playing tennis at age three; first memory of the sport was playing with her brothers  Mother, Scarlet is from Venezuela and father, José Antonio, is from Spain  Coached by Conchita Martínez

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) vs. ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6)

Head to Head: ELINA SVITOLINA leads 3-0

2019 INDIAN WELLS HARD O QF ELINA SVITOLINA 4-6 6-4 6-4 132 mins 2018 STUTTGART CLAY I R16 ELINA SVITOLINA 2-6 6-1 3-2 90 mins 2018 DOHA HARD O R2 ELINA SVITOLINA 6-2 6-4 69 mins

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA ELINA SVITOLINA 19 WTA RANKING 6 93 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 37 28-06-1999 (21) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 12-09-1994 (26) $252,464 YTD PRIZE MONEY $225,496 $3,308,044 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $19,460,456 0 / 1 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 14 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 2 6-1 ROME W-L (MD) * 13-4 7-8 / 60-41 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 11-6 / 276-152 2-6 / 12-23 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 1-1 / 82-51 2-0 / 19-10 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 4-0 / 56-44 3-1 / 27-12 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 56-32 2-0 / 4-0 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 24-21 0-1 / 2-3 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 19-18 0-1 / 2-9 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 33-38 0-1 / 9-11 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 0-0 / 59-68 * Updated entering 2020 Rome QF

ROAD TO THE QUARTERFINALS

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6) R16: d. POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50) 1-6,6-1,7-6(5) (2h23) R16: d. SVETLANA KUZNETSOVA (RUS #38) 7-6(6),6-4 (1h54) R32: d. ARANTXA RUS (NED #71) 6-3,6-3 (1h58) R32: d. ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA (RUS #36) 6-3,7-6(4) (1h45) R64: d. MISAKI DOI (JPN #80) 6-1,4-6,6-4 (2h33)

Total games: 72 Total games: 45 Won/lost: 42-30 Won/lost: 26-19 Sets won/lost: 6-2 Sets won/lost: 4-0 Total time on court: 6h54 Total time on court: 3h39 Average time on court: 2h18 Average time on court: 1h50 Average rank of opponent: 67 Average rank of opponent: 37

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA ELINA SVITOLINA 2019 2019 QF L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 3-6 6-1 R2 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 4-6 6-1 7-5

2018 F W - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #1) 6-0 6-4

2017 F W - SIMONA HALEP (ROU #4) 4-6 7-5 6-1

2016 R1 L - MONICA PUIG (PUR #57) 6-1 4-6 6-1

2015 R2 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #16) 6-4 6-3

2014 R1 L - ELENA VESNINA (RUS #33) 6-2 6-3 VONDROUSOVA: Rome  Making second appearance at Rome, having made QF on debut in 2019 (l. Konta)  During last year’s run, upset No.2 Halep in 2r to register her second career Top 10 win  Followed up run in Rome with R-Up finish at Roland Garros a few weeks later – made Top 20 debut following Paris showing  Since then, has reached just two QF – at 2020 Adelaide and this week at Rome  In 1r, twice recovered from a break down in the final set to beat Doi, then broke five times to see off Rus in 2r  Came within two points of defeat with Hercog serving for the match at 6-5 in the deciding set of 3r encounter  Faces No.6 Svitolina in QF today; two previous Top 10 wins both came over No.2 Halep at 2019 Indian Wells and 2019 Rome

Season  Coming off 2r showing at US Open (l. Sasnovich)  Upon tour’s return, suffered 1r exits at first Palermo (l. Juvan) and Western & Southern Open (l. Siegemund)  Before tennis’ hiatus, fell 1r at Doha (l. Zheng) and 2r at Dubai (l. Brady)  Started season by only giving up three games in first two matches to reach QF in Adelaide (l. eventual champion Barty) before being upset in 1r of Australian Open (l. Kuznetsova) and St. Petersburg (l. Tomljanovic)

Career Milestones  Enjoyed break-out season in 2019, reaching three finals across the year and making Top 20 debut  Finished R-Up at Budapest (l. Van Uytvanck) and Istanbul (l. Martic) before reaching championship match at Roland Garros (l. Barty); did not drop a set en route to final in Paris  Posted first win of career over a Top 2 player in 2019, defeating No.2 Halep at Indian Wells and then Rome

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 Forced to end 2019 season down early due to left wrist injury – did not play again following 1r exit at Wimbledon  At 2018 US Open, became the first teenager to reach the last 16 at Flushing Meadows since 2016 (Konjuh, QF – 18) and the youngest Czech player to advance to this stage in New York since 2005 (Vaidisova, R16 – 16)  Was the biggest ranking mover on tour in 2017, from No.376 to No.67 (309 places)  Made WTA breakthrough by winning International-level title at 2017 Biel/Bienne (d. Kontaveit in F). At No.233, was the lowest-ranked title winner in 2017 and aged 17 years, 293 days was the youngest since Konjuh (17 years, 169 days) at 2015 Nottingham  Reached doubles QF at 2017 Wimbledon (w/Bellis, l. eventual finalists H.Chan/Niculescu)  Advanced to 2r on tour-level debut at 2016 Prague – as wildcard  On ITF Circuit, winner of seven singles and four doubles titles  Made professional debut at 2014 $100k ITF/Prague-CZE (d. Suk, l. Brengle in 2r)

Grand Slam History  Contested 12th and most recent major at 2020 US Open  Breakthrough came during R-Up finish at 2019 Roland Garros; ranked No.38, was joint-third lowest-ranked woman to reach Roland Garros final, and aged 19, was first teenager to reach title match there since Ivanovic in 2007  Previous best result at the majors was reaching R16 at 2018 US Open (l. Tsurenko). Was youngest Czech player to reach R16 at Flushing Meadows since 2005 (Nicole Vaidisova, R16 at 16yrs, 140 days)  Made Grand Slam debut at 2017 Roland Garros, where she advanced to 2r. Has also reached 2r at 2018 and 2019 Australian Opens  Fell 1r on debut at Wimbledon  Reached doubles QF at 2017 Wimbledon (w/Bellis, l. eventual finalists H.Chan/Niculescu)  In juniors won doubles at Australian Open and Roland Garros in 2015 (both w/Kolodziejova). In singles, was semifinalist at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon

Personal  Coached by former ATP Pro Jan Hernych. Fitness trainer is Michal Vagner  Born in Skolov but moved to Prague alone at age 15 to train full-time  Favorite surface is clay because she grew up on it, but believes her game is more suited for hard courts  Tennis idol is  Describes herself as "quiet" and "calm"

SVITOLINA: Rome  Making her seventh consecutive appearance in Rome, where she is a two-time champion  Defeated three Top 10 opponents here in 2017 to win title (No.2 Ka.Pliskova in QF, No.3 Muguruza in SF and No.6 Halep in F) to secure her eighth career title and the second of her impressive three Premier 5 titles last season – also Dubai and Toronto  Returned in 2018 to defeat three Top 20 players en route to title, including World No.1 Halep in F  As one of the leading eight seeds, received 1r bye this year and went on to defeat No.36 Pavlyuchenkova in 2r, improving career record in matches immediately following byes to 27-11  Won a 66-minutes first ser during hard-fought win over two-time Rome R-Up Kuznetsova in 3r

 Has now won her past seven matches, having lifted the title in her final tournament before the tour’s hiatus, at Monterrey  Faces No.19 Vondrousova in QF today; most recent Top 20 win came over No.7 Bencic in SF at 2019 WTA Finals Shenzhen  Owns four clay titles in her career, winning Marrakech (2015), Istanbul (2017) and Rome (2017-18)  One of two Ukrainians in the draw, also Yastremska (who she played doubles with here, l. Halep/Niculescu in 1r)

Season  During the tour’s break, played exhibitions on hard, grass and clay in Germany and Switzerland  At Monterrey won 14th WTA title of her career (d. Bouzkova in F); now 14-3 in WTA singles finals  Fell 1r at Dubai (l. Brady) and 2r at Doha (after 1r bye, l. Anisimova)  Made QF at Hua Hin (l. Hibino)  In Fed Cup action, lost only singles rubber to Kontaveit even though Ukraine beat Estonia 2-1 in Group 1 promotional play-off  Fell 3r at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Muguruza)  Kicked off season falling in 1r at Brisbane (l. Collins)

Career  Finished 2019 at No.6, her third consecutive Top 10 finish  Season highlight was reaching the title match as defending champion at the Shiseido WTA Finals (l. Barty)  Loss to Barty ended her nine-match unbeaten run at the year-end championship having gone undefeated in the RR stage from 2018-19  In 2018, won 13th – and most prestigious – career title at 2018 WTA Finals (d. Stephens in F), after going 3-0 during round robin stage. Ended year ranked No.4. Also won titles at Rome (as defending champion, d. No.1 Halep in F), Dubai (as defending champion, d. Kasatkina in F) and Brisbane (d. Sasnovich in F)  Enjoyed stand-out 2017, finishing year at No.6, winning a tour-leading five titles and posting second-most wins (53, behind Wozniacki with 60)  Season culminated by qualifying for WTA Finals in Singapore, becoming first Ukrainian woman to qualify for the season-ending tournament in singles (fell at round robin stage with 1-2 record)  In 2017, became first player to win three Premier 5 titles in a single season (Dubai, Rome, Toronto), since such tournaments were introduced in 2009  One of five players to make Top 10 debut in 2017, after winning Dubai in February (also Ostapenko, Garcia, Mladenovic and Vandeweghe). Peaked in rankings at No.3 on September 11, 2017  On four occasions could have reached World No.1 – at 2017 US Open, then needed to win 2017 Beijing (fell QF), then needed to triumph at 2017 WTA Finals (fell in group stage), or reach final at 2018 Australian Open (fell in QF)  End to 2016 season also saw her reach first SF at Premier Mandatory level at Beijing (l. A.Radwanska) Qualified for 2016 WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai for the second time (l. Kvitova in F)  Reached three finals in 2016, winning Kuala Lumpur (d. Bouchard in F) and R-Up at New Haven (l. A.Radwanska) and Zhuhai (l. Kvitova)  Other 2016 season highlights included SFs at Dubai, Tokyo [PPO] and Moscow, and QF at Rio Olympics  Owns two career doubles titles: 2014 Istanbul (w/Doi) and 2015 Istanbul (w/Gavrilova)  Made WTA main draw debut at 2012 Baku (lost in 1r but went on to win title there in both 2013 and 2014)  Played first ITF Circuit events of career in 2008  Ukrainian Fed Cup Team, 2012-15, 2017, 2020

Grand Slam History  Made 30th consecutive Grand Slam main draw appearance at 2020 Australian Open  Tied best Grand Slam result by reaching 2019 US Open SF (l. S.Williams), also made this stage at 2019 Wimbledon (l. eventual champion Halep) - previous QF record at Slams was 0-4  Became the first woman from Ukraine to reach a major SF; on the men’s, Medvedev made that stage at Roland Garros in 1993 (SF) and 1999 (R-Up)  Elsewhere, has posted QF showings at 2015 Roland Garros (l. Ivanovic), 2017 Roland Garros (l. eventual R-Up Halep), 2018 Australian Open (l. Mertens) and 2019 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Osaka)  Joint-highest seeding at a Slam is No.4 (2017 Wimbledon and US Open, 2018 Australian Open and Roland Garros)

Personal  Parents are Mykhaylo and Olena; brother is Yulian  Coached by Andrew Bettles and added Marcos Baghdatis to her team during offseason. Has previously worked with Iain Hughes and Thierry Ascione  Won the Jerry Diamond ACES Award in the 2018 WTA Awards, in recognition of promotion of women’s tennis to fans, media, and local communities by performing off-court promotional and charitable activities  Launched the Elina Svitolina Foundation on March 18, 2019 with a mission to encourage children, through the sport of tennis, to learn the values of hard work, self-discipline and the importance of giving 100 percent every day in life

MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ELISE MERTENS (BEL #20) vs. KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Head to Head: KAROLINA PLISKOVA leads 1-0

2019 EASTBOURNE GRASS O R16 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-1 6-2 58 mins

ELISE MERTENS KAROLINA PLISKOVA 20 WTA RANKING 4 9 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 18 17-11-1995 (24) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 21-03-1992 (28) $887,764 YTD PRIZE MONEY $599,371 $6,844,409 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $20,111,889 0 / 5 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 16 0 / 9 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 3-1 ROME W-L (MD) * 9-4 26-9 / 142-81 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 11-5 / 320-164 5-3 / 40-29 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 3-1 / 103-59 3-3 / 26-31 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-6 / 64-70 7-2 / 40-16 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 55-36 2-0 / 14-3 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 31-20 1-2 / 4-10 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 18-19 1-3 / 7-18 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 32-39 1-4 / 14-38 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 3-1 / 62-72 * Updated entering 2020 Rome QF

ROAD TO THE QUARTERFINALS

ELISE MERTENS (BEL #20) KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4) R16: d. DANKA KOVINIC (MNE #86) 6-4,6-4 (1h46) R16: d. ANNA BLINKOVA (RUS #65) 6-4,6-3 (1h18) R32: d. MAGDA LINETTE (POL #35) 6-2,6-4 (1h43) R32: d. BARBORA STRYCOVA (CZE #37) 6-3,6-3 (1h15) R64: d. SU-WEI HSIEH (TPE #58) 6-3,6-1 (1h11)

Total games: 54 Total games: 37 Won/lost: 36-18 Won/lost: 24-13 Sets won/lost: 6-0 Sets won/lost: 4-0 Total time on court: 4h40 Total time on court: 2h33 Average time on court: 1h33 Average time on court: 1h17 Average rank of opponent: 60 Average rank of opponent: 51

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History

ELISE MERTENS KAROLINA PLISKOVA 2019 2019 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #50) 7-5 3-6 7-6(4) F W - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 6-4

2018 R2 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #42) 3-6 6-3 7-5

2017 QF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 6-2 7-6(9)

2016 R1 L - DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #33) 6-4 6-4

2015 R1 L - TIMEA BACSINSZKY (SUI #24) 6-4 6-0

MERTENS:

Rome

 Making second appearance at Rome, having fallen 1r in 2019 (l. V.Williams)  During last year’s 1r loss to V.Williams saved 8MP before eventually losing 82-minute final set  This year’s tournament has involved no such drama so far, with straight-set wins over Hsieh in 1r, Linette in 2r and Kovinic in 3r – is one of five players yet to drop a set  Owns a tour-leading 26 match wins in 2020  Faces No.4 Ka.Pliskova in QF today – bidding for second Top 5 win of the season, having upset No.4 Kenin at US Open  A Belgian woman has reached the final here on two occasions, Henin in 2002 (R-Up) and Clijsters 2003 (WON)  Highlight of last year’s clay court campaign was a QF run at Rabat and 3 showing at Roland Garros. Meanwhile, in 2018, posted tour-best winning percentage on clay (89%), ahead of Halep (84%). Highlights include 12-match winning streaking between Lugano title (d. Sabalenka in F), two wins in Fed Cup play, and Rabat title (d. Tomljanovic in F)

Season

 Coming off QF showing at US Open (d. No.4 Kenin in R16, l. Azarenka)  Posted SF run at Western & Southern Open (l. Osaka); was seeded No.1 in doubles w/Sabalenka – withdrew prior to QF against Hradecka/Klepac w/left leg injury  Fell 1r in the first week of the tour’s return at Palermo (l. Sasnovich)  Bounced back the following week at Prague, where she finished R-Up (l. Halep). Is now 5-2 in WTA singles finals  Began the season with QF runs at Shenzhen (l. Rybakina) and Hobart (l. Watson – 3h 33m match is the longest so far in 2020) and R16 showing at Australian Open (l. Halep)  In February made 2r exit in defense of Doha title (l. Putintseva) and also fell at this stage the previous week at Dubai (l. Sabalenka)

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Career Milestones

 Ended 2019 ranked No.17 for second consecutive Top 20 finish  Singles highlight was winning biggest title of career at Doha (d. No.3 Halep in final). Also beat No.8 Bertens and No.6 Kerber in Doha, doubling career total of Top 10 wins to six  Advanced to QF at US Open for the first time (l. eventual champion Andreescu in 3s) and R16 at Wimbledon for the first time (l. Strycova, having led 6-4 5-2). Reached QF during defense of Rabat title (l. eventual champion Sakkari)  Enjoyed standout season in doubles in 2020 - won maiden major doubles title at US Open w/Sabalenka (d. Azarenka/Barty in F). Also Completed ‘Sunshine Double’ in doubles (w/Sabalenka), lifting the back-to-back titles at Indian Wells (d. Krejcikova/Siniakova) and Miami (d. Stosur/Zhang)  Team qualified for Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen (went 1-2 in RR)  Won three singles titles in 2018 (Hobart, Rabat and Lugano), one of six players on tour with three or more titles to their name that year - also Kvitova (5), Svitolina (4), Bertens (3), Halep (3) and Wozniacki (3)  Also in 2018, advanced to first Grand Slam SF of career at 2018 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Wozniacki), going on to post 46 main draw match wins across the campaign – only Ka.Pliskova (49) and Kvitova (47) registered more. By contrast, prior to 2018 season owned only 36 wins at this level across entire career  In doubles in 2018, won four titles and reached QF at WTA Finals (w/Schuurs)  Finished 2017 season at No.35, up from No.120 in 2016 – first Top 50 and Top 100 year-end finish 2017 season highlighted by first career singles title at Hobart (as a qualifier, d. Niculescu in F)  Registered first Top 10 win of career over No.10 Cibulkova in 1r at 2017 Beijing  Made WTA singles main draw debut at 2016 ‘s-Hertogenbosch – made QF (as qualifier, l. Mladenovic)  Won first WTA title of any kind in doubles at 2016 Auckland (w/Mestach). Now has nine doubles titles – also 2017 Guangzhou (w/Schuurs), 2018 Hobart (w/Schuurs), 2018 Lugano (w/Flipkens), 2018 ‘s-Hertogenbosch (w/Schuurs), 2018 Wuhan (w/Schuurs), 2019 Indian Wells-Miami double (w/Sabalenka) and 2019 US Open (w/Sabalenka)  Played first tour-level event of career at 2015 Antwerp (fell in qualifying)  Has 11 singles and 14 doubles titles on ITF Circuit  Played first events of career on ITF Circuit in Belgium in 2010

Grand Slam History

 Advanced to first Grand Slam SF of career at 2018 Australian Open (l. eventual champion Wozniacki),  In 2019, reached QF at US Open (l. eventual champion Andreescu in 3s) and R16 at Wimbledon (l. Strycova, having led 6-4 5-2) – the deepest run of her career at both tournaments  Has also reached R16 at Roland Garros in 2018 (l. eventual champion Halep) and QF at 2020 US Open (l. Azarenka)  Won maiden major doubles title at US Open w/Sabalenka (d. Azarenka/Barty in F)

Personal

 Working once again with former coach Robbe Ceyssens having recently worked with both David Taylor and Dieter Kindlmann  Earlier coaching history includes Belgian federation until early teens, as well as a year at the Mouratoglou Academy  Mother is Liliane Barbe (teaches languages and history); father is Guido Mertens (makes furniture for churches). Was home schooled, enjoyed studying languages  Loves animals and has lots of pets at home, four dogs and a variety of birds (pheasants, peacocks, chickens)

KA.PLISKOVA:

Rome

 Making sixth consecutive appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Enters this week’s tournament as defending champion, having defeated Konta in last year’s final to lift the crown. Ten women have defended the title here, most recently Svitolina (2017-18)  Second best showing was advancing to QF in 2017 (l. Svitolina)  Following 1r bye, struck 26 winners and broke serve four times to triumph over compatriot Strycova in 2r; career record in matches following byes now stands at 42-8  One of two Czech players left in the draw from five in the starting field (also Vondrousova)  Beat Blinkova in 3r to register win back-to-back matches for the first time since this year’s Australian Open  Faces Mertens in QF today; beat the Belgian en route to 2019 Eastbourne title  Prior to Rome, posted a 9-5 record in six tournaments played this year; the least wins gathered from the opening six tournaments of a season since 2016 (not including Fed Cup)  Owns three career clay court titles at 2015 Prague, 2018 Stuttgart and 2019 Rome  During the hiatus, contested the Mutua Madrid Open Virtual competition, undertook charity work by sup-porting key workers with free coffee, kept fit with bike rides (her first in 15 years), held her Foundation’s first junior tournament as well as played several exhibition events in the Czech Republic

Season

 Coming off 2r loss at US Open (l. Garcia)  First event back following the hiatus was the Western & Southern Open – as No.1 seed, fell 2r (after 1r bye, l. Kudermetova)  Prior to his, last event was in Doha, reaching the 3r (l. Jabeur)  Fell to eventual finalist Rybakina in QF of Dubai  Advanced to 3r at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova)  Began 2020 by winning 16th career title at Brisbane International (d. Keys in F), defending her title from 2019 – has now won at least one WTA title for eight consecutive seasons. Was also first time successfully defending one of her previous 15 titles  Brisbane marked first event working with new coach Daniel Vallverdu

Grand Slam History

 Advanced to career first Grand Slam final at 2016 US Open (l. Kerber), simultaneously making debuts in R16, QF, SF and title match at the majors. Became first Czech to reach US Open final since Helena Sukova in 1993 (l. Graf in F)  At Australian Open, best result was SF run in 2019 (l. Osaka), also reached last four at 2017 Roland Garros (l. Halep)  Reached R16 at Wimbledon in 2018 (l. Bertens) and 2019 (l. Muchova)  Made Grand Slam main draw debut at 2012 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Bartoli in 1r)

Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 ranked No.2 for career-best year-end finish  Lifted a Tour-leading four title across the season (tied with Barty), taking tally to 15 – triumphed at Brisbane, Rome, Eastbourne and Zhengzhou

 Dropped 19 games across five matches during Eastbourne title win (d. Kerber in F) – most economic title run in 2019  Also reached first Premier Mandatory final at Miami, losing to Barty in straight sets  Produced best Australian Open performance of career, reaching SF (l. eventual champion Osaka in 3s); saved four match points to beat S.Williams in QF  Lost to twin sister Kr.Pliskova in R16 at Birmingham, in what was their first career main draw encounter  Made fourth straight appearance at the WTA Finals in 2019, reaching SF for the third year in a row  Won two titles in 2018 from three finals contested, triumphing at Stuttgart (d. Vandeweghe in F) and Tokyo [PPO] (d. Osaka in F). Posted R-Up finish in Tianjin (l. Garcia in F)  At Grand Slam level in 2018 season, made QF run at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Halep), reached 3r at Roland Garros (l. Sharapova), made R16 for first time at Wimbledon (l. Bertens) and had QF showing at US Open (d. No.17 Barty in R16, l. S.Williams)  Also in 2018, made the SF at Brisbane (as defending champion, l. eventual champion Svitolina), Madrid (l. eventual champion Kvitova) and WTA Finals (l. Stephens). Enjoyed QF runs at four other tournaments  Claimed No.1 ranking on July 17, 2017 despite making 2r exit at Wimbledon (l. Rybarikova). Was the first Czech woman to achieve the No.1 ranking since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975 (Martina Navratilova became No.1 on July 10, 1978 while representing USA)  Won three titles in 2017, at Brisbane (d. Cornet in F), Doha (d. Wozniacki in F) and Eastbourne (d. Wozniacki in F)  Owns 15-12 record in singles finals, having won having titles on all three surfaces  Captured fifth WTA doubles title of career at 2016 Birmingham (w/Strycova). Is now 5-2 in doubles finals. At 2013 Linz, with sister Kristyna, became first set of twins to ever win a tour-level doubles title  Made Top 10 debut after 2015 Stanford R-Up finish; was first time in WTA history that three Czech women ranked inside Top 10 at the same time (also Kvitova and Safarova)  Won first career WTA title at 2013 Kuala Lumpur (d. Mattek-Sands) and followed it up with two more in 2014 Seoul (d. Lepchenko) and 2014 Linz (d. Giorgi)  Made professional debut on ITF circuit in 2006

Personal

 Born in Louny, north of Prague, but now trains at Sparta Praha tennis club  Has a twin sister – Kristyna. In 2013, became the first set of twins to capture a WTA doubles title  Married Michal Hrdlicka after 2018 Wimbledon  Currently coached by Daniel Vallverdu and Olga Savchuk, and previously coached by Conchita Martínez, Rennae Stubbs, Tomas Krupa and David Kotyza  Away from the court, enjoys fresh-water fishing, as well as contributing to her foundation which benefits various causes, including pediatric oncology and children battling cancer in her native Czech Republic MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – SEMIFINALS

[1] SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. [9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17)

Muguruza leads 4-2 Muguruza won when the pair met at Australian Open in January… Halep is on a 12-match winning streak… Muguruza bidding to reach just second career clay court final

[12] MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) vs. [2] KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4) Pliskova leads 1-0 Pliskova beat her compatriot en route to 2019 Miami final… Vondrousova scored third Top 10 win of career in QF against Svitolina… Pliskova attempting to become the 11th woman to defend Rome

A LOOK AT THE SEMIFINALISTS ROME SEASON CAREER CAREER CAREER PLAYER RANK AGE NAT (MD) W/L* (MD) W/L* W/L* PRIZE $^ TITLES [1] Simona Halep 2 28 ROU 18-7 18-2 511-215 36,577,615 21 [2] Karolina Pliskova 4 28 CZE 10-4 12-5 539-294 20,111,889 16 [9] Garbiñe Muguruza 17 26 ESP 14-6 21-5 393-198 20,921,334 7 [12] Marketa Vondrousova 19 21 CZE 7-1 8-8 165-64 3,308,044 1 *Includes current tournament / ^ Does not include current tournament

SEMIFINAL RECORDS BEST ROME OPEN LAST FINAL CAREER CAREER PLAYER RESULT REACHED (final result) SF W/L* F W/L [1] Simona Halep R-Up (2): 2017-18 2020 Prague (WON) 37-16 21-17 [2] Karolina Pliskova WON (1): 2019 2020 Brisbane (WON) 27-15 16-12 [9] Garbiñe Muguruza SF (3): 2016-17, 2020 2020 Australian Open (R-Up) 11-17 7-5 [12] Marketa Vondrousova SF (1): 2020 2019 Roland Garros (R-Up) 4-1 1-3 *Not including walkovers

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1 MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY

 As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March.  Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play.  WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities.  Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer.  “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among others.  In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants.  For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

 One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3)  Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington)  Lowest-ranked player to triumph: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul)  Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up)  Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul)  Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d)  Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d)  Aces leaders: Elena Rybakina – 171, Serena Williams – 167, Garbiñe Muguruza – 145, Naomi Osaka – 141,  Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF)  Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 26, Elena Rybakina – 24, Garbiñe Muguruza – 21, Anett Kontaveit – 20  Most doubles titles (3): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha)  Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul)  Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF)  Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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2 MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17)

Head to Head: GARBIÑE MUGURUZA leads 4-2

2020 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O SF GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 7-6(8) 7-5 125 mins 2018 ROLAND GARROS CLAY O SF SIMONA HALEP 6-1 6-4 92 mins 2018 DOHA HARD O SF GARBIÑE MUGURUZA W/O 2017 CINCINNATI HARD O F GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 6-1 6-0 56 mins 2015 STUTTGART CLAY I R16 SIMONA HALEP 3-6 6-1 6-3 109 mins 2015 FED CUP WEEK 1 HARD I R1 GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 6-4 6-3 n/a 2014 WUHAN HARD O R2 GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 2-6 6-2 6-3 116 mins

SIMONA HALEP GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 2 WTA RANKING 17 5 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 4 27-09-1991 (28) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 08-10-1993 (26) $1,469,594 YTD PRIZE MONEY $1,703,605 $36,577,615 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $20,921,334 2 / 21 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 7 0 / 1 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 18-7 ROME W-L (MD) * 14-6 18-2 / 388-170 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 21-5 / 257-142 5-0 / 115-57 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 9-3 / 82-62 5-1 / 52-56 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 7-0 / 42-50 8-0 / 128-45 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 4-0 / 57-29 0-0 / 35-15 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 0-0 / 18-14 0-0 / 12-29 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 2-1 / 11-18 0-0 / 39-49 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 3-1 / 35-34 3-1 / 102-76 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 5-2 / 63-60 * Updated entering 2020 Rome SF

ROAD TO THE SEMIFINALS

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) QF: d. YULIA PUTINTSEVA (KAZ #30) 6-2,2-0 Ret'd (0h48) QF: d. VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #14) 3-6,6-3,6-4 (2h19) R16: d. DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29) 7-5,6-4 (1h27) R16: d. [7] JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #13) 6-4,6-1 (1h22) R32: d. JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99) 6-3,6-4 (1h23) R32: d. COCO GAUFF (USA #53) 7-6(3),3-6,6-3 (2h28) R64: d. SLOANE STEPHENS (USA #33) 6-3,6-3 (1h21)

Total games: 51 Total games: 94 Won/lost: 33-18 Won/lost: 55-39 Sets won/lost: 6-0 Sets won/lost: 8-2 Total time on court: 3h38 Total time on court: 7h30 Average time on court: 1h13 Average time on court: 1h53 Average rank of opponent: 53 Average rank of opponent: 28

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SIMONA HALEP GARBIÑE MUGURUZA 2019 2019 R2 L - MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #44) 2-6 7-5 6-3 R16 L - VICTORIA AZARENKA (BLR #51) 6-4 3-1

2018 2018 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-0 6-4 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #24) 5-7 6-2 7-6(6)

2017 2017 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-6 7-5 6-1 SF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-1

2016 2016 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #32) 6-3 4-6 6-3 SF L - MADISON KEYS (USA #24) 7-6(5) 6-4 2015 2014 SF L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #10) 2-6 6-3 7-5 R2 L - FRANCESCA SCHIAVONE (ITA #61) 3-6 6-1 7-6(5) 2014 2013 R16 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #14) W/O R2 L - MARIA SHARAPOVA (RUS #2) 6-2 6-2 2013 SF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-3 6-0

2012 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #63) 6-3 6-4 2011 R1-Q L - VIRGINIE RAZZANO (FRA #95) 7-6(3) 6-0

HALEP:

Rome

 Making ninth main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia (10th overall)  R-Up on two occasions, in 2017 and 2018 (l. Svitolina in both finals)  Also has reached SF three times, in 2013 (l. eventual champion S.Williams), 2015 (l. Suárez Navarro) and now 2020  Second time contesting Rome as No.1 seed (also in 2018, l. Svitolina in F)  After 1r bye, converted eight of 10 break points to see off Italian wildcard Paolini in 1r  Recovered from a break down in the first set to overcame No.29 Yastremska in 3r  In Saturday’s QF, advanced when opponent Putintseva retired w/back injury midway through second set; win-loss record this season now stands at 18-2  Is the only player yet to drop a set this week  Now made QF or better in all five tournaments played this year  Has won 12 matches in a row, including titles at Dubai (four wins) and Prague (five wins); this is her longest winning streak since 2016 (13 straight wins, lifted the trophy at Bucharest and Montreal, then made SF run at Cincinnati)  Faces No.17 Muguruza for a seventh time today; has won only two of their previous encounters, although one of these did come en route to maiden Grand Slam title at 2018 Roland Garros  Owns three Top 20 wins so far this season, having previously beaten No.17 Mertens (Australian Open) and No.13 Sabalenka and No.19 Rybakina (both at Dubai)

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 Bidding to reach 39th WTA singles final and 18th on clay. Owns 17-5 win-loss record in clay court SF matches  Among active players, owns the third-most clay court titles with eight, behind V.Williams (9) and S.Williams (13)  Since 2013, when Halep won her first of 21 titles, only S.Williams (27) has won more titles than the Romanian  Played doubles this week w/Niculescu (l. Shibahara/Aoyama in 2r)

Season

 Last month, captured her 21st career title at Prague (d. Mertens in F). Tied with Azarenka for fifth-most titles among active players, behind Serena (73), Venus (49), Clijsters (41) and Kvitova (27)  Prior to tour’s five-month hiatus, clinched her 20th career title at Dubai (d. Rybakina in F)  Reached eighth career Grand Slam SF at Australian Open (l. Muguruza) bringing record in major SF matches to 5-3  Opened 2020 season with QF appearance at Adelaide (l. Sabalenka)

Career Milestones

 Ended 2019 ranked No.4 for sixth consecutive year in the Top 5  2019 highlighted by winning second career Grand Slam title at Wimbledon (d. S.Williams)  Also finished R-Up at Madrid (l. Bertens) and QF at Roland Garros (as defending champion, l. Anisimova) and Toronto (ret. vs. Bouzova w/Achilles pain)  Ended 2018 season as World No.1 for the second time in her career, with season highlighted by maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F)  Also won titles last year at Shenzhen (d. Siniakova in F) and Montréal (d. Stephens in F) and was R-Up at Australian Open (l. Wozniacki), Rome (l. Svitolina) and Cincinnati (l. Bertens). Is 18-16 in career finals  Won first career WTA doubles title at 2018 Shenzhen (w/Begu). Now 1-1 in career doubles finals  Finished 2017 as the year-end World No.1, having ascended to the No.1 spot for first time in career on October 9, 2017 – became the 25th woman to reach the top spot, and the 13th to hold year-end No.1  Defended Madrid title in 2017 (d. Mladenovic in F); reached four more finals in 2017: Rome, Roland Garros, Cincinnati and Beijing. 2016 season highlighted by three titles, at Madrid, Bucharest and Montréal  Between May 2013 and August 2014, improved ranking from No.64 to No.2, winning seven titles  Has qualified six times for WTA Finals in Singapore (2014-19, although withdrew injured in 2018), reaching final in 2014 (l. S.Williams, having defeated the World No.1 in the round robin stage)  Named 2013 WTA Most Improved Player, winning her first six WTA titles and ending year ranked No.11  Made WTA main draw debut at 2010 Marbella as a qualifier, reaching quarterfinals

Grand Slam History

 Contested 39th Grand Slam main draw of her career at 2020 Australian Open  Winner of two Grand Slam titles, lifting first at 2018 Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F) followed by an historic 2019 Wimbledon run (d. S.Williams in F)  Became first Romanian to lift the singles title at the All England Club, defeating S.Williams in 56 minutes  Posted three runner-up finishes in Paris in 2014 (l. Sharapova in 3s), 2017 (l. Ostapenko in 3s) and at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki in 3s)  Was the first Romanian woman to advance to final at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki)  Best result at US Open is SF run in 2015 (l. eventual champion Pennetta)

Personal

 Reunited with long-time coach, Darren Cahill during offseason after taking a 12-month break  Formerly coached by Wim Fissette and Victor Ionita  Sponsorship portfolio includes deals with Mercedes, Unilever and is an Ambassador for Dubai Duty Free  Sponsors a children’s hockey team back in Romania through the Simona Halep Foundation

MUGURUZA:

Rome

 Making seventh main draw appearance at Rome, where she is through to SF for a third time  Previously made it this far in 2016 (d. No.10 Bacsinszky in QF, l. Keys) and 2017 (ret. w/neck injury vs. eventual champion Svitolina)  Defeated Stephens in 1r on Tuesday for her first win over the American since 2015 Wuhan  In 2r, ousted No.53 Gauff. Has now won 12 of her past 14 matches against players ranked outside the Top 50, only falling to No.52 Brady at Dubai in February and unranked Pironkova last week at US Open  Held all nine service games during straight sets 3r win over No.13 Konta  Won final three games of the match to edge out in-form Azarenka in QF and score her fifth Top 20 win of the season – by contrast registered three during 2019 campaign  Has hit a tournament-leading 17 aces this week to add to her season count of 145 – the third-most on Tour in 2020, behind Rybakina (171) and S.Williams (167) and ahead of Osaka (141)  Faces No.14 Azarenka today in their fourth career meeting – is 4-2 vs. Top 20 ranked opponents in 2020 – wins were over No.14 Konta on Friday and during Australian Open final run (d. No.5 Svitolina, No.10 Bertens and No.3 Halep). Losses came to No.15 Kenin (Australian Open final) and No.1 Barty (Doha)  Has reached the QF or better at six of seven events played in 2020, going 21-5 across the season – the third-most main draw wins this year, behind Mertens (26) and Rybakina (24)  Faces Halep in today’s SF – her 400th career main draw match (257-142 career record)  With victory today will match the total wins she compiled over entire 2019 season (22-16)  Bidding to reach 13th career singles final and second on clay. Sole career final on clay was 2016 Roland Garros victory over S.Williams (is 1-4 in clay court SF matches)  Is attempting to become the fifth Spanish woman to reach the Rome final in the Open Era, following in the footsteps of her coach Martínez (champion 1993-96, R-Up 1997), Sánchez Vicario (R-Up 1989, 1995), Martínez Sánchez (champion 2010) and Suárez Navarro (R-Up 2015)

Season

 Coming off 2r exit at US Open (l. unranked Pironkova)  Withdrew from Western & Southern Open w/ left ankle injury  Prior to tour’s hiatus, was enjoying her best ever start to a season and for the first time in her career made the QF or better at five straight tournaments - is the only player to achieve this feat in 2020  Last event played was Doha, reaching QF (l. Barty)  Also made QFs at Dubai (l. Brady in 3s). Defeated former No.1 and four-time Grand Slam singles champion Clijsters in the 1r at Dubai which was the Belgian’s first professional match since 2012  Finished R-Up at Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – her fourth career major final

 Defeated four seeds en route to Melbourne final, including three of the Top 10 (No.4 Halep, No.5 Svitolina, No.9 Bertens)  Forced to withdraw with viral illness prior to QF match against Kudermetova at Hobart International  Began 2020 campaign posting SF appearance (l. eventual champion Alexandrova) at Shenzhen Open

Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 season at No.36 for first non-Top 20 finish since 2014  Successfully defended her title in Monterrey for seventh career WTA trophy (d. Azarenka in F)  Also in 2019, reached QF at Indian Wells defeating No.10 S.Williams and No.7 Bertens en route (l. eventual champion Andreescu) and R16 at Australian Open (l. Ka.Pliskova) and Roland Garros (l. Stephens)  Is a two-time Grand-Slam champion winning titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F). Dropped only one set in Roland Garros title run  Is only player to ever beat both Williams sisters in a Grand Slam final and one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles  Also finished R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon (l. S.Williams) to make Top 10 debut. Is one of two players to meet both Williams sisters in the final of the same Grand Slam – also Hingis at US Open (1997, d. V.Williams; 1999, l. S.Williams)  First Spaniard to reach Wimbledon final since Sánchez Vicario in 1996 and first to reach any Slam final since Conchita Martínez at 2000 Roland Garros  Rose to World No.1 on September 11, 2017 to become the 24th woman in history to hold the top spot and second from Spain (after Sánchez Vicario in 1995). Also named ITF World Champion for 2017  In 2015, became first Spanish player to compete at the WTA Finals in singles since 2001 (Sánchez Vicario) and reached doubles final (w/Suárez Navarro, l. Hingis/Mirza)  Made WTA main draw debut at Miami in 2012, defeating No.9 Zvonareva for first Top 10 win of career

Grand Slam History  Appeared in 30th Grand Slam main draw at 2020 US Open  Won titles at 2016 Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in F dropping just one set en route to lifting the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen) and 2017 Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in F)  Reached title match at 2020 Australian Open (l. Kenin in 3s) – Grand Slam final record now stands at 2-2 (also R-Up at 2015 Wimbledon – l. S.Williams)  One of just eight players all-time to defeat Serena in a Grand Slam final  Is one of 29 women in the Open Era to win multiple Grand Slam titles  Is the second player to face both Williams sisters in the final of the same major (also Hingis, at US Open in 1997 – d. V.Williams, and 1999 – l. S.Williams)  By winning 2017 Wimbledon, became only player to defeat both sisters in Grand Slam final, at Roland Garros (d. S.Williams in 2016) and Wimbledon (d. V.Williams in 2017)  Best result at US Open came in 2017 with R16 showing  In doubles, best result was SF run at 2014 Roland Garros w/Suárez Navarro

Personal  Began playing tennis at age three; first memory of the sport was playing with her brothers  Mother, Scarlet is from Venezuela and father, José Antonio, is from Spain  Coached by Conchita Martínez MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) vs. KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Head to Head: KAROLINA PLISKOVA leads 1-0

2019 MIAMI HARD O QF KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-3 6-4 80 mins

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA KAROLINA PLISKOVA 19 WTA RANKING 4 93 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 18 28-06-1999 (21) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 21-03-1992 (28) $252,464 YTD PRIZE MONEY $599,371 $3,308,044 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $20,111,889 0 / 1 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 16 0 / 0 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 7-1 ROME W-L (MD) * 10-4 8-8 / 61-41 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 12-5 / 321-164 2-6 / 12-23 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 4-1 / 104-59 2-0 / 19-10 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-6 / 64-70 4-1 / 28-12 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 3-0 / 56-36 2-0 / 4-0 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 1-0 / 31-20 0-1 / 2-3 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 18-19 1-1 / 3-9 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 32-39 1-1 / 10-11 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 4-1 / 63-72 * Updated entering 2020 Rome SF

ROAD TO THE SEMIFINALS

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4) QF: d. [4] ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #6) 6-3,6-0 (1h20) QF: d. [11] ELISE MERTENS (BEL #20) 6-3,3-6,6-0 (2h08) R16: d. POLONA HERCOG (SLO #50) 1-6,6-1,7-6(5) (2h23) R16: d. ANNA BLINKOVA (RUS #65) 6-4,6-3 (1h18) R32: d. ARANTXA RUS (NED #71) 6-3,6-3 (1h58) R32: d. BARBORA STRYCOVA (CZE #37) 6-3,6-3 (1h15) R64: d. MISAKI DOI (JPN #80) 6-1,4-6,6-4 (2h33)

Total games: 87 Total games: 61 Won/lost: 54-33 Won/lost: 39-22 Sets won/lost: 8-2 Sets won/lost: 6-1 Total time on court: 8h14 Total time on court: 4h41 Average time on court: 2h04 Average time on court: 1h34 Average rank of opponent: 52 Average rank of opponent: 41

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ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

ROME Tournament History

MARKETA VONDROUSOVA KAROLINA PLISKOVA 2019 2019 QF L - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 3-6 6-1 F W - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 6-4

2018 R2 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #42) 3-6 6-3 7-5

2017 QF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 6-2 7-6(9)

2016 R1 L - DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #33) 6-4 6-4

2015 R1 L - TIMEA BACSINSZKY (SUI #24) 6-4 6-0

VONDROUSOVA: Rome  Making second appearance at Rome, having made QF on debut in 2019 (l. Konta)  During last year’s run, upset No.2 Halep in 2r to register her second career Top 10 win  Followed up run in Rome with R-Up finish at Roland Garros a few weeks later – made Top 20 debut following Paris showing  Since then, has won back-to-back matches only twice – at 2020 Adelaide and this week at Rome  In 1r, twice recovered from a break down in the final set to beat Doi, then broke five times to see off Rus in 2r  Came within two points of defeat with Hercog serving for the match at 6-5 in the deciding set of late-night 3r encounter  Made impressive recovery from her midnight finish against Hercog to win all eight service games during QF upset of two-time Rome champion and World No.6 Svitolina in QF  Now owns three Top 10 wins in her career; two previous upsets both came over No.2 Halep at 2019 Indian Wells and 2019 Rome  Faces compatriot Ka.Pliskova in SF today; record in WTA SF matches stands at 4-1 (2-1 on clay)  At 21 is the youngest player left in the draw; bidding to become the youngest Rome finalist since 18-year-old Cornet finished R-Up in 2008

Season  Coming off 2r showing at US Open (l. Sasnovich)  Upon tour’s return, suffered 1r exits at first Palermo (l. Juvan) and Western & Southern Open (l. Siegemund)  Before tennis’ hiatus, fell 1r at Doha (l. Zheng) and 2r at Dubai (l. Brady)  Started season by only giving up three games in first two matches to reach QF in Adelaide (l. eventual champion Barty) before being upset in 1r of Australian Open (l. Kuznetsova) and St. Petersburg (l. Tomljanovic)

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Career Milestones  Enjoyed break-out season in 2019, reaching three finals across the year and making Top 20 debut  Finished R-Up at Budapest (l. Van Uytvanck) and Istanbul (l. Martic) before reaching championship match at Roland Garros (l. Barty); did not drop a set en route to final in Paris  Posted first win of career over a Top 2 player in 2019, defeating No.2 Halep at Indian Wells and then Rome  Forced to end 2019 season down early due to left wrist injury – did not play again following 1r exit at Wimbledon  At 2018 US Open, became the first teenager to reach the last 16 at Flushing Meadows since 2016 (Konjuh, QF – 18) and the youngest Czech player to advance to this stage in New York since 2005 (Vaidisova, R16 – 16)  Was the biggest ranking mover on tour in 2017, from No.376 to No.67 (309 places)  Made WTA breakthrough by winning International-level title at 2017 Biel/Bienne (d. Kontaveit in F). At No.233, was the lowest-ranked title winner in 2017 and aged 17 years, 293 days was the youngest since Konjuh (17 years, 169 days) at 2015 Nottingham  Reached doubles QF at 2017 Wimbledon (w/Bellis, l. eventual finalists H.Chan/Niculescu)  Advanced to 2r on tour-level debut at 2016 Prague – as wildcard  On ITF Circuit, winner of seven singles and four doubles titles  Made professional debut at 2014 $100k ITF/Prague-CZE (d. Suk, l. Brengle in 2r)

Grand Slam History  Contested 12th and most recent major at 2020 US Open  Breakthrough came during R-Up finish at 2019 Roland Garros; ranked No.38, was joint-third lowest-ranked woman to reach Roland Garros final, and aged 19, was first teenager to reach title match there since Ivanovic in 2007  Previous best result at the majors was reaching R16 at 2018 US Open (l. Tsurenko). Was youngest Czech player to reach R16 at Flushing Meadows since 2005 (Nicole Vaidisova, R16 at 16yrs, 140 days)  Made Grand Slam debut at 2017 Roland Garros, where she advanced to 2r. Has also reached 2r at 2018 and 2019 Australian Opens  Fell 1r on debut at Wimbledon  Reached doubles QF at 2017 Wimbledon (w/Bellis, l. eventual finalists H.Chan/Niculescu)  In juniors won doubles at Australian Open and Roland Garros in 2015 (both w/Kolodziejova). In singles, was semifinalist at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon

Personal  Coached by former ATP Pro Jan Hernych. Fitness trainer is Michal Vagner  Born in Skolov but moved to Prague alone at age 15 to train full-time  Favorite surface is clay because she grew up on it, but believes her game is more suited for hard courts  Tennis idol is Roger Federer  Describes herself as "quiet" and "calm"

KA.PLISKOVA:

Rome

 Making sixth consecutive appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Enters this week’s tournament as defending champion, having defeated Konta in last year’s final to lift the crown. Ten women have defended the title here, most recently Svitolina (2017-18)  Prior to this year, second best showing in the Italian capital was advancing to QF in 2017 (l. Svitolina)  Following 1r bye, struck 26 winners and broke serve four times to triumph over compatriot Strycova in 2r; career record in matches following byes now stands at 42-8  Beat Blinkova in 3r to register win back-to-back matches for the first time since this year’s Australian Open  Dropped just 10 points in a dominant third-set display to see off Mertens in QF  Faces Vondrousova in today’s SF; won six of the last seven games to overcome her young compatriot en route to Miami final in 2019  Prior to Rome, posted a 9-5 record in six tournaments played this year; the least wins gathered from the opening six tournaments of a season since 2016 (not including Fed Cup)  Owns three career clay court titles at 2015 Prague, 2018 Stuttgart and 2019 Rome  During the hiatus, contested the Mutua Madrid Open Virtual competition, undertook charity work by sup-porting key workers with free coffee, kept fit with bike rides (her first in 15 years), held her Foundation’s first junior tournament as well as played several exhibition events in the Czech Republic

Season

 Coming off 2r loss at US Open (l. Garcia)  First event back following the hiatus was the Western & Southern Open – as No.1 seed, fell 2r (after 1r bye, l. Kudermetova)  Prior to his, last event was in Doha, reaching the 3r (l. Jabeur)  Fell to eventual finalist Rybakina in QF of Dubai  Advanced to 3r at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova)  Began 2020 by winning 16th career title at Brisbane International (d. Keys in F), defending her title from 2019 – has now won at least one WTA title for eight consecutive seasons. Was also first time successfully defending one of her previous 15 titles  Brisbane marked first event working with new coach Daniel Vallverdu

Grand Slam History

 Advanced to career first Grand Slam final at 2016 US Open (l. Kerber), simultaneously making debuts in R16, QF, SF and title match at the majors. Became first Czech to reach US Open final since Helena Sukova in 1993 (l. Graf in F)  At Australian Open, best result was SF run in 2019 (l. Osaka), also reached last four at 2017 Roland Garros (l. Halep)  Reached R16 at Wimbledon in 2018 (l. Bertens) and 2019 (l. Muchova)  Made Grand Slam main draw debut at 2012 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Bartoli in 1r)

Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 ranked No.2 for career-best year-end finish  Lifted a Tour-leading four title across the season (tied with Barty), taking tally to 15 – triumphed at Brisbane, Rome, Eastbourne and Zhengzhou

 Dropped 19 games across five matches during Eastbourne title win (d. Kerber in F) – most economic title run in 2019  Also reached first Premier Mandatory final at Miami, losing to Barty in straight sets  Produced best Australian Open performance of career, reaching SF (l. eventual champion Osaka in 3s); saved four match points to beat S.Williams in QF  Lost to twin sister Kr.Pliskova in R16 at Birmingham, in what was their first career main draw encounter  Made fourth straight appearance at the WTA Finals in 2019, reaching SF for the third year in a row  Won two titles in 2018 from three finals contested, triumphing at Stuttgart (d. Vandeweghe in F) and Tokyo [PPO] (d. Osaka in F). Posted R-Up finish in Tianjin (l. Garcia in F)  At Grand Slam level in 2018 season, made QF run at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Halep), reached 3r at Roland Garros (l. Sharapova), made R16 for first time at Wimbledon (l. Bertens) and had QF showing at US Open (d. No.17 Barty in R16, l. S.Williams)  Also in 2018, made the SF at Brisbane (as defending champion, l. eventual champion Svitolina), Madrid (l. eventual champion Kvitova) and WTA Finals (l. Stephens). Enjoyed QF runs at four other tournaments  Claimed No.1 ranking on July 17, 2017 despite making 2r exit at Wimbledon (l. Rybarikova). Was the first Czech woman to achieve the No.1 ranking since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975 (Martina Navratilova became No.1 on July 10, 1978 while representing USA)  Won three titles in 2017, at Brisbane (d. Cornet in F), Doha (d. Wozniacki in F) and Eastbourne (d. Wozniacki in F)  Owns 15-12 record in singles finals, having won having titles on all three surfaces  Captured fifth WTA doubles title of career at 2016 Birmingham (w/Strycova). Is now 5-2 in doubles finals. At 2013 Linz, with sister Kristyna, became first set of twins to ever win a tour-level doubles title  Made Top 10 debut after 2015 Stanford R-Up finish; was first time in WTA history that three Czech women ranked inside Top 10 at the same time (also Kvitova and Safarova)  Won first career WTA title at 2013 Kuala Lumpur (d. Mattek-Sands) and followed it up with two more in 2014 Seoul (d. Lepchenko) and 2014 Linz (d. Giorgi)  Made professional debut on ITF circuit in 2006

Personal

 Born in Louny, north of Prague, but now trains at Sparta Praha tennis club  Has a twin sister – Kristyna. In 2013, became the first set of twins to capture a WTA doubles title  Married Michal Hrdlicka after 2018 Wimbledon  Currently coached by Daniel Vallverdu and Olga Savchuk, and previously coached by Conchita Martínez, Rennae Stubbs, Tomas Krupa and David Kotyza  Away from the court, enjoys fresh-water fishing, as well as contributing to her foundation which benefits various causes, including pediatric oncology and children battling cancer in her native Czech Republic

MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | USD €1,692,169 |

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INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA – FINAL

[1] SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. [2] KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Halep leads 7-4 The players have split their only two previous encounters on clay… Halep is on a 13-match winning streak… Pliskova has won 10 of her past 12 finals… Halep is a two-time Rome runner-up… Pliskova’s only Top 10 win this season came over Osaka during Brisbane title run

A LOOK AT THE FINALISTS ROME SEASON CAREER CAREER CAREER PLAYER RANK AGE NAT (MD) W/L* (MD) W/L* W/L* PRIZE $^ TITLES [1] Simona Halep 2 28 ROU 19-7 19-2 512-215 36,577,615 21 [2] Karolina Pliskova 4 28 CZE 11-4 13-5 540-294 20,111,889 16 *Includes current tournament / ^ Does not include current tournament

FINAL RECORDS BEST ROME LAST FINAL CAREER PLAYER RESULT REACHED (final result) F W/L [1] Simona Halep R-Up (2): 2017-18 2020 Prague (WON) 21-17 Final (1): 2020 [2] Karolina Pliskova WON (1): 2019 2020 Brisbane (WON) 16-12

HISTORY REPEATING ITSELF CLAY COURT QUEENS

Karolina Pliskova today bids to become the 11th different Upon the tour’s resumption in August, Simona Halep, lifted woman to defend the Rome title. her 21st WTA title, at Prague. It was also her eighth on clay lifting her into third place among active players for titles on the Successful title defenses in the Eternal City have become surface: somewhat of a trend in recent years. In fact, the feat has been pulled off five times in the past 15 years: Amélie Mauresmo PLAYER TITLES R-UP WIN % (2004-05), Jelena Jankovic (2007-08), Maria Sharapova (2011- Serena Williams 13 3 .813 12), Serena Williams (2013-14) and Elina Svitolina (2017-18). Venus Williams 9 6 .600

Simona Halep 8 9 .471 Sara Errani 7 5 .583

MATCH NOTES: INTERNAZIONALI BNL D’ITALIA ROME, ITALY | SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2020 | €1,692,169 | PREMIER 5

WTA4LOVE – SUPPORTING THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY

 As part of the ongoing humanitarian campaign, WTA4Love, more than 100 community initiatives have been undertaken by WTA players and partners since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March.  Many players are stepping up again to raise awareness by wearing WTA4Love patches during competition in support of the ongoing campaign as we return to play.  WTA4Love initiatives have provided COVID-19 support ranging from donations of medical equipment to hospitals, including 30,000 masks donated to medical professionals through the efforts of the players and WTA Charities.  Food insecurity has also been addressed by providing 24,000 meals to families and frontline workers and through fundraisers for local foodbanks. WTA Charities will continue to support the ongoing needs of communities with upcoming donations of 100,000 meals in partnership with Lilly Pulitzer.  “WTA4Love” is a global campaign with activities and donations by players and WTA Charities in 14 of the countries which are home to WTA tournaments and most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including China, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, among others.  In addition to the urgent focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, WTA Charities has continued to support a wide range of nonprofit organizations including live video chats teaching leadership and character development to youth and offering support and positive messaging to Special Olympics participants.  For more information on each player’s specific activities, please contact WTA Communications Manager, Teyva Sammet [email protected]

A SNAPSHOT OF 2020 – THE YEAR SO FAR

 One Top 10 Debut: Sofia Kenin (at No.7 on February 3)  Fewest games dropped en route to a title: Jennifer Brady (24, Lexington)  Lowest-ranked title winner: Patricia Maria Tig (No.88, Istanbul)  Multiple finals: Elena Rybakina: 4 (Shenzhen, R-Up, Hobart, W, St. Petersburg, R-Up, Dubai, R-Up); Sofia Kenin: 2 (Australian Open, W, Lyon, W); Simona Halep: 2 (Dubai, W, Prague, W); Naomi Osaka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, R-Up, US Open, W); Victoria Azarenka: 2 (Western & Southern Open, W, US Open, R- Up)  Maiden titles (3): Ekaterina Alexandrova (Shenzhen), Jennifer Brady (Lexington), Patricia Maria Tig (Istanbul)  Youngest title winner: Elena Rybakina, Hobart (20y 7m 1d)  Oldest title winner: Serena Williams, Auckland (38y 3m 17d)  Aces leaders: Elena Rybakina – 171, Serena Williams – 167, Garbiñe Muguruza – 145, Naomi Osaka – 141  Most aces in a match (22): Alison Van Uytvanck (l. vs. Sofia Kenin 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 7-6(2) – Lyon, SF)  Match win leaders: Elise Mertens – 26, Elena Rybakina – 24, Garbiñe Muguruza – 21, Anett Kontaveit – 20  Most doubles titles (4): Barbora Strycova / Hsieh Su-Wei (Brisbane, Dubai, Doha, Rome)  Best result by a qualifier (R-Up): Kung (Hua Hin), Fernandez (Acapulco), Bouchard (Istanbul)  Longest match: 3h 33m – Heather Watson d. Elise Mertens 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 (Hobart, QF)  Shortest (completed) match: 44m – Serena Williams d. Amanda Anisimova 6-1 6-1 (Auckland, SF)

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2 MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) vs. KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4)

Head to Head: SIMONA HALEP leads 7-4

2019 WTA FINALS HARD I R1 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-0 2-6 6-4 103 mins 2019 MIAMI HARD O SF KAROLINA PLISKOVA 7-5 6-1 75 mins WEEK 1 HARD I R1 SIMONA HALEP 6-4 5-7 6-4 n/a 2018 MADRID CLAY O QF KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-4 6-3 69 mins 2018 AUSTRALIAN OPEN HARD O QF SIMONA HALEP 6-3 6-2 71 mins 2017 ROLAND GARROS CLAY O SF SIMONA HALEP 6-4 3-6 6-3 120 mins 2016 MONTREAL HARD O R16 SIMONA HALEP 6-3 6-3 67 mins 2016 FED CUP WEEK 1 HARD I R1 KAROLINA PLISKOVA 6-7(4) 6-4 6-2 n/a 2016 SYDNEY HARD O QF SIMONA HALEP 6-4 7-5 98 mins 2015 INDIAN WELLS HARD O R16 SIMONA HALEP 6-4 6-4 77 mins 2015 DUBAI HARD O F SIMONA HALEP 6-4 7-6(4) 106 mins

SIMONA HALEP KAROLINA PLISKOVA 2 WTA RANKING 4 5 PORSCHE RACE TO SHENZHEN LEADERBOARD 18 27-09-1991 (28) DATE OF BIRTH (AGE) 21-03-1992 (28) $1,469,594 YTD PRIZE MONEY $599,371 $36,577,615 CAREER PRIZE MONEY $20,111,889 2 / 21 SINGLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 1 / 16 0 / 1 DOUBLES TITLES (YTD / CAREER) 0 / 5 19-7 ROME W-L (MD) * 11-4 19-2 / 389-170 YTD / CAREER W-L (MD) * 13-5 / 322-164 6-0 / 116-57 YTD / CAREER 3-SET W-L (MD) * 4-1 / 104-59 5-1 / 52-56 YTD / CAREER TIE-BREAK W-L (MD) * 2-6 / 64-70 9-0 / 129-45 YTD / CAREER CLAY W-L (MD) * 4-0 / 57-36 0-0 / 35-15 YTD / CAREER Left Hander W-L (MD) * 2-0 / 32-20 0-0 / 12-29 YTD / CAREER TOP 5 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 18-19 0-0 / 39-49 YTD / CAREER TOP 10 W-L (MD & Q) * 1-0 / 32-39 4-1 / 103-76 YTD / CAREER TOP 20 W-L (MD & Q) * 5-1 / 64-72 * Updated entering 2020 Rome final

ROAD TO THE FINAL

SIMONA HALEP (ROU #2) KAROLINA PLISKOVA (CZE #4) SF: d. [9] GARBIÑE MUGURUZA (ESP #17) 6-3,4-6,6-4 (2h17) SF: d. [12] MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #19) 6-2,6-4 (1h22) QF: d. YULIA PUTINTSEVA (KAZ #30) 6-2,2-0 Ret'd (0h48) QF: d. [11] ELISE MERTENS (BEL #20) 6-3,3-6,6-0 (2h08) R16: d. DAYANA YASTREMSKA (UKR #29) 7-5,6-4 (1h27) R16: d. ANNA BLINKOVA (RUS #65) 6-4,6-3 (1h18) R32: d. JASMINE PAOLINI (ITA #99) 6-3,6-4 (1h23) R32: d. BARBORA STRYCOVA (CZE #37) 6-3,6-3 (1h15)

Insights Follow WTA on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WTA Facebook: www.facebook.com/WTA YouTube: www.youtube.com/WTA from MATCH NOTES ROME - ITALY | Sep 14 - Sep 21, 2020 | $2,399,040 | PREMIER 5

Total games: 80 Total games: 79 Won/lost: 49-31 Won/lost: 51-28 Sets won/lost: 8-1 Sets won/lost: 8-1 Total time on court: 5h55 Total time on court: 6h03 Average time on court: 1h29 Average time on court: 1h31 Average rank of opponent: 44 Average rank of opponent: 35

ROME Tournament History "-Q" Qualifying match

SIMONA HALEP KAROLINA PLISKOVA 2019 2019 R2 L - MARKETA VONDROUSOVA (CZE #44) 2-6 7-5 6-3 F W - JOHANNA KONTA (GBR #42) 6-3 6-4

2018 2018 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #4) 6-0 6-4 R2 L - MARIA SAKKARI (GRE #42) 3-6 6-3 7-5

2017 2017 F L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 4-6 7-5 6-1 QF L - ELINA SVITOLINA (UKR #11) 6-2 7-6(9)

2016 2016 R2 L - DARIA GAVRILOVA (AUS #32) 6-3 4-6 6-3 R1 L - DARIA KASATKINA (RUS #33) 6-4 6-4 2015 2015 SF L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #10) 2-6 6-3 7-5 R1 L - TIMEA BACSINSZKY (SUI #24) 6-4 6-0 2014 R16 L - CARLA SUÁREZ NAVARRO (ESP #14) W/O

2013 SF L - SERENA WILLIAMS (USA #1) 6-3 6-0

2012 R1 L - VENUS WILLIAMS (USA #63) 6-3 6-4

2011 R1-Q L - VIRGINIE RAZZANO (FRA #95) 7-6(3) 6-0

HALEP:

Rome

• Making ninth main draw appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia (10th overall), where she is through to a third final • R-Up on two occasions, in 2017 and 2018 (l. Svitolina in both finals) • Also has fallen in the SF two times, in 2013 (l. eventual champion S.Williams) and 2015 (l. Suárez Navarro) • Is one of two Romanian woman to reach the Rome final; her current manager Virginia Ruzici was a three-time R-Up (1978, 1980-81) • Second time contesting Rome as No.1 seed (also in 2018, l. Svitolina in F) • After 1r bye, converted eight of 10 break points to see off Italian wildcard Paolini in 1r • Recovered from a break down in the first set to overcame No.29 Yastremska in 3r. The result ensured she has now made QF or better in all five tournaments played this year • In Saturday’s QF, advanced when opponent Putintseva retired w/back injury midway through second set

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 Broke serve nine times to see off fellow major winner Muguruza in SF; win-loss record this season now stands at 19-2  Has won 13 matches in a row, including titles at Dubai (four wins) and Prague (five wins). This is her longest winning streak since 2016 (13 straight wins, lifted the trophy at Bucharest and Montréal, then made SF run at Cincinnati), while a victory today would see her match the run of 14 she registered in 2015 (lifted the trophy at Dubai and Indian Wells, then made SF run at Miami)  Faces No.4 Ka.Pliskova in today’s; has won seven of their 11 meetings, including three times during the aforementioned winning streaks in 2015 (Dubai and Indian Wells) and 2016 (Montréal). Also overcame the Czech during runs to her second and third Grand Slam finals (2017 Roland Garros and 2018 Australian Open)  Aiming first win over a Top 10 player since overcoming No.4 Andreescu at 2019 WTA Finals Shenzhen  Appearing in 39th WTA singles final and 18th on clay. Owns 21-17 record in finals and 8-9 on clay  Among active players, owns the third-most clay court titles with eight, behind V.Williams (9) and S.Williams (13)  Since 2013, when Halep won her first of 21 titles, only S.Williams (27) has won more titles than the Romanian  This week (September 21) will be 323rd inside the Top 10 – the longest streak among active players  Played doubles this week w/Niculescu (l. Shibahara/Aoyama in 2r)

Season

 Last month, captured her 21st career title at Prague (d. Mertens in F). Tied with Azarenka for fifth-most titles among active players, behind Serena (73), Venus (49), Clijsters (41) and Kvitova (27)  Prior to tour’s five-month hiatus, clinched her 20th career title at Dubai (d. Rybakina in F)  Reached eighth career Grand Slam SF at Australian Open (l. Muguruza)  Opened 2020 season with QF appearance at Adelaide (l. Sabalenka)

Career Milestones

 Ended 2019 ranked No.4 for sixth consecutive year in the Top 5. Season highlighted by winning second career Grand Slam title at Wimbledon (d. S.Williams)  Also in 2019 finished R-Up at Madrid (l. Bertens) and QF at Roland Garros (as defending champion, l. Anisimova) and Toronto (ret. vs. Bouzova w/Achilles pain)  Ended 2018 season as World No.1 for the second time in her career, with season highlighted by maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F)  Also won titles in 2018 at Shenzhen (d. Siniakova in F) and Montréal (d. Stephens in F) and was R-Up at Australian Open (l. Wozniacki), Rome (l. Svitolina) and Cincinnati (l. Bertens)  Won first career WTA doubles title at 2018 Shenzhen (w/Begu). Now 1-1 in career doubles finals  Finished 2017 as the year-end World No.1, having ascended to the No.1 spot for first time in career on October 9, 2017 – became the 25th woman to reach the top spot, and the 13th to hold year-end No.1  Defended Madrid title in 2017 (d. Mladenovic in F); reached four more finals in 2017: Rome, Roland Garros, Cincinnati and Beijing. 2016 season highlighted by three titles, at Madrid, Bucharest and Montréal  Between May 2013 and August 2014, improved ranking from No.64 to No.2, winning seven titles  Has qualified six times for WTA Finals in Singapore (2014-19, although withdrew injured in 2018), reaching final in 2014 (l. S.Williams, having defeated the World No.1 in the round robin stage)  Named 2013 WTA Most Improved Player, winning her first six WTA titles and ending year ranked No.11  Made WTA main draw debut at 2010 Marbella as a qualifier, reaching quarterfinals

Grand Slam History

 Contested 39th Grand Slam main draw of her career at 2020 Australian Open  Winner of two Grand Slam titles, lifting first at 2018 Roland Garros (d. Stephens in F) followed by an historic 2019 Wimbledon run (d. S.Williams in F)  Became first Romanian to lift the singles title at the All England Club, defeating S.Williams in 56 minutes  Posted three runner-up finishes in Paris in 2014 (l. Sharapova in 3s), 2017 (l. Ostapenko in 3s) and at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki in 3s)  Was the first Romanian woman to advance to final at Australian Open in 2018 (l. Wozniacki)  Best result at US Open is SF run in 2015 (l. eventual champion Pennetta)

Personal

 Reunited with long-time coach, Darren Cahill during offseason after taking a 12-month break  Formerly coached by Wim Fissette and Victor Ionita  Sponsorship portfolio includes deals with Mercedes, Unilever and is an Ambassador for Dubai Duty Free  Sponsors a children’s hockey team back in Romania through the Simona Halep Foundation

KA.PLISKOVA:

Rome

 Making sixth consecutive appearance at Internazionali BNL d’Italia  Enters this week’s tournament as defending champion, having won all 10 service games to defeat Konta in last year’s final to lift the crown. Today is bidding to defend a WTA title for just the second time in her career, having previously done so at Brisbane (2019-20)  Ten women have defended the title here, five of these doing so in the past 15 years: Mauresmo (2004-05), Jankovic (2007-08), Sharapova (2011-12), S.Williams (2013-14) and Svitolina (2017-18)  Prior to 2019, best showing in the Italian capital was advancing to QF in 2017 (l. Svitolina)  Is one of two Czech women to lift the Rome title (also Marsikova in 1978)  Following 1r bye, struck 26 winners and broke serve four times to triumph over compatriot Strycova in 2r; career record in matches following byes now stands at 42-8  Beat Blinkova in 3r to win back-to-back matches for the first time since this year’s Australian Open  Dropped just 10 points in a dominant third-set display to see off Mertens in QF  In SF struck 23 winners – including six aces – to overcome 2019 Roland Garros R-Up Vondrousova in straight sets  Faces No.2 Halep in today’s final; sole Top 10 win this season came over No.4 Osaka during Brisbane title run  Prior to Rome, had compiled a 9-5 record in six tournaments this year; the least wins gathered from the opening six tournaments of a season since 2016 (not including Fed Cup)  Overall record in WTA singles finals stands at 16-12; since the start of 2017 has won 10 of 12 finals contested  Is 3-1 in clay court finals, winning 2015 Prague, 2018 Stuttgart and 2019 Rome, while losing at 2014 Nürnberg  During the hiatus, contested the Mutua Madrid Open Virtual competition, undertook charity work by sup-porting key workers with free coffee, kept fit with bike rides (her first in 15 years), held her Foundation’s first junior tournament as well as played several exhibition events in the Czech Republic

Season

 Coming off 2r loss at US Open (l. Garcia)  First event back following the hiatus was the Western & Southern Open – as No.1 seed, fell 2r (after 1r bye, l. Kudermetova)  Prior to his, last event was in Doha, reaching the 3r (l. Jabeur)  Fell to eventual finalist Rybakina in QF of Dubai  Advanced to 3r at Australian Open (l. Pavlyuchenkova)  Began 2020 by winning 16th career title at Brisbane International (d. Keys in F), defending her title from 2019 – has now won at least one WTA title for eight consecutive seasons. Was also first time successfully defending one of her previous 15 titles  Brisbane marked first event working with new coach Daniel Vallverdu

Grand Slam History

 Advanced to career first Grand Slam final at 2016 US Open (l. Kerber), simultaneously making debuts in R16, QF, SF and title match at the majors. Became first Czech to reach US Open final since Helena Sukova in 1993 (l. Graf in F)  At Australian Open, best result was SF run in 2019 (l. Osaka), also reached last four at 2017 Roland Garros (l. Halep)  Reached R16 at Wimbledon in 2018 (l. Bertens) and 2019 (l. Muchova)  Made Grand Slam main draw debut at 2012 Roland Garros (as qualifier, l. Bartoli in 1r)

Career Milestones

 Finished 2019 ranked No.2 for career-best year-end finish  Lifted a Tour-leading four title across the season (tied with Barty), taking tally to 15 – triumphed at Brisbane, Rome, Eastbourne and Zhengzhou  Dropped 19 games across five matches during Eastbourne title win (d. Kerber in F) – most economic title run in 2019  Also reached first Premier Mandatory final at Miami, losing to Barty in straight sets  Produced best Australian Open performance of career, reaching SF (l. eventual champion Osaka in 3s); saved four match points to beat S.Williams in QF  Lost to twin sister Kr.Pliskova in R16 at Birmingham, in what was their first career main draw encounter  Made fourth straight appearance at the WTA Finals in 2019, reaching SF for the third year in a row  Won two titles in 2018 from three finals contested, triumphing at Stuttgart (d. Vandeweghe in F) and Tokyo [PPO] (d. Osaka in F). Posted R-Up finish in Tianjin (l. Garcia in F)  At Grand Slam level in 2018 season, made QF run at Australian Open (l. eventual R-Up Halep), reached 3r at Roland Garros (l. Sharapova), made R16 for first time at Wimbledon (l. Bertens) and had QF showing at US Open (d. No.17 Barty in R16, l. S.Williams)  Also in 2018, made the SF at Brisbane (as defending champion, l. eventual champion Svitolina), Madrid (l. eventual champion Kvitova) and WTA Finals (l. Stephens). Enjoyed QF runs at four other tournaments  Claimed No.1 ranking on July 17, 2017 despite making 2r exit at Wimbledon (l. Rybarikova). Was the first Czech woman to achieve the No.1 ranking since the computer rankings were introduced in 1975 (Martina Navratilova became No.1 on July 10, 1978 while representing USA)  Won three titles in 2017, at Brisbane (d. Cornet in F), Doha (d. Wozniacki in F) and Eastbourne (d. Wozniacki in F)  Owns 15-12 record in singles finals, having won having titles on all three surfaces  Captured fifth WTA doubles title of career at 2016 Birmingham (w/Strycova). Is now 5-2 in doubles finals. At 2013 Linz, with sister Kristyna, became first set of twins to ever win a tour-level doubles title

 Made Top 10 debut after 2015 Stanford R-Up finish; was first time in WTA history that three Czech women ranked inside Top 10 at the same time (also Kvitova and Safarova)  Won first career WTA title at 2013 Kuala Lumpur (d. Mattek-Sands) and followed it up with two more in 2014 Seoul (d. Lepchenko) and 2014 Linz (d. Giorgi)  Made professional debut on ITF circuit in 2006

Personal

 Born in Louny, north of Prague, but now trains at Sparta Praha tennis club  Has a twin sister – Kristyna. In 2013, became the first set of twins to capture a WTA doubles title  Married Michal Hrdlicka after 2018 Wimbledon  Currently coached by Daniel Vallverdu and Olga Savchuk, and previously coached by Conchita Martínez, Rennae Stubbs, Tomas Krupa and David Kotyza  Away from the court, enjoys fresh-water fishing, as well as contributing to her foundation which benefits various causes, including pediatric oncology and children battling cancer in her native Czech Republic SIMONA HALEP ROU

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Simona Halep owns 19 WTA singles titles, including two Grand Slam titles at Roland Garros in 2018 and at 2019 Wimbledon, where she hit just four unforced errors in the championship match against Serena Williams. Her impressive title haul also includes three at the Premier Mandatory level in Madrid (2016 and 2017) and Indian Wells (2015).

The Romanian became the 25th player in WTA history to achieve the World No.1 ranking on October 9, 2017. In addition to her 2018 Roland Garros title, she is a three‐time Grand Slam finalist (2014 and 2017 Roland Garros, 2018 Australian Open) and also advanced to the final stage at the 2014 WTA Finals in Singapore, where she defeated Serena Williams in round‐ robin play.

She isn’t the tallest player on tour, but uses deep , speed, amazing court sense and directional control to seamlessly convert defense to offense.

Off the court, Simona has an analytical mind ‐ speaking about her game openly and with unique technical detail. She loves shopping and finds great malls wherever she goes around the world. Not preferring the limelight, she lets her tennis do the talking, winning fans all over the globe, and is a phenomenon in her native Romania.

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SOCIAL STATS PARTNERS

NIKE MERCEDES BENZ

WILSON DORNA ROMANIA @simona_halep @simonahalep @simonahalep AVON 361K followers 1.6M followers 1.5M followers

STORYLINES 2018 Roland Garros and 2019 Wimbledon champion

Became the 25th player in WTA history to achieve the World No.1 ranking, and first from Romania

Three‐time Grand Slam finalist (2014 and 2017 Roland Garros, 2018 Australian Open)

Has some of the most vocal and loyal fans in the world, there are always Romanians in the stands no matter where she plays

Represents Dubai Duty Free as a brand ambassador

As of February 20, 2020

wtatennis.com #WTA KAROLINA PLISKOVA CZE

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Known as the #AceQueen due to her booming serve ‐ having led the WTA in aces served in four of the last five years (2015, 2016, 2017, 2019) ‐ Karolina has been one of the most consistent players since her break‐out year in 2015.

The Czech is a former WTA World No.1, Grand Slam finalist, and has captured 15 WTA singles titles and five doubles titles. In 2013, Karolina and her sister Kristyna became the first set of twins to capture a WTA doubles title. She’s qualified for the year‐end WTA Finals from 2016‐19, earning both a singles and doubles spot in 2016.

Standing at a commanding 6’ 1”, she has over 500 match wins to her name, and is instantly recognizable (and distinguishable from sister Kristyna) thanks to her two Polynesian‐style tattoos, one on her left thigh and on her left arm.

Away from the court, Karolina likes to unwind by indulging in her passion for fresh‐water fishing, as well as contribute to her foundation which benefits various causes, including pediatric oncology and children battling cancer in her native Czech Republic.

SOCIAL STATS PARTNERS

FILA HUBLOT

BABOLAT MERCUR

@KaPliskova @pliskovakarolina @karolinapliskova .CZECH FUND PRAZSKA PLYNARENSCA

192K followers 119K followers 370K followers IVAR‐CS MOLGROUP

STORYLINES Holds 15 WTA singles titles and five doubles titles

Became 23rd woman to achieve the WTA World No.1 ranking

Known as #AceQueen for her big serve, delivering most aces on WTA Tour in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019

Her foundation serves to benefit pediatric oncology and children battling cancer in Czech Republic

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As January 10, 2020

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