The 2013 Li Na tennis season officially began on 31 December with the start of the 2013 WTA Tour at the first edition of the 2013 Shenzhen Open.
Yearly summary
Early hard court season and Australian Open
Shenzhen Open Li Na started her season strongly by participating the inaugural Shenzhen Open in her home country. Defeating Mandy Minella, Julia Cohen, Bojana Jovanovski and country woman Peng Shuai en route, Li advanced to her first final of the year against fifth seed Klára Zakopalová. After splitting the first two sets, the deciding set was a tight affair, but Li broke her opponent's last service game to win the match. It was Li's first title of the year and seventh overall.
Apia International Li then competed in Sydney in preparation for the Australian Open. On her road to the semifinals, Li defeated rising star Christina McHale, qualifier Ayumi Morita and another American prodigy Madison Keys, amassing a perfect 8–0 this season. In the semifinal Li faced Agnieszka Radwańska and went on to lose in straight sets. Radwańska later won the title.
Australian Open Entering the first Grand Slam of the year, Li defeated young players Sesil Karatantcheva, Olga Govortsova, Sorana Cîrstea and Julia Görges en route to set up a quarter final match between her tour rivalry and friend Agnieszka Radwańska. Li took full advantage of her well-rounded performance, ending the Pole's Australian run in straight sets. In the semifinals, world No. 2 Maria Sharapova won only 4 games in a lopsided victory for Li. This would be Li's third Major final in her career .
Li's opponent in the final was defending champion Victoria Azarenka. The pair entered the final with 1 Major victory each. Li won the first set but fell twice in the second set. She twisted her left ankle and also hit her head on the court. Li, though injured, continued the match and was defeated by Azarenka in three sets. Li received a huge applause from the audience while giving her speech in the ceremony later that night.
Because of her left ankle injury, Li withdrew from 2013 Qatar Total Open, 2013 Dubai Tennis Championships and 2013 BNP Paribas Open. She continued her season in 2013 Sony Open Tennis in March.
Sony Open Tennis After not participating any tour events for 2 months, Li returned to the American hard court season in Miami. As the fifth seed of the event
Clay court season and French Open
Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
Mutua Madrid Open
Internazionali BNL d'Italia
French Open
Grass court season and Wimbledon
Aegon International
Wimbledon
US Open Series and US Open
Rogers Cup
In her first match since Wimbledon, she beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in two easy sets. In the third round Li faced Ana Ivanovic. The two traded sets but in the final set in went to a tiebreak, and Li earned a hard-fought victory. Li then defeated Dominika Cibulková and proceeded to the semifinal where she lost to Sorana Cîrstea in two sets.
Western & Southern Open
Li was the defending champion, and went on to make the semifinals. She lost to Serena Williams, 7–5 7–5, and double faulted to lose both sets.
US Open
Asian hard court season and Year-end Championships
China Open
WTA Championships Li was drawn in the White group along with Victoria Azarenka, Sara Errani and Jelena Janković. She opened her campaign with a straight set win over Errani, improving to 6–0 in career head-to-head meetings against her. She was behind 3–1 in the second set before winning the next four games. She twice served for the match, wasting a match point at 5–3, and dropped serve on both occasions. Trailing 3–1 in the tiebreaker, Li won the next five points and converted her third match point when Errani dumped a forehand into the net. She emerged victorious against Janković in three topsy-turvy sets. In her final round robin match against Azarenka, she stormed out to a 4–2 lead before Azarenka suffered a lower back injury, allowing Li to win in two easy sets. She finished the match with an impressive +20 winner to error differential (28 to 8). The win meant she advanced to the semifinals for the first time with a 3–0 round robin record. She secured a career-high ranking of world No. 3 by besting Petra Kvitová in the semifinals, the highest ranking an Asian player, male or female, has ever achieved. In the final she made a strong start, blasting 10 winners en route to winning the first set against Serena Williams, but ran out of gas at 3–3 in the second set, losing nine games in a row to lose the championship.
All matches
Singles matches Tournament Match # Round Opponent Rank Result Score Shenzhen Open Shenzhen, ChinaWTA InternationalHard, outdoor31 December 2012 – 6 January 2013 1 1R Mandy Minella #77 Win 6–4, 6–0 2 2R Julia Cohen #129 Win 6–3, 6–4 3 QF Bojana Jovanovski #56 Win 6–3, 6–3 4 SF Peng Shuai #40Win 6–4, 6–0 5 F Klára Zakopalová #28 Win 6–3, 1–6, 7–5 Apia International Sydney, AustraliaWTA PremierHard, outdoor7–13 January 2013 6 1R Christina McHale #36 Win 7–6(7–2), 7–5 7 2R Ayumi Morita #81 Win 6–1, 6–0 8 QF Madison Keys #135 Win 4–6, 7–6(7–2), 6–2 9SF Agnieszka Radwańska #4 Loss 4–6, 3–6 Australian Open Melbourne, AustraliaGrand SlamHard, outdoor14–27 January 201310 1R Sesil Karatantcheva #113 Win 6–1, 6–3 11 2R Olga Govortsova #58 Win 6–2, 7–5 12 3R Sorana Cîrstea #28 Win 6–4, 6–1 13 4R Julia Görges #18 Win 7–6(8–6), 6–1 14 QF Agnieszka Radwańska #4 Win 7–5, 6–3 15 SF Maria Sharapova #2 Win 6–2, 6–2 16 F Victoria Azarenka #1 Loss 6–4, 4–6, 3–6 Qatar Total Open Doha, QatarWTA Premier 5Hard, outdoor11–17 February 2013 Withdrew Dubai Tennis ChampionshipsDubai, United Arab EmiratesWTA PremierHard, outdoor18–24 February 2013 Withdrew BNP Paribas OpenIndian Wells, United StatesWTA Premier MandatoryHard, outdoor4–17 March 2013 Withdrew Sony Open Tennis Miami, United StatesWTA Premier MandatoryHard, outdoor18–31 March 2013 – 1R Bye 17 2R Kiki Bertens #42 Win 6–3, 6–1 18 3R Varvara Lepchenko #29 Win 6–2, 6–4 19 4R Garbiñe Muguruza #73 Win 7–6(8–6), 6–2 20 QF Serena Williams #1 Loss3–6, 6–7(5–7) Porsche Tennis Grand Prix Stuttgart, GermanyWTA PremierClay, indoor22–28 April 2013 – 1R Bye 21 2R Mirjana Lučić-Baroni #103 Win 6–1, 6–2 22 QF Petra Kvitová #8 Win 6–3, 7–5 23 SF Bethanie Mattek-Sands #104 Win 6–4, 6–3 24 F Maria Sharapova #2 Loss 4–6, 3–6 Mutua Madrid Open Madrid, SpainWTA Premier MandatoryClay, outdoor6–12 May 2013 25 1R Madison Keys#62 Loss 3–6, 2–6 Internazionali BNL d'Italia Rome, ItalyWTA Premier 5Clay, outdoor13–19 May 2013 – 1R Bye 26 2R Zheng Jie #50 Win 6–3, 6–1 27 3R Jelena Janković #18 Loss 6–7(2–7), 5–7 French OpenParis, FranceGrand SlamClay, outdoor26–9 June 2013 28 1R Anabel Medina Garrigues #68 Win 6–3, 6–4 29 2R Bethanie Mattek-Sands #62 Loss 7–5, 3–6, 2–6 Aegon InternationalEastbourne, United KingdomWTA PremierGrass, outdoor17–22 June 2013 30 1R Alizé Cornet #30 Win 6–2, 6–4 – 2R Marion Bartoli #15Walkover N/A 31 QF Elena Vesnina #36 Loss 6–7(4–7), 3–6 Wimbledon Championships London, United KingdomGrand SlamGrass, outdoor24 June – 7 July 2013 32 1R Michaëlla Krajicek #575 Win 6–1, 6–1 33 2R Simona Halep #43 Win 6–2, 1–6, 6–0 34 3R Klára Zakopalová #32 Win 4–6, 6–0, 8–6 35 4R Roberta Vinci #11 Win 6–2, 6–0 36 QF Agnieszka Radwańska #4 Loss 6–7(5–7), 6–4, 2–6 Rogers Cup Toronto, Canada WTA Premier 5 Hard, outdoor 5–11 August 2013 – 1R Bye 37 2R Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova #31 Win 6–1, 6–4 38 3R Ana Ivanovic #15 Win 3–6, 6–1, 7–6(7–5) 39 QF Dominika Cibulková #20 Win 7–6(7–1), 6–2 40 SF Sorana Cîrstea #27 Loss 1–6, 6–7(5–7) Western & Southern Open Cincinnati, United States WTA Premier 5 Hard, outdoor 12–19 August 2013 – 1R Bye 41 2R Lauren Davis #76 Win 4–6, 6–1, 6–1 42 3R Angelique Kerber #8 Win 6–4, 6–4 – QF Agnieszka Radwańska #4Walkover N/A 43 SF Serena Williams #1 Loss 5–7, 5–7 US Open New York City, United StatesGrand SlamHard, outdoor26 August – 9 September 2013 44 1R Olga Govortsova #88 Win 6–2, 6–2 45 2R Sofia Arvidsson #100 Win 6–2, 6–2 46 3R Laura Robson #32 Win 6–2, 7–5 47 4R Jelena Janković #12 Win 6–3, 6–0 48 QF Ekaterina Makarova #24 Win 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 6–2 49 SF Serena Williams #1 Loss 0–6, 3–6 China OpenBeijing, ChinaWTA Premier MandatoryHard, outdoor28 September – 6 October 2013 50 1R Daniela Hantuchová #31 Win 6–0, 6–4 51 2R Bojana Jovanovski #39 Win 6–0, 6–1 52 3R Sabine Lisicki #16 Win 7–5, 6–4 53 QF Petra Kvitová #7 Loss6–4, 2–6, 4–6 WTA Tour ChampionshipsIstanbul, TurkeyWTA Tour ChampionshipsHard, indoor21–27 October 2013 54 RR Sara Errani #7 Win 6–3, 7–6(7–5) 55 RR Jelena Janković #8 Win 6–3, 2–6, 6–3 56 RR Victoria Azarenka #2 Win 6–2, 6–1 57 SF Petra Kvitová #6 Win 6–4, 6–2 58 F Serena Williams #1 Loss 6–2, 3–6, 0–6
Tournament schedule
Singles schedule Li Na's 2013 singles tournament schedule is as follows: DateChampionshipLocationCategorySurfacePrev. resultPrev. pointsNew pointsOutcome 30 December 2012–6 January 2013 Shenzhen Open Shenzhen (CHN) WTA International Hard N/A 0 280 Winner defeated Klára Zakopalová, 6–3, 1–6, 7–5 7 January 2013–13 January 2013 Apia International Sydney (AUS) WTA Premier Hard F 320 200 Semifinals lost to Agnieszka Radwańska, 3–6, 4–6 14 January 2013–27 January 2013 Australian Open Melbourne (AUS) Grand Slam Hard 4R 280 1400 Final lost to Victoria Azarenka, 6–4, 4–6, 3–6 11 February 2013–17 February 2013 Qatar Total Open Doha (QAT) WTA Premier 5 Hard DNP 0 0 Withdrew due to a left ankle injury 18 February 2013–23 February 2013 Dubai Tennis Championships Dubai (UAE) WTA Premier Hard DNP 0 0 Withdrew due to a left ankle injury 4 March 2013–17 March 2013 BNP Paribas Open Indian Wells (USA) WTA Premier Mandatory Hard QF 250 0 Withdrew due to a left ankle injury 18 March 2013–31 March 2013 Sony Ericsson Open Miami (USA) WTA Premier Mandatory Hard QF 250 250 Quarterfinals lost to Serena Williams, 3–6, 6–7(5–7) 22 April 2013–28 April 2013 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix Stuttgart (GER) WTA Premier Clay (i) QF 120 320 Final lost to Maria Sharapova, 4–6, 3–6 6 May 2013–12 May 2013 Mutua Madrid Open Madrid (ESP) WTA Premier Mandatory Clay QF 250 5 First round lost to Madison Keys, 2–6, 3–6 13 May 2013–19 May 2013 Internazionali BNL d'Italia Rome (ITA) WTA Premier 5 Clay F 620 125 Third round lost to Jelena Janković, 6–7(2–7), 5–7 26 May 2013–9 June 2013 French Open Paris (FRA) Grand Slam Clay 4R 280 100 Second round lost to Bethanie Mattek-Sands, 7–5, 3–6, 2–6 17 June 2013–22 June 2013 Aegon International Eastbourne (GBR) WTA Premier Grass DNP 0 120 Quarterfinals lost to Elena Vesnina, 6–7(4–7), 3–6 23 June 2013–7 July 2013 Wimbledon London (GBR) Grand Slam Grass 2R 100 500 Quarterfinals lost to Agnieszka Radwańska, 6–7(5–7), 6–4, 2–6 5 August 2013–11 August 2013 Rogers Cup Toronto (CAN) WTA Premier 5 Hard F 620 395 Semifinals lost to Sorana Cîrstea, 1–6, 6–7(5–7) 12 August 2013–18 August 2013 Western & Southern Open Cincinnati (USA) WTA Premier 5 Hard W 900 395 Semifinals lost to Serena Williams, 5–7, 5–7 26 August 2013–9 September 2013 US Open New York City (USA) Grand Slam Hard 3R 160 900 Semifinals lost to Serena Williams, 0–6, 3–6 28 September 2013–6 October 2013 China Open Beijing (CHN) WTA Premier Mandatory Hard SF 450 250 Quarterfinals lost to Petra Kvitová, 6–4, 2–6, 4–6 21 October 2013–27 October 2013 WTA Tour Championships Istanbul (TUR) WTA Tour Championships Hard (i) RR 370 1050 Final lost to Serena Williams, 6–2, 3–6, 0–6Total year-end points
Yearly records
Head-to-head matchups Bold indicates that the player was in the Top 10, italics denotes that the player was in the Top 20 (at the time of the match being played). This list is ordered by number of wins to number of losses in chronological order played.
Klára Zakopalová 2–0 Olga Govortsova 2–0 Bojana Jovanovski 2–0 Jelena Janković 2–1 Petra Kvitová 2–1 Christina McHale 1–0 Mandy Minella 1–0 Julia Cohen 1–0 Peng Shuai 1–0 Ayumi Morita 1–0 Sesil Karatantcheva 1–0 Julia Görges 1–0 Kiki Bertens 1–0 Varvara Lepchenko 1–0 Garbiñe Muguruza 1–0 Mirjana Lučić-Baroni 1–0 Zheng Jie 1–0