2006 WTA Tour explained

2006 WTA Tour
Duration:	30 December 2005 – 6 November 2006
Edition:	36th
Tournaments:	61
Categories:	Grand Slam (4) WTA Championships WTA Tier I (10) WTA Tier II (15) WTA Tier III (17) WTA Tier IV (14)
Most Tournament Titles:	Justine Henin (6)
Most Tournament Finals:	Justine Henin (9)
Prize Money Leader:	Justine Henin (US$4,204,810)
Points Leader:	Justine Henin (3,998)
Player Of The Year:	Amélie Mauresmo
Doubles Team Of The Year:	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur
Most Improved Player Of The Year:	Jelena Janković
Newcomer Of The Year:	Agnieszka Radwańska
Comeback Player Of The Year:	Martina Hingis
Previous:	2005
Next:	2007

The 2006 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour was the 36th season since the founding of the Women's Tennis Association. It commenced on January 2, 2006, and concluded on November 12, 2006, after 61 events.

Justine Henin-Hardenne came out as the winner in a historic three-way battle for the No. 1 ranking at the season-ending WTA Tour Championships, beating out Sharapova and Mauresmo. The Belgian successfully defended her French Open title for her fifth Grand Slam title, and became the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1993 to reach the finals of all four Grand Slams and the WTA Tour Championships. Maria Sharapova won her second Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open, to add to her Wimbledon trophy from 2004. Amélie Mauresmo won her maiden Grand Slam at the Australian Open after a controversial retirement from Henin-Hardenne in the final. However, she later backed it up by winning a rematch with Henin-Hardenne in the Wimbledon final. She was the number one player in the world from March until the final event of the season.

Martina Hingis also made a successful return to the Tour, beginning her comeback at the Gold Coast event in January. She finished the season at No. 6 in the world and won the Tier I title at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome.

Summary

Shortly before the beginning of the season former No. 1 Martina Hingis announced that she would return full-time to the tour for the start of the 2006 season, having already made an unsuccessful comeback attempt at an event in 2005.

Amélie Mauresmo won her first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open after years of questions about her nerves and mental strength. However, her victory was marred by Henin-Hardenne's controversial retirement in the final due to stomach cramps. Defending champion Serena Williams lost in the third round to Daniela Hantuchová, with some commenting on the "extra weight" that she was carrying.^[1] The loss was the beginning of a season of injury struggles for the American, which saw her at one point drop out of the top 100. In the doubles tournament, Yan Zi and Zheng Jie produced a historic win for Chinese tennis by becoming the first players to win a Grand Slam of any kind for the nation.^[2] Martina Hingis won her first mixed doubles title with Mahesh Bhupathi.

Following the Australian Open Kim Clijsters ascended to the No. 1 position after Lindsay Davenport lost her finalist points. She held it until March when she lost her Indian Wells champion points, allowing Mauresmo to return to the position. The Frenchwoman held it until the final event of the season. Mauresmo had continued her strong start to the season with titles in Paris and Antwerp. Elena Dementieva won her biggest career title to that point in Tokyo. Meanwhile, Henin-Hardenne and Nadia Petrova won the Middle Eastern events in Dubai and Doha.

Maria Sharapova picked up her first title of the season in Indian Wells, beating Dementieva in the final. Svetlana Kuznetsova then won in Miami, her first Tier I title and second biggest overall, after a difficult 2005 season where she failed to back up her breakthrough in 2004 and dropped out the top 10.

The clay court season saw Hingis win in Rome for the biggest title of her comeback, but overall the period was dominated by Nadia Petrova, who went on an impressive 15-match winning streak, leading to titles in Amelia Island, Charleston and Berlin, beating Henin-Hardenne in the final of the latter. Her streak led to her being considered the favourite for the French Open title,^[3] but she suffered an injury and thus bowed out in the first round. Henin-Hardenne eventually defended her title and won her fifth Grand Slam by beating Kuznetsova in the final. Czech teenager Nicole Vaidišová made headlines by reaching her first Grand Slam semifinal with victories over Amélie Mauresmo and Venus Williams. The doubles event was won by Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur, while Katarina Srebotnik took home the mixed doubles trophy with Nenad Zimonjić.

The third Grand Slam of the year at Wimbledon saw all top four seeds reach the semifinals for only the fifth time in 25 years.^[4] Mauresmo and Henin advanced to the final, a rematch of their Australian Open final earlier in the season, with Mauresmo triumphant once more, becoming the first Frenchwoman in 81 years to win Wimbledon.^[5] Defending champion Venus Williams fell to Jelena Janković, making this year the first since 1999 neither Williams sister featured in the Wimbledon women's singles final. Williams did however make the mixed doubles final, losing to Vera Zvonareva who won her second Grand Slam in mixed doubles, partnering Bob Bryan. Yan Zi and Zheng Jie also won their second Grand Slam titles in the women's doubles event.

Serena Williams, Mary Pierce, Lindsay Davenport and Nadia Petrova all returned from injuries during the summer hardcourt season. Clijsters won her fourth Stanford title, before losing to Sharapova in the final of San Diego—the Russian's first ever victory over Clijsters.^[6] Dementieva won the title in Los Angeles, beating Janković in the final. Janković's compatriot Ana Ivanovic went one further the next week in Montréal, and by winning the event over Hingis she became the U.S. Open Series champion for that year.^[7] Sharapova eventually picked up the grand prize, taking the U.S. Open title over Henin-Hardenne in the final. Janković backed up her strong result in Los Angeles with her first Grand Slam semifinal. In the doubles tournament Nathalie Dechy and Vera Zvonareva won the title in only their fourth tournament as a team.^[8] Tennis legend Martina Navratilova won the mixed doubles title and then announced her retirement from professional tennis.^[9]

Sharapova continued her strong results following her U.S. Open title in the fall season, winning events in Zurich and Linz. Nadia Petrova won her fifth title of the season in Stuttgart, but lost to the Russian teenager Anna Chakvetadze in the Moscow final. Kuznetsova also enjoyed a successful fall, winning titles in Bali and Beijing, beating Mauresmo in the final of the latter.^[10] Kim Clijsters returned at the end of the season, having missed her title defence at the U.S. Open,^[11] and won the smaller event in Hasselt.

The season climaxed at the WTA Tour Championships with Mauresmo, Sharapova, Henin-Hardenne, Kuznetsova, Petrova, Clijsters, Dementieva and Hingis all qualifying for the event. The tournament saw a three-way battle for the No. 1 position between Mauresmo, Sharapova and Henin-Hardenne,^[12] which was eventually decided when Henin-Hardenne beat Sharapova in the semifinal.^[13] The Belgian went on to defeat Mauresmo in the final. In the doubles event French Open champions Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur triumphed, consolidating their position as the year-end No. 1 in women's doubles.

Schedule

The table below shows the 2006 WTA Tour schedule.^[14]

Key

Grand Slam events
Year-end championships
Tier I events
Tier II events
Tier III events
Tier IV events
Team events

January

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
2 Jan	Hopman Cup Perth, Australia Hopman Cup Hard (i) – 8 teams (RR)	2–1
		Lucie Šafářová 6–3, 6–4			Patty Schnyder Anabel Medina Garrigues Tatiana Golovin Nuria Llagostera Vives
	Dinara Safina Meghann Shaughnessy 6–2, 6–3	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs
		Marion Bartoli 6–2, 6–2			Kristina Brandi Julia Schruff Maria Kirilenko Tzipora Obziler
		Elena Likhovtseva Vera Zvonareva 6–3, 6–4	Émilie Loit Barbora Strýcová
9 Jan		Justine Henin-Hardenne 4–6, 7–5, 7–5			Kim Clijsters Daniela Hantuchová Nadia Petrova Ana Ivanovic
	Corina Morariu Rennae Stubbs 6–3, 5–7, 6–2	Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez			Kim Clijsters Daniela Hantuchová Nadia Petrova Ana Ivanovic
		Anabel Medina Garrigues 6–4, 0–6, 6–4			Ekaterina Bychkova Aiko Nakamura Julia Schruff Melinda Czink
		Marta Domachowska Roberta Vinci 7–6^(7–5), 6–3	Claire Curran Līga Dekmeijere
		Michaëlla Krajicek 6–2, 6–1			Alona Bondarenko Laura Granville Amy Frazier Jill Craybas
		Émilie Loit Nicole Pratt 6–2, 6–1	Jill Craybas Jelena Kostanić		Alona Bondarenko Laura Granville Amy Frazier Jill Craybas
16 Jan 23 Jan	Australian Open Melbourne, Australia Grand Slam Hard – $6,137,580 – 128S/96Q/64D/32X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Amélie Mauresmo 6–1, 2–0 ret.	Justine Henin-Hardenne	Maria Sharapova Kim Clijsters	Lindsay Davenport Nadia Petrova Patty Schnyder Martina Hingis
		Yan Zi Zheng Jie 2–6,7–6^(9–7), 6–3
		Mahesh Bhupathi Martina Hingis 6–3, 6–3	Daniel Nestor Elena Likhovtseva
30 Jan	Toray Pan Pacific Open Tokyo, Japan Tier I event Carpet (i) – $1,340,000 – 28S/32Q/16D Singles – Doubles	Elena Dementieva 6–2, 6–0			Samantha Stosur Maria Kirilenko Elena Likhovtseva Nicole Vaidišová
30 Jan	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–2, 6–1	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs

February

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
6 Feb		Amélie Mauresmo 6–1,7–6^(7–2)		Dinara Safina Nadia Petrova Elena Dementieva Émilie Loit
	Émilie Loit Květa Peschke 7–6^(7–5), 6–4	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs		Dinara Safina Nadia Petrova Elena Dementieva Émilie Loit
		Shahar Pe'er 6–3, 6–1		Melinda Czink Lourdes Domínguez Lino Catalina Castaño Emma Laine
		Li Ting Sun Tiantian 3–6, 6–1,7–6^(7–5)	Yan Zi Zheng Jie
13 Feb		Amélie Mauresmo 3–6, 6–3, 6–3		Dinara Safina Eleni Daniilidou Olga Savchuk Patty Schnyder
	Dinara Safina Katarina Srebotnik 6–1, 6–1	Stéphanie Foretz Michaëlla Krajicek		Dinara Safina Eleni Daniilidou Olga Savchuk Patty Schnyder
		Mara Santangelo 3–6,7–6^(7–5), 6–3		Camille Pin Yuliana Fedak Alona Bondarenko Maria Elena Camerin
	Liezel Huber Sania Mirza 6–3, 6–3	Anastasia Rodionova Elena Vesnina
20 Feb		Justine Henin-Hardenne 7–5, 6–2		Amélie Mauresmo Francesca Schiavone Martina Hingis Maria Kirilenko
	Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone 3–6,7–6^(7–1), 6–3	Svetlana Kuznetsova Nadia Petrova
		Sofia Arvidsson 6–2, 2–6, 6–3		Lilia Osterloh Laura Granville Caroline Wozniacki Shenay Perry
	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 7–6^(7–2), 6–3	Victoria Azarenka Caroline Wozniacki
		Lourdes Domínguez Lino 7–6^(7–3), 6–4		Bethanie Mattek Catalina Castaño Émilie Loit Gisela Dulko
	Gisela Dulko Flavia Pennetta 7–6^(7–1), 6–1	Ágnes Szávay Jasmin Wöhr		Bethanie Mattek Catalina Castaño Émilie Loit Gisela Dulko
27 Feb		Nadia Petrova 6–3, 7–5		Roberta Vinci Svetlana Kuznetsova Julia Schruff Li Na
	Daniela Hantuchová Ai Sugiyama 6–4, 6–4	Li Ting Sun Tiantian		Roberta Vinci Svetlana Kuznetsova Julia Schruff Li Na
		Anna-Lena Grönefeld 6–1, 4–6, 6–2		María José Martínez Laura Pous Tió Natalia Gussoni Meghann Shaughnessy
	Anna-Lena Grönefeld Meghann Shaughnessy 6–1, 6–3	Shinobu Asagoe Émilie Loit

March

Week	Tournament	Champions	Quarterfinalists
6 Mar 13 Mar		Maria Sharapova 6–1, 6–2	Gisela Dulko Ana Ivanovic Anna-Lena Grönefeld Dinara Safina
6 Mar 13 Mar	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–2, 7–5	Virginia Ruano Pascual Meghann Shaughnessy	Gisela Dulko Ana Ivanovic Anna-Lena Grönefeld Dinara Safina
20 Mar 27 Mar		Svetlana Kuznetsova 6–4, 6–3	Nadia Petrova Ai Sugiyama Anastasia Myskina Zheng Jie
20 Mar 27 Mar	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–4, 7–5	Liezel Huber Martina Navratilova	Nadia Petrova Ai Sugiyama Anastasia Myskina Zheng Jie

April

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
3 Apr		Nadia Petrova 6–4, 6–4		Virginia Ruano Pascual Jill Craybas Anna-Lena Grönefeld Patty Schnyder
3 Apr	Shinobu Asagoe Katarina Srebotnik 6–2, 6–4	Liezel Huber Sania Mirza
10 Apr		Nadia Petrova 6–3, 4–6, 6–1		Dinara Safina Nathalie Dechy Svetlana Kuznetsova Catalina Castaño
10 Apr	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 3–6, 6–1, 6–1	Virginia Ruano Pascual Meghann Shaughnessy
17 Apr	Fed Cup: Quarterfinals Liège, Belgium, Hard (i) Ettenheim, Germany, Clay Valencia, Spain, Clay Nancy, France, Clay (i)	Quarterfinal winners 3–2 3–2 5–0 4–1	Quarterfinal losers

May

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
1 May		Kim Clijsters 7–5, 6–2		Francesca Schiavone Agnieszka Radwańska Venus Williams Ana Ivanovic
	Elena Likhovtseva Anastasia Myskina 6–3, 6–4	Anabel Medina Garrigues Katarina Srebotnik
		Zheng Jie 6–7^(5–7), 7–5 ret.		Eleni Daniilidou Zuzana Ondrášková Lourdes Domínguez Lino Gisela Dulko
		Li Ting Sun Tiantian 6–2, 6–2	Gisela Dulko María Sánchez Lorenzo
8 May		Nadia Petrova 4–6, 6–4, 7–5		Martina Hingis Svetlana Kuznetsova Patty Schnyder Dinara Safina
	Yan Zi Zheng Jie 6–2, 6–3	Elena Dementieva Flavia Pennetta
		Shahar Pe'er 4–6, 6–2, 6–1		Maria Elena Camerin Alona Bondarenko Émilie Loit Magdaléna Rybáriková
		Marion Bartoli Shahar Pe'er 6–4, 6–4	Ashley Harkleroad Bethanie Mattek
15 May		Martina Hingis 6–2, 7–5		Flavia Pennetta Jelena Janković Romina Oprandi Elena Dementieva
	Daniela Hantuchová Ai Sugiyama 3–6, 6–3, 6–1	Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone
		Meghann Shaughnessy 6–2, 3–6, 6–3		Melinda Czink Émilie Loit Hana Šromová Anne Kremer
		Yan Zi Zheng Jie 6–1, 6–3	Ashley Harkleroad Bethanie Mattek	Melinda Czink Émilie Loit Hana Šromová Anne Kremer
22 May		Shahar Pe'er 1–6, 6–3, 7–6^(7–3)		Catalina Castaño Anastasiya Yakimova Mara Santangelo Karolina Šprem
	Alona Bondarenko Anastasiya Yakimova 6–2, 6–4	Sania Mirza Alicia Molik
		Nicole Vaidišová 7–6^(9–7), 6–3		Martina Müller Elena Vesnina Li Na Zheng Jie
	Liezel Huber Martina Navratilova 6–2,7–6^(7–1)	Martina Müller Andreea Ehritt-Vanc		Martina Müller Elena Vesnina Li Na Zheng Jie
29 May 5 Jun	French Open Paris, France Grand Slam Clay – $6,747,626 – 128S/96Q/64D/32X Singles – Doubles – Mixed doubles	Justine Henin-Hardenne 6–4, 6–4		Venus Williams Dinara Safina Anna-Lena Grönefeld Martina Hingis
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–3, 6–2	Daniela Hantuchová Ai Sugiyama
		Nenad Zimonjić Katarina Srebotnik 6–3, 6–4	Daniel Nestor Elena Likhovtseva

June

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
12 Jun		Vera Zvonareva 7–6^(14–12), 7–6^(7–5)		Mara Santangelo Elena Likhovtseva Marion Bartoli Francesca Schiavone
12 Jun	Jelena Janković Li Na 6–2, 6–4	Jill Craybas Liezel Huber
19 Jun		Justine Henin-Hardenne 4–6, 6–1, 7–6^(7–5)		Nathalie Dechy Anna-Lena Grönefeld Elena Likhovtseva Francesca Schiavone
	Svetlana Kuznetsova Amélie Mauresmo 6–2, 6–4	Liezel Huber Martina Navratilova
		Michaëlla Krajicek 6–3, 6–4		Ana Ivanovic Jelena Janković Paola Suárez Brenda Schultz-McCarthy
	Yan Zi Zheng Jie 3–6, 6–2, 6–2	Ana Ivanovic Maria Kirilenko
26 Jun 3 Jul		Amélie Mauresmo 2–6, 6–3, 6–4		Anastasia Myskina Elena Dementieva Séverine Brémond Li Na
		Yan Zi Zheng Jie 6–3, 3–6, 6–2	Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez
		Andy Ram Vera Zvonareva 6–3, 6–2	Bob Bryan Venus Williams

July

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
10 Jul	Fed Cup: Semifinals Ostend, Belgium, Hard (i) Zaragoza, Spain, Clay	Semifinal winners 4–1 4–0	Semifinal losers
17 Jul		Vera Zvonareva 6–2, 6–4		Sania Mirza Marion Bartoli Jelena Janković Amy Frazier
	Maria Elena Camerin Gisela Dulko 6–4, 3–6, 6–2	Marta Domachowska Sania Mirza		Sania Mirza Marion Bartoli Jelena Janković Amy Frazier
		Anabel Medina Garrigues 6–4, 6–4		Julia Schruff Aravane Rezaï María José Martínez Sánchez Karin Knapp
		Janette Husárová Michaëlla Krajicek 6–0, 6–0	Alice Canepa Giulia Gabba
24 Jul		Kim Clijsters 6–4, 6–2		Vera Zvonareva Samantha Stosur Anna-Lena Grönefeld Jill Craybas
	Anna-Lena Grönefeld Shahar Pe'er 6–1, 6–4	Maria Elena Camerin Gisela Dulko
		Anna Smashnova 6–1, 6–3		Catalina Castaño Eva Birnerová Romina Oprandi Sara Errani
		Janette Husárová Michaëlla Krajicek 4–6, 6–4, 6–4	Lucie Hradecká Renata Voráčová	Catalina Castaño Eva Birnerová Romina Oprandi Sara Errani
31 Jul		Maria Sharapova 7–5, 7–5		Martina Hingis Anna Chakvetadze Elena Dementieva Mary Pierce
31 Jul	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs 6–2, 6–2	Anna-Lena Grönefeld Meghann Shaughnessy

August

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
7 Aug		Elena Dementieva 6–3, 4–6, 6–4		Dinara Safina Bethanie Mattek Ana Ivanovic Meghann Shaughnessy
	Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez 6–3, 6–4	Daniela Hantuchová Ai Sugiyama
		Zheng Jie 6–4, 6–1		Martina Suchá Eva Birnerová Caroline Wozniacki Li Na
		Eva Birnerová Jarmila Gajdošová 0–6, 6–4, 6–2	Yan Zi Zheng Jie	Martina Suchá Eva Birnerová Caroline Wozniacki Li Na
14 Aug		Ana Ivanovic 6–2, 6–3		Katarina Srebotnik Nicole Pratt Svetlana Kuznetsova Shahar Pe'er
14 Aug	Martina Navratilova Nadia Petrova 6–1, 6–2	Cara Black Anna-Lena Grönefeld
21 Aug		Justine Henin-Hardenne 6–0, 1–0 ret.		Amélie Mauresmo Marion Bartoli Elena Dementieva Mara Santangelo
	Yan Zi Zheng Jie 6–4, 6–2	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur
		Meghann Shaughnessy 1–6, 6–0, 6–4		Elena Vesnina Sania Mirza Martina Suchá Séverine Brémond
28 Aug 4 Sep		Maria Sharapova 6–4, 6–4		Dinara Safina Tatiana Golovin Elena Dementieva Lindsay Davenport
		Nathalie Dechy Vera Zvonareva 7–6^(7–5), 7–5	Dinara Safina Katarina Srebotnik
		Bob Bryan Martina Navratilova 6–2, 6–3	Martin Damm Květa Peschke

September

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
11 Sep	Fed Cup: Final Charleroi, Belgium, Hard (i)	3–2
		Svetlana Kuznetsova 7–5, 6–2		Séverine Brémond Hana Šromová Olga Puchkova Melinda Czink
	Lindsay Davenport Corina Morariu 6–3, 6–4	Natalie Grandin Trudi Musgrave		Séverine Brémond Hana Šromová Olga Puchkova Melinda Czink
18 Sep		Svetlana Kuznetsova 6–4, 6–0		Lindsay Davenport Nadia Petrova Ai Sugiyama Li Na
	Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez 6–2, 6–4	Anna Chakvetadze Elena Vesnina		Lindsay Davenport Nadia Petrova Ai Sugiyama Li Na
		Martina Hingis 6–0, 6–4		Tamarine Tanasugarn Aravane Rezaï Alberta Brianti Alla Kudryavtseva
	Liezel Huber Sania Mirza 6–4, 6–0	Yuliya Beygelzimer Yuliana Fedak
		Tamira Paszek 7–5, 6–1		Martina Suchá Martina Müller Andreja Klepač Jarmila Gajdošová
		Lucie Hradecká Renata Voráčová Walkover	Eva Birnerová Émilie Loit
25 Sep		Alona Bondarenko 6–3, 6–2		Elena Dementieva Patty Schnyder Dinara Safina Nathalie Dechy
	Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone 2–6, 6–4, 6–1	Anna-Lena Grönefeld Liezel Huber
		Anna Chakvetadze 6–1, 6–4		Alicia Molik Olga Puchkova Chen Yanchong Li Na
	Li Na Sun Tiantian 6–4, 2–6, 7–5	Vania King Jelena Kostanić		Alicia Molik Olga Puchkova Chen Yanchong Li Na
		Eleni Daniilidou 6–3, 2–6, 7–6^(7–3)		Sania Mirza Paola Suárez Akiko Morigami Vera Zvonareva
		Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez 6–2, 6–3	Chuang Chia-jung Mariana Díaz Oliva	Sania Mirza Paola Suárez Akiko Morigami Vera Zvonareva

October

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Quarterfinalists
2 Oct		Nadia Petrova 6–3,7–6^(7–4)		Michaëlla Krajicek Elena Dementieva Daniela Hantuchová Jelena Janković
	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–3, 6–4	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs
		Marion Bartoli 2–6, 6–2, 6–2		Junri Namigata Youlia Fedossova Jamea Jackson Ai Sugiyama
	Vania King Jelena Kostanić 7–6^(7–2), 5–7, 6–2	Chan Yung-jan Chuang Chia-jung		Junri Namigata Youlia Fedossova Jamea Jackson Ai Sugiyama
		Sun Tiantian 6–2, 6–4		Maria Elena Camerin Anastasia Rodionova Sania Mirza Kateryna Bondarenko
		Victoria Azarenka Tatiana Poutchek Walkover	Maria Elena Camerin Emmanuelle Gagliardi
9 Oct		Anna Chakvetadze 6–4, 6–4		Amélie Mauresmo Vera Zvonareva Patty Schnyder Maria Sharapova
	Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone 6–4,6–7^(4–7), 6–1	Iveta Benešová Galina Voskoboeva
		Vania King 2–6, 6–4, 6–4		Sybille Bammer Eleni Daniilidou Jelena Kostanić Aiko Nakamura
	Vania King Jelena Kostanić 7–5, 2–6, 7–5	Mariana Díaz Oliva Natalie Grandin
16 Oct		Maria Sharapova 6–1, 4–6, 6–3		Amélie Mauresmo Martina Hingis Maria Kirilenko Timea Bacsinszky
16 Oct	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs 7–5, 7–5	Liezel Huber Katarina Srebotnik
23 Oct		Maria Sharapova 7–5, 6–2		Ana Ivanovic Vera Zvonareva Jelena Janković Samantha Stosur
23 Oct	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–3, 6–0	Corina Morariu Katarina Srebotnik		Ana Ivanovic Vera Zvonareva Jelena Janković Samantha Stosur
30 Oct		Marion Bartoli 6–0, 6–0		Jelena Janković Martina Suchá Aleksandra Wozniak Shenay Perry
	Laura Granville Carly Gullickson 6–3, 6–4	Jill Craybas Alina Jidkova
		Kim Clijsters 6–3, 3–6, 6–4		Sandra Klösel Aravane Rezaï Ana Ivanovic Francesca Schiavone
	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–2, 6–3	Eleni Daniilidou Jasmin Wöhr

November

Week	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 Nov		Justine Henin-Hardenne 6–4, 6–3			Martina Hingis Nadia Petrova Svetlana Kuznetsova Elena Dementieva
6 Nov	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 3–6, 6–3, 6–3	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs

Calendar and other changes

The French Open main draw began play on Sunday rather than the traditional Monday start, making it a 15-day tournament. Prize money between the men and women was also made equal for the first time.^[15]
Two new events were created: the Bangalore Open in Bangalore, India, replacing the previous event held in Hyderabad; and the Anda Open in Tel Aviv, Israel—later cancelled due to the 2006 Lebanon War.^[16]
The Advanta Championships was removed from the calendar.
The Porsche Tennis Grand Prix was moved from its previous home of Filderstadt to Stuttgart.
The WTA Tour Championships were held in Madrid, Spain for the first time, having spent several years in Los Angeles. It stayed there for the 2007 season.
The four Grand Slam tournaments and Miami were made into mandatory events, meaning all players that qualified by ranking had to play them or they received a "zero-pointer" on their ranking.
Prize money of the standard Tiers was raised slightly: Tier I was now $40,000 higher, Tier II was $15,000 higher, and Tier III and IV both $5,000 higher.
The previous Tier V category was completely abolished.
Bonus points, where previously a player could receive extra points in addition to their round points depending on the ranking of the opponent they beat, were also abolished.^[17]
Also in 2006, the WTA began experimenting with on-court coaching, allowing players to call their coach onto the court for advice between sets. It was tested in five events during 2006, and continued in the 2007 season.^[18]
Electronic line calling, or "Hawk-Eye", was premiered during the season. The Sony Ericsson Open was the first event to utilise the new technology.^[19] Later that year, the U.S. Open became the first Grand Slam to use it. It has since been used in every Grand Slam tournament except the French Open (the ball leaves a mark on the clay, therefore it is not thought to be necessary.)

Statistics

List of players and titles won, last name alphabetically:

Justine Henin-Hardenne – Sydney, Dubai, French Open, Eastbourne, New Haven and WTA Tour Championships (6)
Nadia Petrova – Doha, Amelia Island, Charleston, Berlin and Stuttgart (5)
Maria Sharapova – Indian Wells, San Diego, U.S. Open, Zurich and Linz (5)
Amélie Mauresmo – Australian Open, Paris, Antwerp and Wimbledon (4)
Marion Bartoli – Auckland, Tokyo and Quebec City (3)
Kim Clijsters – Warsaw, Stanford and Hasselt (3)
Svetlana Kuznetsova – Miami, Bali and Beijing (3)
Shahar Pe'er – Pattaya City, Prague and Istanbul (3)
Anna Chakvetadze – Guangzhou and Moscow (2)
Elena Dementieva – Tokyo and Los Angeles (2)
Martina Hingis – Rome and Kolkata (2)
Michaëlla Krajicek – Hobart and 's-Hertogenbosch (2)
Anabel Medina Garrigues – Canberra and Palermo (2)
Meghann Shaughnessy – Rabat and Forest Hills (2)
Zheng Jie – Estoril and Stockholm (2)
Vera Zvonareva – Birmingham and Cincinnati (2)
Sofia Arvidsson – Memphis (1)
Alona Bondarenko – Luxembourg (1)
Eleni Daniilidou – Seoul (1)
Lourdes Domínguez Lino – Bogotá (1)
Anna-Lena Grönefeld – Acapulco (1)
Ana Ivanovic – Montréal (1)
Vania King – Bangkok (1)
Tamira Paszek – Portorož (1)
Lucie Šafářová – Gold Coast (1)
Mara Santangelo – Bangalore (1)
Anna Smashnova – Budapest (1)
Sun Tiantian – Tashkent (1)
Nicole Vaidišová – Strasbourg (1)

The following players won their first title:

Marion Bartoli – Auckland
Shahar Pe'er – Pattaya City
Mara Santangelo – Bangalore
Sofia Arvidsson – Memphis
Lourdes Domínguez Lino – Bogotá
Anna-Lena Grönefeld – Acapulco
Tamira Paszek – Portorož
Alona Bondarenko – Luxembourg
Anna Chakvetadze – Guangzhou
Sun Tiantian – Tashkent
Vania King – Bangkok

Titles won by nation:

– 18 (Tokyo, Indian Wells, Miami, Amelia Island, Charleston, Berlin, Birmingham, Cincinnati, San Diego, Los Angeles, U.S. Open, Bali, Beijing, Guangzhou, Stuttgart, Moscow, Zurich and Linz)
– 9 (Sydney, Dubai, Warsaw, French Open, Eastbourne, Stanford, New Haven, Hasselt and WTA Tour Championships)
– 7 (Auckland, Australian Open, Paris, Antwerp, Wimbledon, Tokyo and Quebec City)
– 4 (Pattaya City, Prague, Istanbul and Budapest)
– 3 (Estoril, Stockholm and Tashkent)
– 3 (Canberra, Bogotá and Palermo)
– 3 (Rabat, Forest Hills and Bangkok)
– 2 (Gold Coast and Strasbourg)
– 2 (Hobart and 's-Hertogenbosch)
– 2 (Rome and Kolkata)
– 1 (Portorož)
– 1 (Acapulco)
– 1 (Seoul)
– 1 (Bangalore)
– 1 (Montréal)
– 1 (Memphis)
– 1 (Luxembourg)

Rankings

Below are the 2006 WTA year-end rankings in both singles and doubles competition:

Singles number 1 ranking

Holder	Date gained	Date forfeited
	Year-End 2005	29 January 2006
	30 January 2006	19 March 2006
	20 March 2006	12 November 2006
	13 November 2006	Year-End 2006

Notes and References

News: Serena Williams Loses at Australian Open. 2010-06-06. 2006-01-20 . The New York Times . Christopher . Clarey.
Web site: Zheng Jie, Yan Zi make history for China. 2010-06-06. 2006-01-27.
News: Laid-back Petrova has first grand-slam title firmly in her sights. 2010-06-06. 2006-05-24 . London . The Guardian . Steve . Bierley.
Web site: The Wimbledon seeding committee got this one just right. 2010-06-06. 2006-07-05.
Web site: AMELIE THE NEW QUEEN OF SW19 . 2010-06-06.
Web site: Head-to-Head Sharapova vs Clijsters. 2010-06-06.
Web site: Ana Ivanovic Player Profile. 2010-06-06. 2010-07-21. https://web.archive.org/web/20100721234333/http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/player/ana-ivanovic_2257889_10999. dead.
Web site: Dechy, Zvonareva defy the odds. 2010-06-06. 2006-09-06.
Web site: Act II of Navratilova's career ends with a win. 2010-06-06. 2006-09-11.
Web site: Kuznetsova humbles Mauresmo to win China title. 2010-06-06. 2006-09-25. https://web.archive.org/web/20110707014939/http://shandong.chinadaily.com.cn/sports/2006-09/25/content_695801.htm. 2011-07-07. dead.
Web site: Clijsters returning after two months' layoff. 2010-06-06. 2006-10-31.
News: Mauresmo under threat in Madrid. 2010-06-06. 2006-11-06 . BBC News.
Web site: Henin-Hardenne beats Sharapova, clinches No. 1. 2010-06-06. 2006-11-11.
Web site: 2006 WTA Tour Calendar . 2010-01-10 . 2009-08-23 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090823042041/http://www.sonyericssonwtatour.com/page/TournamentArchive/0,,12781~0~2006,00.html . dead .
Web site: SUNDAY START FOR FRENCH OPEN. 2010-06-06.
Web site: 2006 WTA Tour.
Web site: WTA set to introduce electronic line calling system. 2010-06-06. 2005-05-11.
News: Courtside help under fire in tennis. 2010-06-06. 2006-08-11 . USA Today.
Web site: Instant Replay Comes To Tennis. 2010-06-06. 2006-06-03.
Web site: Sony Ericsson WTA Singles Rankings Rank Date: 18 December 2006. WTA. 2011-05-24. Liz. Schroeder. 2011-11-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20120417030418/http://www.wtatennis.com/SEWTATour-Archive/Rankings_Stats/Singles_Numeric_2006.pdf. 2012-04-17. dead.
Web site: Sony Ericsson WTA Doubles Rankings Rank Date: 18 December 2006. WTA. 2011-05-24. Liz. Schroeder. 2011-11-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20120417223012/http://www.wtatennis.com/SEWTATour-Archive/Rankings_Stats/Doubles_Numeric_2006.pdf. 2012-04-17. dead.