2006 WTA Tour

2006 WTA Tour

Justine Henin-Hardenne finished the season at No. 1 by virtue of winning the WTA Tour Championships.
Details
Duration	January 2 - November 6
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)
Achievements (singles)
Most tournament titles	Justine Henin (6)
Most tournament finals	Justine Henin (9)
Prize money leader	Justine Henin ($4,204,810)
Points leader	Justine Henin (3,998)
Awards
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
← 2005 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, and followed it with her second at Wimbledon.

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.

Maria Sharapova won her second Grand Slam at the U.S. Open, and four other events throughout the year.

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

January

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
2 January	Hopman Cup Perth, Australia Hopman Cup Hard (i) – 8 teams (RR)	United States 2–1	Netherlands	Round Robin losers (Group A) Serbia and Montenegro  Sweden  Russia	Round Robin losers (Group B) Australia  Argentina  Germany
	MAW Hardcourts Gold Coast, Australia Tier III event $175,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Lucie Šafářová 6–3, 6–4	Flavia Pennetta	Dinara Safina Martina Hingis	Patty Schnyder Anabel Medina Garrigues Tatiana Golovin Nuria Llagostera Vives
		Dinara Safina Meghann Shaughnessy 6–2, 6–3	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs
	ASB Classic Auckland, New Zealand Tier IV event $145,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Marion Bartoli 6–2, 6–2	Vera Zvonareva	Nadia Petrova Daniela Hantuchová	Kristina Brandi Julia Schruff Maria Kirilenko Tzipora Obziler
		Elena Likhovtseva Vera Zvonareva 6–3, 6–4	Émilie Loit Barbora Strýcová
9 January	Medibank International Sydney, Australia Tier II event $600,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Justine Henin-Hardenne 4–6, 7–5, 7–5	Francesca Schiavone	Nicole Vaidišová Svetlana Kuznetsova	Kim Clijsters Daniela Hantuchová Nadia Petrova Ana Ivanovic
		Corina Morariu Rennae Stubbs 6–3, 5–7, 6–2	Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez
	Richard Luton Properties International Canberra, Australia Tier IV event $145,000 - Hard - 32S/30Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Anabel Medina Garrigues 6–4, 0–6, 6–4	Cho Yoon-jeong	Shahar Pe'er Catalina Castaño	Ekaterina Bychkova Aiko Nakamura Julia Schruff Melinda Czink
		Marta Domachowska Roberta Vinci 7–6(5), 6–3	Claire Curran Līga Dekmeijere
	Moorilla Hobart International Hobart, Australia Tier IV event $145,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Michaëlla Krajicek 6–2, 6–1	Iveta Benešová	Jelena Kostanić Mara Santangelo	Alona Bondarenko Laura Granville Amy Frazier Jill Craybas
		Émilie Loit Nicole Pratt 6–2, 6–1	Jill Craybas Jelena Kostanić
16 January 23 January	Australian Open Melbourne, Australia Grand Slam $6,137,580 - Hard - 128S/96Q/64D/32X Singles Draw - Doubles Draw - Mixed Doubles Draw	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(7), 6–3	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur
		Mahesh Bhupathi Martina Hingis 6–3, 6–3	Daniel Nestor Elena Likhovtseva
30 January	Toray Pan Pacific Open Tokyo, Japan Tier I event $1,340,000 - Carpet (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Elena Dementieva 6–2, 6–0	Martina Hingis	Maria Sharapova Anastasia Myskina	Samantha Stosur Maria Kirilenko Elena Likhovtseva Nicole Vaidišová
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–2, 6–1	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs

February

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 February	Open Gaz de France Paris, France Tier II event $600,000 - Hard (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Amélie Mauresmo 6–1, 7–6(2)	Mary Pierce	Tatiana Golovin Patty Schnyder	Dinara Safina Nadia Petrova Elena Dementieva Émilie Loit
		Émilie Loit Květa Peschke 7–6(5), 6–4	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs
	Pattaya Women's Open Pattaya City, Thailand Tier IV event $170,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Shahar Pe'er 6–3, 6–1	Jelena Kostanić	Sybille Bammer Nuria Llagostera Vives	Melinda Czink Lourdes Domínguez Lino Catalina Castaño Emma Laine
		Li Ting Sun Tiantian 3–6, 6–1, 7–6(5)	Yan Zi Zheng Jie
13 February	Proximus Diamond Games Antwerp, Belgium Tier II event $600,000 - Hard (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Amélie Mauresmo 3–6, 6–3, 6–3	Kim Clijsters	Elena Dementieva Nadia Petrova	Dinara Safina Eleni Daniilidou Olga Savchuk Patty Schnyder
		Dinara Safina Katarina Srebotnik 6–1, 6–1	Stéphanie Foretz Michaëlla Krajicek
	Sony Ericsson Bangalore Open Bangalore, India Tier III event $175,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Mara Santangelo 3–6, 7–6(5), 6–3	Jelena Kostanić	Vania King Melinda Czink	Camille Pin Yuliana Fedak Alona Bondarenko Maria Elena Camerin
		Liezel Huber Sania Mirza 6–3, 6–3	Anastasia Rodionova Elena Vesnina
20 February	Dubai Duty Free Women's Open Dubai, UAE Tier II event $1,000,000 - Hard - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Justine Henin-Hardenne 7–5, 6–2	Maria Sharapova	Svetlana Kuznetsova Lindsay Davenport	Amélie Mauresmo Francesca Schiavone Martina Hingis Maria Kirilenko
		Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone 3–6, 7–6(1), 6–3	Svetlana Kuznetsova Nadia Petrova
	Cellular South Cup Memphis, United States Tier III event $175,000 - Hard (i) - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Sofia Arvidsson 6–2, 2–6, 6–3	Marta Domachowska	Jill Craybas Amy Frazier	Lilia Osterloh Laura Granville Caroline Wozniacki Shenay Perry
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 7–6(2), 6–3	Victoria Azarenka Caroline Wozniacki
	Copa Colsanitas Seguros Bolivar Bogotá, Colombia Tier III event $175,000 - Clay (Red) - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Lourdes Domínguez Lino 7–6(3), 6–4	Flavia Pennetta	María Sánchez Lorenzo Ľudmila Cervanová	Bethanie Mattek Catalina Castaño Émilie Loit Gisela Dulko
		Gisela Dulko Flavia Pennetta 7–6(1), 6–1	Ágnes Szávay Jasmin Wöhr
27 February	Qatar Ladies Open Doha, Qatar Tier II event $600,000 - Hard - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Nadia Petrova 6–3, 7–5	Amélie Mauresmo	Martina Hingis Ai Sugiyama	Roberta Vinci Svetlana Kuznetsova Julia Schruff Li Na
		Daniela Hantuchová Ai Sugiyama 6–4, 6–4	Li Ting Sun Tiantian
	Abierto Mexicano Telcel Acapulco, Mexico Tier III event $180,000 - Clay (Red) - 32S/26Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Anna-Lena Grönefeld 6–1, 4–6, 6–2	Flavia Pennetta	Maret Ani Émilie Loit	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 of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 March 13 March	Pacific Life Open Indian Wells, United States Tier I event $2,100,000 - Hard - 96S/48Q/32D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Maria Sharapova 6–1, 6–2	Elena Dementieva	Justine Henin-Hardenne Martina Hingis	Gisela Dulko Ana Ivanovic Anna-Lena Grönefeld Dinara Safina
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–2, 7–5	Virginia Ruano Pascual Meghann Shaughnessy
20 March 27 March	NASDAQ-100 Open Miami, United States Tier I event $3,450,000 - Hard - 96S/48Q/32D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Svetlana Kuznetsova 6–4, 6–3	Maria Sharapova	Amélie Mauresmo Tatiana Golovin	Nadia Petrova Ai Sugiyama Anastasia Myskina Zheng Jie
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–4, 7–5	Liezel Huber Martina Navratilova

April

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
3 April	Bausch & Lomb Championships Amelia Island, United States Tier II event $600,000 - Clay (Green) - 56S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Nadia Petrova 6–4, 6–4	Francesca Schiavone	Lucie Šafářová Svetlana Kuznetsova	Virginia Ruano Pascual Jill Craybas Anna-Lena Grönefeld Patty Schnyder
		Shinobu Asagoe Katarina Srebotnik 6–2, 6–4	Liezel Huber Sania Mirza
10 April	Family Circle Cup Charleston, United States Tier I event $1,340,000 - Clay (Green) - 56S/32Q/28D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Nadia Petrova 6–3, 4–6, 6–1	Patty Schnyder	Justine Henin-Hardenne Anna-Lena Grönefeld	Dinara Safina Nathalie Dechy Svetlana Kuznetsova Catalina Castaño
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 3–6, 6–1, 6–1	Virginia Ruano Pascual Meghann Shaughnessy
17 April	Fed Cup: Quarterfinals Liège, Belgium, Hard (i) Ettenheim, Germany, Clay (Red) Valencia, Spain, Clay (Red) Nancy, France, Clay (Red) (i)	Quarterfinal winners  Belgium 3–2  United States 3–2  Spain 5–0  Italy 4–1	Quarterfinal losers  Russia  Germany  Austria  France

May

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
1 May	J&S Cup Warsaw, Poland Tier II event $600,000 - Clay (Red) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Kim Clijsters 7–5, 6–2	Svetlana Kuznetsova	Elena Dementieva Anna Chakvetadze	Francesca Schiavone Agnieszka Radwańska Venus Williams Ana Ivanovic
		Elena Likhovtseva Anastasia Myskina 6–3, 6–4	Anabel Medina Garrigues Katarina Srebotnik
	Estoril Open Estoril, Portugal Tier IV event $145,000 - Clay (Red) - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Zheng Jie 6–7(5), 7–5 ret.	Li Na	Flavia Pennetta Émilie Loit	Eleni Daniilidou Zuzana Ondrášková Lourdes Domínguez Lino Gisela Dulko
		Li Ting Sun Tiantian 6–2, 6–2	Gisela Dulko María Sánchez Lorenzo
8 May	Qatar Telecom German Open Berlin, Germany Tier I event $1,340,000 - Clay (Red) - 56S/32Q/28D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Nadia Petrova 4–6, 6–4, 7–5	Justine Henin-Hardenne	Amélie Mauresmo Li Na	Martina Hingis Svetlana Kuznetsova Patty Schnyder Dinara Safina
		Yan Zi Zheng Jie 6–2, 6–3	Elena Dementieva Flavia Pennetta
	ECM Prague Open Prague, Czech Republic Tier IV event $145,000 - Clay (Red) - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Shahar Pe'er 4–6, 6–2, 6–1	Samantha Stosur	Kaia Kanepi Peng Shuai	Maria Elena Camerin Alona Bondarenko Émilie Loit Magdaléna Rybáriková
		Marion Bartoli Shahar Pe'er 6–4, 6–4	Ashley Harkleroad Bethanie Mattek
15 May	Telecom Italia Masters Rome, Italy Tier I event $1,340,000 - Clay (Red) - 56S/32Q/28D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Martina Hingis 6–2, 7–5	Dinara Safina	Venus Williams Svetlana Kuznetsova	Flavia Pennetta Jelena Janković Romina Oprandi Elena Dementieva
		Daniela Hantuchová Ai Sugiyama 3–6, 6–3, 6–1	Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone
	GP SAR La Princess Lalla Meryem Rabat, Morocco Tier IV event $145,000 - Clay (Red) - 32S/26Q/14D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Meghann Shaughnessy 6–2, 3–6, 6–3	Martina Suchá	Yan Zi Alona Bondarenko	Melinda Czink Émilie Loit Hana Šromová Anne Kremer
		Yan Zi Zheng Jie 6–1, 6–3	Ashley Harkleroad Bethanie Mattek
22 May	İstanbul Cup Istanbul, Turkey Tier III event $200,000 - Clay (Red) - 30S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Shahar Pe'er 1–6, 6–3, 7–6(3)	Anastasia Myskina	Michaëlla Krajicek Anna-Lena Grönefeld	Catalina Castaño Anastasiya Yakimova Mara Santangelo Karolina Šprem
		Alona Bondarenko Anastasiya Yakimova 6–2, 6–4	Sania Mirza Alicia Molik
	Internationaux de Strasbourg Strasbourg, France Tier III event $175,000 - Clay (Red) - 30S/30Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Nicole Vaidišová 7–6(7), 6–3	Peng Shuai	Jelena Janković Anabel Medina Garrigues	Martina Müller Elena Vesnina Li Na Zheng Jie
		Liezel Huber Martina Navratilova 6–2, 7–6(1)	Martina Müller Andreea Ehritt-Vanc
29 May 5 June	French Open Paris, France Grand Slam $6,747,626 - Clay (Red) - 128S/96Q/64D/32X Singles Draw - Doubles Draw - Mixed Doubles Draw	Justine Henin-Hardenne 6–4, 6–4	Svetlana Kuznetsova	Nicole Vaidišová Kim Clijsters	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 of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
12 June	DFS Classic Birmingham, United Kingdom Tier III event $200,000 - Grass - 56S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Vera Zvonareva 7–6(12), 7–6(5)	Jamea Jackson	Maria Sharapova Meilen Tu	Mara Santangelo Elena Likhovtseva Marion Bartoli Francesca Schiavone
		Jelena Janković Li Na 6–2, 6–4	Jill Craybas Liezel Huber
19 June	Hastings Direct Int'l Championships Eastbourne, United Kingdom Tier II event $600,000 - Grass - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Justine Henin-Hardenne 4–6, 6–1, 7–6(5)	Anastasia Myskina	Svetlana Kuznetsova Kim Clijsters	Nathalie Dechy Anna-Lena Grönefeld Elena Likhovtseva Francesca Schiavone
		Svetlana Kuznetsova Amélie Mauresmo 6–2, 6–4	Liezel Huber Martina Navratilova
	Ordina Open 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands Tier III event $175,000 - Grass - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Michaëlla Krajicek 6–3, 6–4	Dinara Safina	Elena Dementieva Eleni Daniilidou	Ana Ivanovic Jelena Janković Paola Suárez Brenda Schultz-McCarthy
		Yan Zi Zheng Jie 3–6, 6–2, 6–2	Ana Ivanovic Maria Kirilenko
26 June 3 July	Wimbledon Championships Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom Grand Slam $6,743,737 - Grass - 128S/96Q/64D/32X Singles Draw - Doubles Draw - Mixed Doubles Draw	Amélie Mauresmo 2–6, 6–3, 6–4	Justine Henin-Hardenne	Maria Sharapova Kim Clijsters	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 of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
10 July	Fed Cup: Semifinals Ostend, Belgium, Hard (i) Zaragoza, Spain, Clay (Red)	Semifinal winners  Belgium 4–1  Italy 4–0	Semifinal losers  United States  Spain
17 July	W&S Financial Group Women's Open Cincinnati, United States Tier III event $175,000 - Hard - 32S/16Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Vera Zvonareva 6–2, 6–4	Katarina Srebotnik	Patty Schnyder Serena Williams	Sania Mirza Marion Bartoli Jelena Janković Amy Frazier
		Maria Elena Camerin Gisela Dulko 6–4, 3–6, 6–2	Marta Domachowska Sania Mirza
	Internazionali Femminili di Palermo Palermo, Italy Tier IV event $145,000 - Clay (Red) - 32S/26Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Anabel Medina Garrigues 6–4, 6–4	Tathiana Garbin	Roberta Vinci Lucie Šafářová	Julia Schruff Aravane Rezaï María José Martínez Sánchez Karin Knapp
		Janette Husárová Michaëlla Krajicek 6–0, 6–0	Alice Canepa Giulia Gabba
24 July	Bank of the West Classic Stanford, United States Tier II event $600,000 - Hard - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Kim Clijsters 6–4, 6–2	Patty Schnyder	Nicole Vaidišová Tatiana Golovin	Vera Zvonareva Samantha Stosur Anna-Lena Grönefeld Jill Craybas
		Anna-Lena Grönefeld Shahar Pe'er 6–1, 6–4	Maria Elena Camerin Gisela Dulko
	Budapest Grand Prix Budapest, Hungary Tier IV event $145,000 - Clay (Red) - 32S/27Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Anna Smashnova 6–1, 6–3	Lourdes Domínguez Lino	Martina Müller Michaëlla Krajicek	Catalina Castaño Eva Birnerová Romina Oprandi Sara Errani
		Janette Husárová Michaëlla Krajicek 4–6, 6–4, 6–4	Lucie Hradecká Renata Voráčová
31 July	Acura Classic San Diego, United States Tier I event $1,340,000 - Hard - 56S/27Q/28D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Maria Sharapova 7–5, 7–5	Kim Clijsters	Nicole Vaidišová Patty Schnyder	Martina Hingis Anna Chakvetadze Elena Dementieva Mary Pierce
		Cara Black Rennae Stubbs 6–2, 6–2	Anna-Lena Grönefeld Meghann Shaughnessy

August

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
7 August	JPMorgan Chase Open Los Angeles, United States Tier II event $600,000 - Hard - 56S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Elena Dementieva 6–3, 4–6, 6–4	Jelena Janković	Maria Sharapova Serena Williams	Dinara Safina Bethanie Mattek Ana Ivanovic Meghann Shaughnessy
		Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez 6–3, 6–4	Daniela Hantuchová Ai Sugiyama
	Nordea Nordic Light Open Stockholm, Sweden Tier IV event $145,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Zheng Jie 6–4, 6–1	Anastasia Myskina	Sofia Arvidsson Tsvetana Pironkova	Martina Suchá Eva Birnerová Caroline Wozniacki Li Na
		Eva Birnerová Jarmila Gajdošová 0–6, 6–4, 6–2	Yan Zi Zheng Jie
14 August	Rogers Cup Montreal, Canada Tier I event $1,340,000 - Hard - 56S/48Q/28D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Ana Ivanovic 6–2, 6–3	Martina Hingis	Dinara Safina Anna Chakvetadze	Katarina Srebotnik Nicole Pratt Svetlana Kuznetsova Shahar Pe'er
		Martina Navratilova Nadia Petrova 6–1, 6–2	Cara Black Anna-Lena Grönefeld
21 August	Pilot Pen Tennis New Haven, United States Tier II event $600,000 - Hard - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Justine Henin-Hardenne 6–0, 1–0 ret.	Lindsay Davenport	Samantha Stosur Svetlana Kuznetsova	Amélie Mauresmo Marion Bartoli Elena Dementieva Mara Santangelo
		Yan Zi Zheng Jie 6–4, 6–2	Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur
	Forest Hills Tennis Classic Forest Hills, United States Tier IV event $74,800 - Hard - 16S Singles Draw	Meghann Shaughnessy 1–6, 6–0, 6–4	Anna Smashnova	Lourdes Domínguez Lino Maria Elena Camerin	Elena Vesnina Sania Mirza Martina Suchá Séverine Brémond
28 August 4 September	U.S. Open Flushing Meadows, New York, United States Grand Slam $8,332,000 - Hard - 128S/96Q/64D/32X Singles Draw - Doubles Draw - Mixed Doubles Draw	Maria Sharapova 6–4, 6–4	Justine Henin-Hardenne	Amélie Mauresmo Jelena Janković	Dinara Safina Tatiana Golovin Elena Dementieva Lindsay Davenport
		Nathalie Dechy Vera Zvonareva 7–6(5), 7–5	Dinara Safina Katarina Srebotnik
		Bob Bryan Martina Navratilova 6–2, 6–3	Martin Damm Květa Peschke

September

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
11 September	Fed Cup: Final Charleroi, Belgium, Hard (i) Zaragoza, Spain, Clay (Red)	Italy 3–2	Belgium
	Wismilak International Bali, Indonesia Tier III event $225,000 - Hard - 30S/11Q/13D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Svetlana Kuznetsova 7–5, 6–2	Marion Bartoli	Lindsay Davenport Patty Schnyder	Séverine Brémond Hana Šromová Olga Poutchkova Melinda Czink
		Lindsay Davenport Corina Morariu 6–3, 6–4	Natalie Grandin Trudi Musgrave
18 September	China Open Beijing, China Tier II event $600,000 - Hard - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Svetlana Kuznetsova 6–4, 6–0	Amélie Mauresmo	Jelena Janković Peng Shuai	Lindsay Davenport Nadia Petrova Ai Sugiyama Li Na
		Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez 6–2, 6–4	Anna Chakvetadze Elena Vesnina
	Sunfeast Open Kolkata, India Tier III event $175,000 - Hard (i) - 32S/16Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Martina Hingis 6–0, 6–4	Olga Poutchkova	Sania Mirza Iroda Tulyaganova	Tamarine Tanasugarn Aravane Rezaï Alberta Brianti Alla Kudryavtseva
		Liezel Huber Sania Mirza 6–4, 6–0	Yulia Beygelzimer Yuliana Fedak
	Banka Koper Slovenia Open Portorož, Slovenia Tier IV event $145,000 - Hard (i) - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Tamira Paszek 7–5, 6–1	Maria Elena Camerin	Tathiana Garbin Émilie Loit	Martina Suchá Martina Müller Andreja Klepač Jarmila Gajdošová
		Lucie Hradecká Renata Voráčová Walkover	Eva Birnerová Émilie Loit
25 September	Fortis Championships Luxembourg Luxembourg, Luxembourg Tier II event $600,000 - Hard (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Alona Bondarenko 6–3, 6–2	Francesca Schiavone	Agnieszka Radwańska Květa Peschke	Elena Dementieva Patty Schnyder Dinara Safina Nathalie Dechy
		Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone 2–6, 6–4, 6–1	Anna-Lena Grönefeld Liezel Huber
	Guangzhou International Women's Open Guangzhou, China Tier III event $175,000 - Hard - 32S/16Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Anna Chakvetadze 6–1, 6–4	Anabel Medina Garrigues	Jelena Janković Tzipora Obziler	Alicia Molik Olga Poutchkova Chen Yanchong Li Na
		Li Na Sun Tiantian 6–4, 2–6, 7–5	Vania King Jelena Kostanić
	Hansol Korea Open Tennis Championships Seoul, South Korea Tier IV event $145,000 - Hard - 32S/27Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Eleni Daniilidou 6–3, 2–6, 7–6(3)	Ai Sugiyama	Virginia Ruano Pascual Marion Bartoli	Sania Mirza Paola Suárez Akiko Morigami Vera Zvonareva
		Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez 6–2, 6–3	Chuang Chia-jung Mariana Díaz-Oliva

October

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
2 October	Porsche Tennis Grand Prix Stuttgart, Germany Tier II event $650,000 - Hard (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Nadia Petrova 6–3, 7–6(4)	Tatiana Golovin	Patty Schnyder Svetlana Kuznetsova	Michaëlla Krajicek Elena Dementieva Daniela Hantuchová Jelena Janković
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–3, 6–4	Cara Black Rennae Stubbs
	Japan Open Tennis Championships Tokyo, Japan Tier III event $175,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Marion Bartoli 2–6, 6–2, 6–2	Aiko Nakamura	Camille Pin Chan Yung-jan	Junri Namigata Youlia Fedossova Jamea Jackson Ai Sugiyama
		Vania King Jelena Kostanić 7–6(2), 5–7, 6–2	Chan Yung-jan Chuang Chia-jung
	Tashkent Open Tashkent, Uzbekistan Tier IV event $145,000 - Hard - 32S/16Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Sun Tiantian 6–2, 6–4	Iroda Tulyaganova	Victoria Azarenka Olga Poutchkova	Maria Elena Camerin Anastasia Rodionova Sania Mirza Kateryna Bondarenko
		Victoria Azarenka Tatiana Poutchek Walkover	Maria Elena Camerin Emmanuelle Gagliardi
9 October	Kremlin Cup Moscow, Russia Tier I event $1,340,000 - Hard (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Anna Chakvetadze 6–4, 6–4	Nadia Petrova	Nicole Vaidišová Elena Dementieva	Amélie Mauresmo Vera Zvonareva Patty Schnyder Maria Sharapova
		Květa Peschke Francesca Schiavone 6–4, 6–7(4), 6–1	Iveta Benešová Galina Voskoboeva
	PTT Bangkok Open Bangkok, Thailand Tier III event $200,000 - Hard - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw – Doubles Draw	Vania King 2–6, 6–4, 6–4	Tamarine Tanasugarn	Séverine Brémond Meghann Shaughnessy	Sybille Bammer Eleni Daniilidou Jelena Kostanić Aiko Nakamura
		Vania King Jelena Kostanić 7–5, 2–6, 7–5	Mariana Díaz-Oliva Natalie Grandin
16 October	Zurich Open Zurich, Switzerland Tier I event $1,340,000 - Hard (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Maria Sharapova 6–1, 4–6, 6–3	Daniela Hantuchová	Svetlana Kuznetsova Katarina Srebotnik	Amélie Mauresmo Martina Hingis Maria Kirilenko Timea Bacsinszky
		Cara Black Rennae Stubbs 7–5, 7–5	Liezel Huber Katarina Srebotnik
23 October	Generali Ladies Linz Linz, Austria Tier II event $600,000 - Hard (i) - 28S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Maria Sharapova 7–5, 6–2	Nadia Petrova	Patty Schnyder Nicole Vaidišová	Ana Ivanovic Vera Zvonareva Jelena Janković Samantha Stosur
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–3, 6–0	Corina Morariu Katarina Srebotnik
30 October	Bell Challenge Quebec City, Canada Tier III event $175,000 - Carpet (i) - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Marion Bartoli 6–0, 6–0	Olga Poutchkova	Séverine Brémond Lilia Osterloh	Jelena Janković Martina Suchá Aleksandra Wozniak Shenay Perry
		Laura Granville Carly Gullickson 6–3, 6–4	Jill Craybas Alina Jidkova
	Gaz de France Stars Hasselt, Belgium Tier III event $175,000 - Hard (i) - 32S/32Q/16D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Kim Clijsters 6–3, 3–6, 6–4	Kaia Kanepi	Vera Zvonareva Michaëlla Krajicek	Sandra Klösel Aravane Rezaï Ana Ivanovic Francesca Schiavone
		Lisa Raymond Samantha Stosur 6–2, 6–3	Eleni Daniilidou Jasmin Wöhr

November

Week of	Tournament	Champions	Runners-up	Semifinalists	Quarterfinalists
6 November	WTA Tour Championships Madrid, Spain Year-end Championship $3,000,000 - Hard - 8S (Round Robin)/4D Singles Draw - Doubles Draw	Justine Henin-Hardenne 6–4, 6–3	Amélie Mauresmo	Kim Clijsters Maria Sharapova	Martina Hingis Nadia Petrova Svetlana Kuznetsova Elena Dementieva
		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.^[16]
• 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.^[16]
• The previous Tier V category was completely abolished.^[16]
• 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 - Portoroz (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 - Portoroz
• Alona Bondarenko - Luxembourg
• Anna Chakvetadze - Guangzhou
• Sun Tiantian - Tashkent
• Vania King - Bangkok

Titles won by nation:

•  Russia - 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)
•  Belgium - 9 (Sydney, Dubai, Warsaw, French Open, Eastbourne, Stanford, New Haven, Hasselt and WTA Tour Championships)
•  France - 7 (Auckland, Australian Open, Paris, Antwerp, Wimbledon, Tokyo and Quebec City)
•  Israel - 4 (Pattaya City, Prague, Istanbul and Budapest)
•  China - 3 (Estoril, Stockholm and Tashkent)
•  Spain - 3 (Canberra, Bogotá and Palermo)
•  United States - 3 (Rabat, Forest Hills and Bangkok)
•  Czech Republic - 2 (Gold Coast and Strasbourg)
•  Netherlands - 2 (Hobart and 's-Hertogenbosch)
•   Switzerland - 2 (Rome and Kolkata)
•  Austria - 1 (Portoroz)
•  Germany - 1 (Acapulco)
•  Greece - 1 (Seoul)
•  Italy - 1 (Bangalore)
•  Serbia - 1 (Montréal)
•  Sweden - 1 (Memphis)
•  Ukraine - 1 (Luxembourg)

Rankings

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

Singles Year-end Ranking[20] No Player Name Points 2005 Change 1  Justine Henin-Hardenne (BEL) 3,998 6 +5 2  Maria Sharapova (RUS) 3,532 4 +2 3  Amélie Mauresmo (FRA) 3,391 3 = 4  Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) 2,523 18 +14 5  Kim Clijsters (BEL) 2,215 2 -3 6  Nadia Petrova (RUS) 2,189 9 +3 7  Martina Hingis (SUI) 2,018 NR N/A 8  Elena Dementieva (RUS) 1,875 8 = 9  Patty Schnyder (SUI) 1,578 7 -2 10  Nicole Vaidišová (CZE) 1,391 15 +5 11  Dinara Safina (RUS) 1,390 20 +9 12  Jelena Janković (SRB) 1,211 22 +10 13  Anna Chakvetadze (RUS) 1,144 33 +20 14  Ana Ivanovic (SRB) 1,053 16 +2 15  Francesca Schiavone (ITA) 1,032 13 -2 16  Anastasia Myskina (RUS) 1,000 14 -2 17  Daniela Hantuchová (SVK) 986 19 +2 18  Marion Bartoli (FRA) 951 40 +22 19  Anna-Lena Grönefeld (GER) 922 21 +2 20  Shahar Pe'er (ISR) 894 45 +25

Doubles Year-end Ranking[21] No Player Name Points 2005 Change 1  Lisa Raymond (USA) 3,858 3 +2  Samantha Stosur (AUS) 3,858 2 +1 3  Zheng Jie (CHN) 2,996 30 +27 4  Yan Zi (CHN) 2,996 31 +27 5  Cara Black (ZIM) 2,516 1 -4 6  Rennae Stubbs (AUS) 2,501 5 -1 7  Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) 2,242 25 +18 8  Květa Peschke (CZE) 2,193 16 +8 9  Francesca Schiavone (ITA) 2,094 34 +25 10  Virginia Ruano Pascual (ESP) 2,076 4 -6 11  Anna-Lena Grönefeld (GER) 1,799 11 = 12  Ai Sugiyama (JPN) 1,772 14 +2 13  Daniela Hantuchová (SVK) 1,766 13 = 14  Paola Suárez (ARG) 1,742 17 +3 15  Meghann Shaughnessy (USA) 1,663 19 +4 16  Dinara Safina (RUS) 1,632 28 +12 17  Liezel Huber (RSA) 1,593 6 -11 18  Vera Zvonareva (RUS) 1,524 10 -8 19  Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) 1,315 20 +1 20  Nathalie Dechy (FRA) 1,277 103 +83

Singles number 1 ranking

Holder	Date Gained	Date Forfeited
Lindsay Davenport (USA)	Year-End 2005	29 January 2006
Kim Clijsters (BEL)	30 January 2006	19 March 2006
Amélie Mauresmo (FRA)	20 March 2006	12 November 2006
Justine Henin-Hardenne (BEL)	13 November 2006	Year-End 2006

See also

• 2006 ATP Tour
• WTA Tour
• List of female tennis players
• List of tennis tournaments

References