Vera was born in 1984 on September 7 in Moscow. The girl grew up in a sports family, her father played bandy, participated in the USSR championship, and her mother played field hockey and was a bronze medalist in the Soviet Union team at the Olympic Games in 1980.
Vera started playing tennis at the age of 6, her mother took her to the section of the Chaika sports club, to the honored coach of Russia Ekaterina Ivanovna Kryuchkova. Zvonareva from an early age began to make great strides in her chosen craft, and already at the end of the second millennium, in 1999, she achieved success: she overcame the WTA qualifying round.
The following year, she won her first ITF tournament in Moscow and became the owner of the honorary title of champion of Russia. The successes of the young talent did not go unnoticed, and the management of the international tournament "Kremlin Cup" provided the 16-year-old Vera with the opportunity to perform at the tournament without a qualifying stage. In the second round, Zvonareva lost to Anna Kournikova, the finalist of the tournament.
Career
Since 2002, a sharp rise in the talented tennis player began, in the women's ranking she rose from 300th positions to 45th place. At the age of 19, the girl became a sensation at the prestigious Roland Garros tennis tournament, while still young Zvonareva defeated the great Venus Williams in the fourth round. With her resounding victory, she did not allow the "traditional" final of the Williams sisters to take place. Having reached 1⁄2 of the tournament, she lost to another Russian woman, Nadezhda Petrova. In the same year, Zvonareva had a chance to perform under the colors of Russia at the Federation Cup, our team made it to the semi-finals, but lost there.
At the end of the year, in the women's ranking, Vera Zvonareva rose to 11th place, and from the next year until 2011, she was consistently in the top 10. 2008 was the brightest and most successful year for the tennis player, the bronze of the Olympic Games, the next Federation Cup and multiple participation in the finals of various WTA competitions.
In 2010, Zvonareva met WTA leader Caroline Wozniacki twice and won both times, coming close to her in the rankings. An injury in 2012 seriously knocked Vera down, she could not perform calmly, nevertheless she found a way out of the situation and, having played in tandem with Svetlana Kuznetsova, won the Australian Open. In 2013, she intended to return to the game again, but shoulder surgery forced the athlete to shelve this idea.
Vera is as active outside the court as she is on the court itself. She regularly participates in various events, consults with novice tennis players, and represents the interests of UNESCO in the world. Since 2009, the girl has been acting as a promoter of gender equality. In 2011, Vera created her own foundation, the Rett Syndrome Association.
Personal life
Vera does not talk about her life, emphasizing that tennis players are constantly in sight. This gives limitless scope for yellow rags, which have no faith. Officially, the girl is not married. This continued exactly until 2016, this year the athlete literally stunned everyone by posting on social networks that she got married and that she would soon have a child. However, it is not known for certain who became the husband of a famous tennis player.
Vera Igorevna Zvonareva was born on September 7, 1984 in Moscow. She grew up in a sports family: her mother Natalya Bykova played field hockey, together with the USSR team she was the bronze medalist of the 1980 Olympics; dad, Igor Zvonarev, played bandy, played in the USSR championship. At the age of 6, her mother brought Vera to the tennis section of the capital's sports club "Chaika" (now the Sports School "Chaika"), her first coach was Honored. Russian coach Ekaterina Ivanovna Kryuchkova (until 2001). Vera has been very successful since childhood and already in her teens she achieved her first victories - in 1999 she went through the qualifications of the WTA tour in Georgia, the next year she won the so-called. tournament "10-thousander" ITF in Moscow and won the title of champion of Russia in tennis (Surgut, against E. Bovina). The talented 16-year-old athlete was noticed by the organizers of the international Kremlin Cup tournament, they gave Vera a “wild card” (the right to play without qualification) and the young tennis player reached the 2nd round, losing to the future finalist, 19-year-old Anna Kournikova. In the same year, she became the winner of the most prestigious youth tournament "Orange Bowl" (Miami, Florida, USA), in September 2000 she turned professional. From 2002 to summer 2004 year, Vera's coach was the master of sports of the USSR and the absolute champion of the USSR-1981 Yulia Olegovna Kashevarova. In 2001-2002 Vera played mainly in ITF tournaments (International Tennis Federation), twice won them (2000, Moscow, against M. Goloviznina; 2002, Naples, USA, against M. Drake).The 32-year-old ex-second racket of the world will play an official match at the ITF tournament for the first time after almost a two-year break.
You probably haven't heard anything about. At least, before the news broke a couple of weeks ago that she was returning to the court and performing in Istanbul. Where does Vera come from? When and where did she last play? What have you been doing all this time? And what kind of tournament is she going to play in?
Posted by Vera Zvonareva (@vera.zvonareva) Aug 23, 2016 at 2:26 PDT
BATTLE WITH INJURIES
The career of the Wimbledon and US Open finalist and ex-second racket of the world is an endless rollercoaster. From highs to disappointments, primarily associated with injuries. How many times Zvonareva, an original and emotional tennis player, had to start all over again - do not count. Left ankle injury in 2005 after a breakthrough in 2004. A wrist in 2007 that prevented a return to the Top 20. A right ankle in 2009 that marred two Grand Slams but didn't stop him from finishing in the top ten for the second year in a row. A super-successful 2010 (remember Verina's happy smile as she rushed to the Wimbledon and US Open finals) - and her meteoric rise in the rankings - was followed by a stable 2011.
The problems started in the 2012 season. At first, Zvonareva held on. She did not hide that everything was for the sake of the Olympics. But injuries to the hip and right shoulder, coupled with an illness (according to the official version, the respiratory tract) put the tennis player out of action for a long time. Taking a break after the London Games, Vera returned only at the beginning of 2014. Soon, however, the shoulder injury also returned. The Russian woman was again treated for a long time and again tried to play in 2015, but now her Achilles tendon failed. The doctor announced that it would take at least six months to recover. In her place, anyone would have given up long ago.
The tennis player got married last summer and gave birth to a daughter, Evelina. In August, she began commentating on her favorite sport on television and worked brilliantly at two Grand Slam tournaments - last year's US Open and the 2017 Australian Open. It would seem that Zvonareva has finally got used to the post-sports role: family, child, tennis-related work, charitable activities ... But no. A measured life is not for this girl.
Posted by Vera Zvonareva (@vera.zvonareva) Aug 31, 2016 at 12:35pm PDT
TENNIS DOES NOT LET GO
Zvonareva has been announced for the 15,000th car starting today in Istanbul. This is the tournament of the lowest professional category, of those in which people usually play at the very beginning of their careers - tennis players from the Top-800 directly enter the main draw. The bronze medalist of the 2008 Olympic Games, who did not play for two years and does not have a rating, was listed as a substitute in the original application. But the organizers gave the Russian tennis player a wild card to the main draw.
A reasonable question arises: why does Zvonareva, at the age of 32, exhausted by injuries and with a baby in her arms, need all this? Just Vera - she is. Unbending and restless. And this applies not only to big sports. It seemed to her that physical education was not enough, and she received one more - in the field of international economic relations, and then went on to get a law degree. She runs marathons, collaborates with UNESCO, runs a foundation that helps children with Rett syndrome... But tennis doesn't let go.
Speaking last September about her life, the Russian woman still doubted: “I don’t know if I will return to the Tour or not. But in any case, I will continue to play tennis for myself.” Now she is waiting for the first tournament in two years. In Turkey, Zvonareva, after everything that happened to her, probably just wants to test herself. Otherwise, I think she could return without any problems at a larger tournament. The organizers would not be stingy with special invitations for a player with such achievements.
About what will happen next Faith taught by experience, presumably, does not guess. But it is unlikely that she would have decided to return without sensibly assessing her capabilities. Zvonareva followed tennis and is aware of what happened in the game in her absence and what needs to be done to meet the current requirements. If health permits, with her perseverance it is quite possible to reach a very decent level again.
Posted by Vera Zvonareva (@vera.zvonareva) Jan 28, 2016 at 12:58 pm PST
MOTHER EXPERIENCE
Vera can be inspired by the example of Lindsay Davenport, who won two WTA tournaments a few months after the birth of her son Jagger. And then she returned, however, not for a long time and for the second time after the birth of her daughter. Or better to remember. The famous Belgian, exhausted by injuries, ended her career in 2007, got married and became a mother, and in 2009 returned with a one and a half year old daughter and won three (of her four) Grand Slam titles. Having beaten, by the way, Zvonareva herself in the US Open-2010 final. In the second half of her career, Clijsters even climbed to number one in the WTA rankings, though she didn't overload her calendar with too many competitions.
There are a number of other examples of tennis moms who, coming out of maternity leave, returned to their previous level or even improved their game. In the summer, the ex-first racket of the world and Vera's former partner in a pair will have to go through something similar - she is already training at full strength. Zvonareva, on the other hand, you can consider another option: if playing alone turns out to be problematic, you can focus on the pair and mixed doubles. There is less stress on the body. And the Russian tennis player has experience and success in this field as well.