Ayumi Morita
Ayumi Morita (森田 あゆみ, Morita Ayumi, born March 11, 1990[1]) is a Japanese former professional tennis player. She reached her career-high ranking of No. 40 in the world in October 2011. At junior level, she reached a combined career-high ranking of No. 3.
Morita during the 2015 Wimbledon Qualifying | |
| Country (sports) | Japan |
|---|---|
| Residence | Ōta, Japan |
| Born | 11 March 1990 Ōta |
| Height | 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in) |
| Turned pro | 2005 |
| Retired | 2023 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed both sides) |
| Prize money | US$ 1,682,518 |
| Official website | http://ayumi-morita.com |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 295–241 (55.0%) |
| Career titles | 10 ITF |
| Highest ranking | No. 40 (3 October 2011) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | 3R (2011, 2013) |
| French Open | 2R (2011, 2012) |
| Wimbledon | 2R (2010, 2012) |
| US Open | 2R (2012) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 75–68 (52.4%) |
| Career titles | 3 ITF |
| Highest ranking | No. 65 (9 February 2009) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 3R (2012) |
| French Open | 2R (2013) |
| Wimbledon | 3R (2011) |
| US Open | 2R (2010) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | 23–14 |
Morita is known for strong and consistent two-handed groundstrokes which she hits very flat. She is also regarded as very tough mentally for a young player, often showing great resolve to win close matches despite a lackluster serve.[citation needed] Morita is a small and quick player with excellent footwork and movement around the court.
Morita is one of the most successful Fed Cup players of recent times with a 23–14 match win-loss record for Japan.
Career edit
On September 16, 2008, she beat world No. 19, Ágnes Szávay, in three sets in the Pan Pacific Open.[2]
In January 2009, Morita upset former Wimbledon quarterfinalist Michaëlla Krajicek in the final round of qualifying to reach the main draw of the Auckland Open. She faced third set deficits in all three of her qualifying matches, including a 4–1 deficit in her first match against Katie O'Brien.
2011 edit
Her first tournament of the season was the Auckland Open. She faced Romanian teenager Simona Halep and lost in straight sets despite recovering from being two breaks down in the second set. Her next tournament was the Hobart International. She beat Akgul Amanmuradova. Her next opponent was Bethanie Mattek-Sands, to whom she lost in two sets. Ayumi played at the Australian Open where she defeated No. 27 seed Alexandra Dulgheru in two sets. She defeated wildcard Caroline Garcia in the second round but lost to Peng Shuai in the third round.
At the Dubai Championships, Morita qualified by defeating Sophie Lefèvre and Vesna Manasieva. In the first round of the main draw, she defeated No. 14 seed Petra Kvitová in two tiebreaks. Before the match, Kvitová had only lost once in 2011 and had already won two titles. Morita beat wildcard Sania Mirza in the second round before losing to Caroline Wozniacki in the third round.
2013 edit
Morita began her season at the first edition of the Shenzhen Open. She lost in the second round to sixth seed Peng Shuai.[3] After qualifying for the Sydney International, Morita reached the second round where she was defeated by fourth seed Li Na.[4] Ranked 72 at the Australian Open, Morita reached the third round after straight-set victories over Anna Tatishvili and Annika Beck. She lost in her third-round match to third seed Serena Williams.[5]
In Thailand at the Pattaya Open, Morita upset top seed, Ana Ivanovic, in the first round.[6] She beat Kimiko Date-Krumm in the second to advance to the quarterfinals.[7] She was defeated in her quarterfinal match by Nina Bratchikova.[8] During the Fed Cup tie versus Russia, Morita won both of her rubbers over Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina. Russia ended up winning 3-2.[9] Morita retired from her second round of qualifying match at the Dubai Championships to Jie Zheng. Seeded fourth at the Malaysian Open, Morita lost in the semifinal round to eventual champion Karolína Plíšková.[10] In Indian Wells, Morita was defeated in the first round by qualifier Lesia Tsurenko. At the Miami Open, she made it to the third round after defeating Heather Watson and 31st seed Yanina Wickmayer. She lost her third-round match to top seed and eventual champion Serena Williams.[11] Seeded eighth at the Monterrey Open, Morita was defeated in her quarterfinal match by top seed and eventual finalist, Angelique Kerber.[12] Playing in the Fed Cup tie versus Spain, Morita lost both of her matches to Sílvia Soler Espinosa and Carla Suárez Navarro. Spain won 4-0.[13]
Morita began her clay-court season at the Portugal Open where she was defeated in her quarterfinal match by defending champion Kaia Kanepi.[14] Morita retired during her first-round match at the Madrid Open against Sorana Cîrstea due to a left abductor strain. She returned to action at the Italian Open where she made it to the third round beating Sorana Cîrstea and Urszula Radwańska. She retired from her third-round match against third seed Victoria Azarenka due to injury.[15] Ranked 44 at the French Open, Morita lost in the first round to Yulia Putintseva.[16]
Beginning her grass-court season at the Birmingham Classic, Morita was defeated in the first round by qualifier Alison Van Uytvanck.[17] In Rosmalen at the Topshelf Open, Morita lost in the first round to Sofia Arvidsson.[18] Ranked 50 at the Wimbledon Championships, Morita was defeated in the first round by Marina Erakovic.[19]
Starting her US Open Series at the Silicon Valley Classic, Morita lost in the first round to fifth seed Sorana Cîrstea.[20] At the Southern California Open, she was defeated in the first round by Laura Robson.[21] Reaching the main draw as a lucky loser at the Rogers Cup, she lost in the first round to American Varvara Lepchenko.[22] In Ohio at the Western & Southern Open, Morita was defeated in the first round of qualifying by Alison Riske.[23] After she qualified for the New Haven Open at Yale, Morita retired during her first-round match against Elena Vesnina due to a low back injury.[24] The low back injury caused her to withdraw from the US Open.[25]
In Tokyo at the Pan Pacific Open, Morita beat Laura Robson in her first-round match.[26] She lost in the second round to sixth seed Jelena Janković.[27] At the Japan Women's Open, Morita was defeated in the first round by Luksika Kumkhum.[28] Seeded fourth at the Nanjing Ladies Open, Morita made it to the final where she retired against third seed Zhang Shuai due to a left hamstring injury.[29] Morita played her final tournament of the season at the Taipei Open. Seeded fourth, she lost in the first round to Yaroslava Shvedova.[30]
Morita ended the year ranked 61.
2014 edit
Morita started her 2014 season at the Auckland Open. She upset sixth seed Lucie Šafářová in the first round.[31] In the second round, she lost to compatriot Kurumi Nara.[32] At the Sydney International, she retired during her first round of qualifying match against Tsvetana Pironkova due to injury.[33] Ranked 61 at the Australian Open, Morita was defeated in the second round by eighth seed Jelena Janković.[34]
In Mexico at the Monterrey Open, she retired during her second-round clash against sixth seed Magdaléna Rybáriková due to dizziness.[35] Seeded eighth at the Malaysian Open, she lost in the first round to qualifier Lyudmyla Kichenok.[36]
2023: Retirement edit
In August 2023, Morita announced her retirement from professional tennis.[37]
Grand Slam performance timelines edit
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
Singles edit
| Tournament | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | W–L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | A | A | 1R | 1R | 3R | 1R | 3R | 2R | A | 5–6 |
| French Open | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 1R | A | A | 2–6 |
| Wimbledon | 1R | A | 1R | 2R | 1R | 2R | 1R | A | Q1 | 2–6 |
| US Open | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | A | A | A | 1–4 |
| Win–loss | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–4 | 1–4 | 3–4 | 3–4 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 10–22 |
Doubles edit
WTA Tour finals edit
Doubles: 2 (2 runner-ups) edit
| Legend |
|---|
| Grand Slam |
| WTA 1000 |
| WTA 500 |
| Tier III / WTA 250 (0–2) |
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | Oct 2007 | Bangkok Open, Thailand | Tier III | Hard | Junri Namigata | Sun Tiantian Yan Zi | w/o |
| Loss | 0–2 | Sep 2008 | Japan Open Championships | Tier III | Hard | Aiko Nakamura | Jill Craybas Marina Erakovic | 6–4, 5–7, [6–10] |
WTA Challenger finals edit
Singles: 1 (runner-up) edit
| Result | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | Nov 2013 | Nanjing Ladies Open, China | Hard | Zhang Shuai | 4–6, ret. |
ITF Circuit finals edit
| Legend |
|---|
| $100,000 tournaments |
| $75,000 tournaments |
| $50,000 tournaments |
| $25,000 tournaments |
| $15,000 tournaments |
Singles: 19 (10 titles, 9 runner-ups) edit
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | May 2005 | Fukuoka International, Japan | 50,000 | Grass | Chan Yung-jan | 3–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 0–2 | May 2006 | Fukuoka International, Japan | 50,000 | Grass | Chan Yung-jan | 3–6, 6–4, 1–6 |
| Win | 1–2 | Aug 2006 | ITF Tokachi, Japan | 25,000 | Carpet | Erika Takao | 6–3, 4–6, 7–6(6) |
| Win | 2–2 | Sep 2006 | ITF Tokyo Open, Japan | 50,000 | Hard | Chan Yung-jan | 3–6, 6–3, 6–4 |
| Loss | 2–3 | May 2007 | Kangaroo Cup Gifu, Japan | 50,000 | Carpet | Chan Yung-jan | 3–6, 1–6 |
| Loss | 2–4 | Jun 2007 | Surbiton Trophy, United Kingdom | 25,000 | Grass | Brenda Schultz-McCarthy | 6–4, 4–6, 6–7(5) |
| Win | 3–4 | Jul 2007 | Kurume Cup, Japan | 25,000 | Grass | Erika Takao | 6–1, 3–1 ret. |
| Loss | 3–5 | Aug 2007 | ITF Obihiro, Japan | 25,000 | Carpet | Sophie Ferguson | 4–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 4–5 | Nov 2008 | ITF Tokyo Open, Japan | 50,000 | Hard | Jarmila Gajdošová | 6–2, 2–6, 6–3 |
| Win | 5–5 | Nov 2008 | ITF Kolkata, India | 50,000 | Hard | Elora Dabija | 6–3, 6–1 |
| Win | 6–5 | Nov 2008 | Toyota World Challenge, Japan | 75,000 | Carpet (i) | Ksenia Lykina | 6–1, 6–3 |
| Loss | 6–6 | Nov 2009 | Taipei Open, Taiwan | 100,000 | Carpet (i) | Chan Yung-jan | 4–6, 6–2, 2–6 |
| Win | 7–6 | Oct 2010 | Toyota World Challenge, Japan | 100,000 | Hard (i) | Jill Craybas | 6–3, 7–5 |
| Loss | 7–7 | Nov 2010 | Taipei Open, Taiwan | 100,000 | Carpet (i) | Peng Shuai | 1–6, 4–6 |
| Win | 8–7 | Oct 2011 | Taipei Open, Taiwan | 100,000 | Carpet (i) | Kimiko Date-Krumm | 6–2, 6–2 |
| Loss | 8–8 | Nov 2021 | ITF Monastir, Tunisia | 15,000 | Hard | Sonay Kartal | 1–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 8–9 | Feb 2022 | ITF Monastir, Tunisia | 15,000 | Hard | Haruna Arakawa | w/o |
| Win | 9–9 | May 2022 | ITF Monastir, Tunisia | 15,000 | Hard | Yao Xinxin | 7–6(4), 7–5 |
| Win | 10–9 | May 2022 | ITF Monastir, Tunisia | 15,000 | Hard | Milana Zhabrailova | 7–5, 6–0 |
Doubles: 7 (3 titles, 4 runner-ups) edit
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 0–1 | Jul 2005 | Kurume Cup, Japan | 25,000 | Carpet | Erika Sema | Chan Chin-wei Hsieh Su-wei | 4–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 0–2 | Feb 2006 | ITF Sydney, Australia | 25,000 | Hard | Junri Namigata | Chan Yung-jan Chuang Chia-jung | 2–6, 1–6 |
| Loss | 0–3 | Feb 2007 | ITF Melbourne, Australia | 25,000 | Clay | Natsumi Hamamura | Hwang I-hsuan Lee Ye-ra | 2–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 1–3 | May 2007 | Kangaroo Cup Gifu, Japan | 50,000 | Carpet | Ai Sugiyama | Kumiko Iijima Seiko Okamoto | 6–1, 3–6, 6–0 |
| Win | 2–3 | May 2007 | Fukuoka International, Japan | 50,000 | Carpet | Akiko Yonemura | Rika Fujiwara Junri Namigata | 6–2, 6–2 |
| Loss | 2–4 | Aug 2007 | ITF Obihiro, Japan | 25,000 | Carpet | Akiko Yonemura | Kumiko Iijima Junri Namigata | 6–7(3), 0–6 |
| Win | 3–4 | Oct 2009 | ITF Tokyo Open, Japan | 100,000 | Hard | Chan Yung-jan | Kimiko Date-Krumm Rika Fujiwara | 6–2, 6–4 |
References edit
- ^ "Ayumi Morita – News and More". Tennis-X. Retrieved 2008-09-22.
- ^ McKirdy, Andrew (2008-09-17). "Morita upsets Svazay". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2008-09-22.
- ^ "Li starts Shenzhen Open with easy victory". 1 January 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "WTA Sydney - Radwanska and Li Na remain unbeaten in 2013". 8 January 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "Serena Williams beats Morita to advance to 4th round at Australian Open". 18 January 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "Ayumi Morita knocks out top-seeded Ana Ivanovic". 31 January 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "WTA Pattaya - Ayumi Morita wins two matches to reach quarter finals". 1 February 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ Oddo, Chris (1 February 2013). "Kirilenko, Lisicki Reach Pattaya Semis". www.tennisnow.com. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "MAKAROVA MARCHES RUSSIA THROUGH". 10 February 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "American Mattek-Sands in Malaysian Open final". 2 March 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "Serena Williams beats traffic, opponent at Sony Open". 24 March 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "Angelique Kerber storms into the semi-finals". 6 April 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "Spain beats Japan 4-0 in Fed Cup WG playoff". 21 April 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "Kanepi back in Portugal Open tennis semifinals". 2 May 2013. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ^ "Tennis - Victoria Azarenka to clash with Samantha Stosur in Rome quarters". 17 May 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
- ^ "French Open: Venus Williams loses to Urszula Radwanska". 26 May 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
- ^ "Anne Keothavong loses to Alison Riske in Aegon Classic first round". 10 June 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
- ^ "Express farewell to the defender of the Ferrer title in Hertogenbosch!". 18 June 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
- ^ "Tennis: Erakovic into Wimbledon second round". 26 June 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
- ^ "Keys Earns Upset & Cirstea Wins 1st Match At Bank Of The West Classic". 22 July 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2020.
- ^ "Laura Robson & Heather Watson win hard-court season openers". 31 July 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ Gunn, Frank (5 August 2013). "Stephens moves on to second round of Rogers Cup women's tournament". www.theglobeandmail.com. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ Ong, Erwin (10 August 2013). "TOP SEEDS, AMERICAN WILDCARDS FALL IN QUALIES". www.wsopen.com. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Tennis: Morita Withdraws From New Haven Open". 21 August 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Tennis - Japan´s Ayumi Morita withdraws from the US Open". 26 August 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Toray Pan Pacific Open: Laura Robson loses at first hurdle in Tokyo". 23 September 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Venus silences Azarenka in Tokyo". 24 September 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Sabine Lisicki advances into the second round of the HP Open". 9 October 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Zhang Shuai wins second WTA title at Nanjing Ladies Open". 3 November 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Solovyeva stuns top seed Date-Krumm in Taipei". 7 November 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ Shannon, Kris (1 January 2014). "Tennis: Top seed out of Classic as big names depart early". www.nzherald.co.nz. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Tennis: Normal service resumes at ASB Classic". 1 January 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Bulgarian Pironkova Defeats Morita in Sydney Qualifiers". 3 January 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ KALINIC, DEJAN (16 January 2014). "Australian Open 2014: Maria Sharapova survives scare on sweltering Day 4". www.sportingnews.com. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Monterrey Open: Ana Ivanovic brushes aside Aleksandra Wozniak". 4 April 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "PLISKOVA SISTERS ADVANCE TO SECOND ROUND IN KUALA LUMPUR". 15 April 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
- ^ "Ayumi Morita announces retirement from tennis". Women's Tennis Association. 7 August 2023. from the original on 8 August 2023. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
External links edit
- Ayumi Morita at the Women's Tennis Association
- Ayumi Morita at the International Tennis Federation
- Ayumi Morita at the Billie Jean King Cup
- Ayumi Morita at ESPN.com
- Ayumi Morita at Olympedia
- Ayumi Morita at Olympics.com