Starting on December 7—the 25th day left in 2010—TENNIS.com will countdown from the year-end No. 25 on both tours with "The Last Word," a look back at the year that was and a look ahead at the season to come. Here's who we've looked at so far.
Best of 2010
Kirilenko bolted out of the gates, reaching her first career Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open. The result catapulted her ranking from No. 58 to No. 37. Her defeated opponents included Russian compatriot Maria Sharapova (in the first round, in three sets) and Dinara Safina (fourth round, by retirement). Kirilenko would fall to Zheng Jie.
Worst of 2010
Kirilenko wasn’t able to build on her breakthrough performance in Melbourne. She won only three games in a first-round loss to then-No. 99 Regina Kulikova in Dubai, then bowed out in the second round of both Indian Wells and Miami.
Year in Review
After a subpar 2009 campaign (she finished the season ranked No. 63), Kirilenko rebounded nicely and finished with a career-high year-end ranking. She didn’t win any titles—and hasn’t since 2008—but Kirilenko added some impressive scalps to her resumé (Svetlana Kuznetsova, twice, Sharapova and Shahar Peer). In those victories, the ex-Sports Illustrated swimsuit model showed flashes of brilliance. Kirilenko is not a big girl, but she gets the most out of her frame and hits the ball with good pop. But, as her trophy-less season proved, she must work on her consistency. Though Kirilenko earned some fine wins, she had quite a few head-scratching losses.
See for Yourself
In arguably her best win of the year, Kirilenko overcame former Australian Open champion Sharapova in Melbourne. Kirilenko trades blows with her hard-hitting opponent in this clip, then takes the upper hand with an array of powerful serves and cross-court winners:
The Last Word
Kirilenko was solid in 2010, but it didn’t add up to a title at any point. Until she can consistently beat Top 20 players, she won’t have much room for growth. Look for her to remain constant, settling between No. 20 and No. 30 next season.
—Brad Kallet