Angelique Kerber

Angelique Kerber (born 18 January 1988) is a German-Polish professional tennis player.[1]

Having made her professional debut in 2003, Kerber rose to prominence upon reaching the semi-finals of the 2011 US Open, at which time she was ranked no. 92 in the world. Currently at a career-high ranking of world no. 2 (which she achieved on February 1, 2016), Kerber is the highest-ranked German and left-handed player on the WTA Tour.

Known for her aggressive counter-punching game and left-handed shots, Kerber has won eight singles titles and at least one title on every surface on the WTA Tour, most notably her first Grand Slam title at the 2016 Australian Open. She has won a further five titles at the Premier-level tournaments of Paris (indoors), Charleston, Stuttgart, Birmingham and Stanford. Furthermore, she has won eleven singles and three doubles titles on the ITF tour during her career.

Contents 1 Personal life 2 Career 2.1 2003–2007: Career beginnings 2.2 2008–2010: Slow and steady rise, first WTA final 2.3 2011: Breakthrough, US Open semifinal 2.4 2012: First WTA title, Wimbledon semifinal and Top 5 ranking 2.5 2013: Continued success 2.6 2014: Steady ranking 2.7 2015: Winning four WTA titles 2.8 2016: First Grand Slam title

Personal life
Angelique Kerber was born in Bremen, to her Polish father Sławomir Kerber and German mother Beata, and has one sister, Jessica. She started playing tennis aged three and eventually joined the junior circuit. She made inroads at events in Germany and elsewhere in Europe, but did not win a junior title before 2003, at which point she had already turned professional aged 15. Kerber speaks German, Polish and English.[2][3]

Career
2003–2007: Career beginnings

In 2003, Kerber obtained her first top 100 victory by defeating Marion Bartoli in the qualifying draw of the WTA German Open. In 2004, Kerber started the year by reaching the final of an ITF event in Warsaw, but lost to Marta Domachowska. She attained her first ITF title entering as a qualifier in Opole, defeating Elena Tatarkova in the final. In 2005, Kerber competed in the ITF events and qualifying draws. She reached one final in Monzon, losing to Olena Antypina.

2006 was a more successful year for the German as she reached four ITF finals, winning three of them. She was runner-up in Přerov, but then won three events in Saguenay, Glasgow and Jersey. 2006 was also the year that Kerber attained her first WTA tour main draw victory, at the Gaz de France Stars, over world number 48 Romina Oprandi. She later lost to Ana Ivanovic.

In 2007, Kerber won four ITF titles. Having defended her title in Saguenay by defeating fellow German Sabine Lisicki, she won in Las Palmas, in Turkey, and again in Přerov. She also reached three other finals finishing as runner-up. 2007 was Kerber's Grand Slam debut year. She competed in her first Grand Slam main draw at the French Open where she lost to Elena Dementieva in the opening round. She then reached her first main draw quarterfinal at the 2007 Ordina Open, before losing to eventual champion Anna Chakvetadze. At Wimbledon, she once again lost to Chakvetadze in the first round. Then at the US Open, she drew Serena Williams in the first round and lost in straight sets.

2008–2010: Slow and steady rise, first WTA final

In 2008 Kerber attained her first Grand Slam victory in the 2008 Australian Open by beating Maret Ani, before losing to Francesca Schiavone. She then reached the second round of the 2008 Pattaya Women's Open, the third round of the 2008 Pacific Life Open and the second round of 2008 Sony Ericsson Open. She also lost in the first rounds of the 2008 Estoril Open, the 2008 Qatar Total Open, the 2008 Qatar Telecom German Open and the 2008 French Open. She reached the second round at both the 2008 DFS Classic and the 2008 Ordina Open. She lost in the first round of the 2008 Wimbledon Championships to Elena Baltacha but went on to win back-to-back ITF titles in Spain and France. In 2009, Kerber only won three WTA main draw matches and reached the second round of the US Open as a qualifier where she lost to Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez. On the ITF tour she won a tournament in Pozoblanco, Spain, defeating Kristína Kučová in the final.

Kerber practicing In 2010, Kerber qualified for the 2010 Australian Open where she reached her first third round in a Grand Slam by upsetting Olga Govortsova and 23rd seed Aravane Rezaï before losing to Svetlana Kuznetsova in a close three-setter. She then reached her first WTA tour final in 2010 Copa Sony Ericsson Colsanitas, losing to Mariana Duque Mariño after upsetting top-seed Gisela Dulko in the semifinal. She then reached the second round of the 2010 MPS Group Championships, losing to Varvara Lepchenko. She also reached the third round of the 2010 Family Circle Cup, losing to Daniela Hantuchová, and the quarterfinal of the 2010 Grand Prix SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem losing to Renata Voráčová. At the 2010 French Open she lost in the second round to Aravane Rezaï. On grass, she reached the third round of the 2010 Aegon Classic, losing to eventual champion Li Na, and the first round of the 2010 UNICEF Open, losing to Justine Henin. She played in the 2010 Wimbledon Championships, where she made it to the third round after defeating Sania Mirza and upsetting thirteenth seed Shahar Pe'er, but lost against Jarmila Groth.

2011: Breakthrough, US Open semifinal

Kerber at the 2011 US Open, where she made her first Grand Slam semifinal Kerber reached her first quarterfinal of the year at the start of the season at the Hobart International, losing to Bethanie Mattek-Sands. That led to a six-match losing streak which lasted until the Bahamas Women's Open, where she reached the final before losing to Anastasiya Yakimova. She then reached the second round in Miami, losing to Francesca Schiavone. Kerber lost in the first round of Wimbledon to 17-year-old Laura Robson.

Kerber entered the 2011 US Open ranked 92nd in the world. After defeating young American Lauren Davis in three sets, she came up against the 12th seed Agnieszka Radwańska in round two and pulled off a shock 6–3, 4–6, 6–3 result to advance to the third round for the first time. There, she faced unseeded Russian Alla Kudryavtseva, winning in straight sets, and followed it up with victory in the fourth round against Monica Niculescu. Appearing in her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, Kerber surprised 26th seed Flavia Pennetta in three sets to advance to the semifinal, where she lost against the ninth seed, and eventual champion, Samantha Stosur. Kerber reached a career high ranking of world no. 34 after the tournament.

After the Asian swing, Kerber qualified for the Pan Pacific Open where she defeated Bojana Jovanovski in the first round before losing to eventual champion Agnieszka Radwanska. She then reached the semifinals at Osaka where she lost to eventual champion Marion Bartoli. She finished the year as world no. 32.

2012: First WTA title, Wimbledon semifinal and Top 5 ranking

Kerber's first tournament was the 2012 ASB Classic. She defeated Marina Erakovic in the first round; fifth seed Julia Görges in the second round; and the top seed, Sabine Lisicki, in the quarterfinal, when Lisicki retired due to a back injury. She lost her semifinal match to fourth seeded Flavia Pennetta. At the 2012 Australian Open, Kerber was the 30th seed. In the first round, she defeated the wildcard local Bojana Bobusic in straight sets. In the second round she faced Canadian Stéphanie Dubois and defeated her. In the third round, she faced fourth seed Maria Sharapova and lost, winning only three games in the match. As a result, Kerber rose to her career high singles ranking of world number 27.

At the 2012 Fed Cup, Kerber played for Germany against the Czech Republic, teaming up along Sabine Lisicki, Julia Görges and Anna-Lena Grönefeld. Her only rubber was a singles match which she played against Lucie Hradecká. She won the tie, producing Germany's only win in the play-off. Her next tournament was the Open GDF Suez where she was the ninth seed, and where she won her first ever WTA title. In the first round, she faced Lucie Šafářová and won in straight sets. In round two, she faced Monica Niculescu and beat her too. She then played the number one seed Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinals, beating her in straight sets. This set up a semifinal match against the unseeded Yanina Wickmayer which Kerber won. In the final, She played second seed Marion Bartoli in the final and claimed the title, defeating the Frenchwoman in three sets.[4]

Kerber at the 2012 BNP Paribas Open She then entered the 2012 Qatar Total Open where she met Sabine Lisicki again, defeating her in the first round. She lost to unseeded Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova in the second round. Kerber's next tournament was the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. Receiving a bye in the first round as the 18th seed, she defeated the young Sloane Stephens in her opening match, advancing to the fourth round via default over Vania King, who withdrew, and then produced another win from behind against another dangerous player, Christina McHale. Kerber upset eighth seed Li Na in the quarterfinals before her successful week came to an end, losing to world number one and eventual champion Victoria Azarenka. Her ranking improved to a career high of number 14 as a result of that fantastic run in California. As the 14th seed at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Kerber was expected to do well there, but was upset in her opener (having received a bye in the first round) against Zheng Jie.

Kerber's next stop was the 2012 e-Boks Open in Copenhagen where she was the second seed. In her opener, she was pushed to the limit as she struggled past Stéphanie Foretz Gacon and then defeated Anne Keothavong and fellow German Mona Barthel. After that, she defeated third seed and former world number one Jelena Janković to reach her third career WTA final, and second of the year. She won the title, beating the top seed and defending champion Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets.[5] Kerber represented Germany in the Fed Cup semifinal tie against Australia in Stuttgart, losing to world number five Samantha Stosur in her first match before beating Olivia Rogowska. Germany lost the tie, however, at 3–2. At Stuttgart's Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, Kerber advanced to the quarterfinals, with wins over Roberta Vinci and sixth seed Caroline Wozniacki, before losing to third seed Petra Kvitová. At the Mutua Madrid Open, she lost to Li Na in the round of 16. She then reached the semifinals of the Rome Masters after avenging her loss to Kvitová in the last eight, there she succumbed to Sharapova in straight sets. She then reached the quarterfinals of the French Open where she lost to eventual finalist Sara Errani.

Kerber reached the semifinals of Wimbledon in 2012. Kerber reached the final of the Eastbourne grass court tournament, losing to Tamira Paszek, having served for the championship at 5–3 in the deciding set and missing five match points.[6] At the 2012 Wimbledon Championships, Kerber was seeded number eight. In the first round she defeated Lucie Hradecká. In the second round, she defeated the Russian Ekaterina Makarova. She also defeated the number 28 seed Christina McHale in round 3. In the fourth round, she won easily against the former world number one Kim Clijsters with an astonishing score of 6–1, 6–1,[7] booking a place in the quarterfinals in just 49 minutes. In the quarterfinal, she beat fellow German and 15th seeded Sabine Lisicki in three sets, having been down 3–5 in the third.[8] In the semifinal, she lost to number three seed Agnieszka Radwańska.

At the 2012 London Olympics, Kerber was ranked number seven. She beat Petra Cetkovská in the first round, Tímea Babos in the second round and Venus Williams in the third, before losing to number one seed Victoria Azarenka in the quarterfinals. Her first tournament of the 2012 US Open Series was the 2012 Rogers Cup, where she lost in the third round to Roberta Vinci. She then played the 2012 Western & Southern Open, beating Tímea Babos in the second round and Andrea Hlaváčková in the third round. In the quarterfinals, Kerber beat Serena Williams for the first time, winning in straight sets. This snapped Williams's 19-match winning streak. Kerber then defeated Petra Kvitová in the semifinal. However, she fell to Li Na in the final in three sets. At the US Open, Kerber, seeded sixth, struggled to victory over unseeded Venus Williams in the second round. She lost in the fourth round to Sara Errani, the number ten seed from Italy.

Kerber's next tournament after the US Open was the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. She made it to the semifinals before losing to Agnieszka Radwańska. At the China Open, she was seeded sixth and made it to the quarterfinals, but retired against Maria Sharapova. At the season's conclusion, Kerber competed in her first year-end championships, where she was seeded fifth. She exited the tournament in the round robin stage, without winning any matches. She ended 2012 at no. 5 in the world.

2013: Continued success

Kerber began 2013 at the 2013 Brisbane International where she was seeded 4th. She defeated Anna Tatishvili and Mónica Puig before falling lost to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the quarterfinals. She then competed in Sydney as the second seed where she lost to Dominika Cibulková in the semifinals. Kerber reached the fourth round of the 2013 Australian Open, making this the furthest she has ever progressed in the tournament. Along the way, she defeated Elina Svitolina, Lucie Hradecká and Madison Keys. She was subsequently defeated by Ekaterina Makarova after struggling with a back injury. Kerber then lost in her first match of both the Qatar Total Open and in Dubai to Mona Barthel and Roberta Vinci respectively. [9]

Kerber at the 2013 US Open Kerber would then reach the semi-finals at Indian Wells,[10] and the third round in Miami, losing to Caroline Wozniacki and Sorana Cîrstea respectively. Kerber then reached her first final of 2013 in Monterrey as the top seed. She lost to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets.[11]

To kick off the clay court season, Kerber represented Germany in their Fed Cup World Group play-off against Serbia. After defeating Bojana Jovanovski in her first rubber, Kerber fell to Ana Ivanovic in straight sets. This was immediately followed by a run to the semi-finals at Stuttgart, where she fell in three sets to defending (and eventual) champion Maria Sharapova.[12] Kerber then played the 2013 Mutua Madrid Open as the 6th seed. She reached the quarterfinals after defeating Svetlana Kuznetsova but was then being defeated by Ivanovic, again in straight sets; it was Kerber's second loss against her in three weeks.[13]At the French Open, Kerber reached the fourth round, only to be beaten there by unseeded former champion Kuznetsova in three sets.

Kerber was the 3rd seed at the 2013 Aegon International but lost to Ekaterina Makarova in round two. Kerber then made an early exit from Wimbledon where she was a semifinalist the year before, losing in three sets to Kaia Kanepi in the second round.[14]

Kerber's US Open series campaign with a quarterfinal appearance in Washington where she lost to Magdaléna Rybáriková. She then suffered an early loss in Toronto in the hands of Slovak Dominika Cibulková. At Cincinnati, Kerber lost to Li Na in the third round. At the 2013 New Haven Open, she lost to Elena Vesnina in the second round after having a first round bye. Kerber then lost in the fourth round of the US Open to Carla Suárez Navarro. She defeated Lucie Hradecká, rising star Eugenie Bouchard and Kanepi en route.

In September, Kerber reached her 2nd final of 2013 at Tokyo but lost to Petra Kvitová in three sets. The following week at the China Open, she reached the quarterfinals where she lost to Agnieszka Radwańska. At the 2013 Generali Ladies Linz, Kerber won her third WTA title, beating two-time champion Ana Ivanovic and filled the last spot at the WTA Championships. In her second outing at the WTA Championships, Kerber did not advance past the round robin stage. She defeated Radwańska but suffered losses to Serena Williams and Kvitová. She ended the year as world no. 9.

2014: Steady ranking

Kerber at the 2014 Mutua Madrid Open Kerber's first singles event of the season was at the 2014 Brisbane International, reaching the quarterfinals. In Sydney, Kerber made the final, only to lose to Bulgarian qualifier and 107th ranked Tsvetana Pironkova in straight sets.[15] In the fourth round of the 2014 Australian Open, she was defeated by Italian Flavia Pennetta in three sets. At the 2014 Open GDF Suez in Paris, she made it to the quarterfinals before losing to eventual tournament champion Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

Kerber played for Germany in the Fed Cup in February. She contributed to defeating Slovakia by winning both of her singles rubbers, defeating Dominika Cibulková and Daniela Hantuchová respectively. Kerber then reached the final in Doha, losing to Simona Halep. Then, at the 2014 BNP Paribas Open where she was the 5th seed, she lost to María Teresa Torró Flor in her opening match after receiving a first round bye. However, she stepped it up in Miami by reaching the quarterfinals where she lost to world number 1 Serena Williams in straight sets.

Kerber retired in her opening match against Caroline Garcia at Madrid due to a back injury. She fell early again in Rome, losing to Czech Petra Cetkovská in three sets. Kerber played one more tournament before the French Open at Nuremberg where she was the top seed. She fell in the quarterfinals to eventual finalist Karolína Plíšková. At the 2014 French Open, Kerber lost to Eugenie Bouchard in the fourth round.

Kerber during a practice at the 2014 Toray Pan Pacific Open Kerber reached the final at Eastbourne, losing to Madison Keys in three sets. At Wimbledon, Kerber was seeded 9th and defeated Pole Urszula Radwańska in the first round. Afterwards she defeated Heather Watson and 2013 semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens to reach the fourth round, where she defeated Maria Sharapova. In the quarterfinals she lost to Bouchard in straight sets.

In July, Kerber participated in Stanford where she was the 3rd seed. She had a first round bye and faced rising American Coco Vandeweghe in her opening match whom which she defeated in 3 sets. Then she defeated Garbiñe Muguruza and Varvara Lepchenko to reach the final, her 4th final of 2014. There she faced home favourite Serena Williams and lost despite having a lead in the first set. The following week, she played in Montreal where she was the 6th seed. She received a first round bye again. She defeated Caroline Garcia before losing to the resurging Venus Williams in a tough three setter. Kerber was the sixth seed at the 2014 Western & Southern Open and won her second round match against Makarova in straight sets after receiving a first round bye. She then lost to Caroline Wozniacki in the third round. Kerber also lost in the third round of the US Open to unseeded 17-year-old Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, after having defeated Ksenia Pervak and Alla Kudryavtseva in the first and second rounds respectively.

Kerber next participated at the 2014 Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, where she was the top seed. She had a first round bye. She reached the semifinals by defeating Elina Svitolina and Dominika Cibulková before losing to eventual champion Ana Ivanovic. At the 2014 Wuhan Open, Kerber defeated Zarina Diyas and Barbora Záhlavová-Strýcová to reach the quarterfinals. She then lost to Svitolina. The following week at the China Open, Kerber's chances of qualifying for the WTA Finals came to end when she lost to Svetlana Kuznetsova in round 3. Kerber did not qualify for the WTA Finals but entered the tournament as an alternate. Kerber finished 2014 by representing Germany in the Fed Cup final. She lost her first match to Lucie Šafářová in straight sets. In her next match, she faced fellow Top 10 Petra Kvitová, despite losing the first set tiebreak, she avoided a second set bagel by coming back to win it 6-4. She ended up losing the match when Kvitova launched her comeback from 1-4 down in the third set, to win it 6-4, giving the Czech team the title. She finished the season as world no. 10.

2015: Winning four WTA titles

Kerber began the 2015 season at the 2015 Brisbane International, in the process reaching the quarterfinals before losing to Elina Svitolina in straight sets. She then beat Lesia Tsurenko in the first round of the 2015 Apia International Sydney and went on to reach the semifinals before losing to Karolína Plíšková. At the 2015 Australian Open, she suffered a first round loss to Irina-Camelia Begu, it was the first time Kerber lost in the opening round of a Grand Slam tournament since Wimbledon in 2011. Kerber then represented Germany in the Fed Cup where the Germans faced Australia in round 1. She lost her 1st match to Jarmila Gajdošová in 3 sets but then defeated Samantha Stosur in straight sets in her next match. At the Diamond Games, Kerber suffered a shocking straight sets loss to Francesca Schiavone in her opener. Following the loss, Kerber dropped out of the Top 10 for the first time since 2012. At Dubai, Kerber lost to Flavia Pennetta in the third round in 3 sets. The following week in Doha, Kerber drew wild card Victoria Azarenka in the first round and lost in straight sets. In March, Kerber was seeded 13th in Indian Wells and received a first round bye. However, she fell to Sloane Stephens in her opening match. At the Miami Open, Kerber was once again the 13th seed and had a first round bye. She overcame Brit Heather Watson in the second round to face Kuznetsova but lost in 3 sets.

At the 2015 Family Circle Cup, Kerber was seeded 5th. She overcame a 4-2 third set deficit to beat Evgeniya Rodina and then cruised past Lara Arruabarrena to reach the last eight. Her run continued with a win over Irina-Camelia Begu in two tiebreak sets and a straight sets win over fellow German and defending champion Andrea Petkovic to advance to her first final of 2015 where she faced home favourite Madison Keys. She fought back from a 4-1 third set defecit to win in 3 sets, claiming her 4th WTA title and her first since Linz in October 2013. This was the equal of the biggest title of her career (2012 Paris Indoors) and her first title on clay. Kerber then played for Germany against Russia in the semifinals of the Fed Cup. She did not play on the first day, but on the second day she beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets, with the loss of one game. The win however was not enough as Germany lost in the doubles allowing Russia to advance to the final.

At the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, Kerber was unseeded and started her run by beating Alexa Glatch in straight sets. In the second round she beat Maria Sharapova in a three-set blockbuster, ending Sharapova's win streak at the tournament that started back in 2012. The win also made Kerber the second person after Ana Ivanovic to beat Sharapova on clay other than Serena Williams since 2011. She then beat Ekaterina Makarova and Madison Brengle in straight sets to reach the final where she came from a set down and 5-3 down in the final set to beat Caroline Wozniacki in three sets. This was her fifth equal to the biggest title of her career (2012 Paris Indoors and 2015 Family Circle Cup) and saw her extend her winning streak on clay to 11 matches for the season. Kerber could not keep up with this winning streak as it came to an end in the hands of Samantha Stosur in the opening round in Madrid, which Kerber lost in three sets. At the Italian Open, Kerber made it to the second round after defeating Alizé Cornet but lost to Begu. At Nürnberg, Kerber the second seed made it to semifinals but conceded a walkover to Roberta Vinci due to a back injury. At the French Open, Kerber was seeded 11th and easily defeated both Tímea Babos and Ajla Tomljanović in straight sets to reach round three where she faced Garbine Muguruza but crashed out of the tournament in three sets. By virtue of Eugenie Bouchard falling in the first round and not defending her semifinal points, Kerber returned to the Top 10 for the first time since February at No. 10.

Kerber at the 2015 French Open Kerber began her grass court season at the Aegon Classic as the 4th seed and received a first round bye. She advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Tsvetana Pironkova and Jelena Janković. She then overcame young Czech Kateřina Siniaková in straight sets to set up an all-German semifinal where she faced Sabine Lisicki, it was their first meeting since Wimbledon in 2012. Kerber won the match in straight sets and subsequently advanced to her third final of the season where she defeated Karolina Plíšková in a tight three-setter for her 6th career title and her first on grass. This marks the first time Kerber has won more than two titles in a season. At Wimbledon as the 10th seed, Kerber easily beat Carina Witthöft and Pavlyuchenkova to advance to the third round where she lost to eventual finalist Muguruza in three sets. The loss saw Kerber drop out of the Top 10 again.

Kerber began her summer hard court season at the Bank of the West Classic as the fifth seed. Defending finalist points, Kerber easily beat Daria Gavrilova and rising star Ana Konjuh, both in straight sets to advance to the quarterfinals. There, she faced second seed Agnieszka Radwańska whom she defeated in a three-set marathon match in two and a half hours to reach the last four. She then avenged her loss to Svitolina earlier in the year, overpowering the Ukrainian in straight sets to reach the final where she faced Plíšková again. Kerber won in three sets to collect her seventh career title. Kerber then reached the round of 16 at Toronto after defeating a pair of qualifiers Misaki Doi and Monica Puig but then fell short to Simona Halep in three sets. She was then defeated by Belinda Bencic in the first round of the Western & Southern Open in straight sets. At the US Open, 11th seeded Kerber defeated Alexandra Dulgheru and Karin Knapp in straight sets to set up a third round with Azarenka which she lost in three sets.

During the Asian swing, Kerber reached the quarterfinals in Tokyo where she lost to Wozniacki in three sets. At the Wuhan Open, Kerber the 6th seed reached the last eight after dispatching Jelena Jankovic and Camila Giorgi. She then advanced to the semifinals after Coco Vandeweghe retired in the second set. In the semifinals, she faced Muguruza for the fourth time this season and loss in straight sets. Her current tournament is the China Open where she had a first round bye. She routinely advanced to the last eight after easily seeing off both Dominika Cibulkova and 8th seed Wozniacki in straight sets. She then succumbed to Radwanska in straight sets. Kerber then received a wildcard into the Hong Kong Open where she was the second seed. She safely advanced to the final where she faced Jankovic but ran out of steam, falling to the Serb in three sets. It was announced on 21 October that Kerber had qualified for the WTA Finals. As the 6th seed, she was drawn into the same group with Muguruza and fellow lefties Petra Kvitová and Lucie Šafářová. She exited in the round robin stage, managing just one win over Kvitová. Kerber ended her fourth straight year in the Top 10 as world no. 10.

2016: First Grand Slam title

Kerber began the year at the Brisbane International, defeating the likes of Camila Giorgi, Madison Brengle, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Carla Suarez Navarro to reach the final where she came up short to Victoria Azarenka. After defeating Elina Svitolina in the opening round in Sydney, she withdrew with gastro-intestinal illness. Kerber was the 7th seed at the Australian Open and beat Misaki Doi in the first round, having been a match point down. She then scored a triplet of straight-set wins over Alexandra Dulgheru, Brengle and compatriot Annika Beck to reach her first quarterfinal in Melbourne, completing the sweep of quarter final appearances at all four Grand Slams in the process. In the quarter finals, she avenged her Brisbane loss by beating Azarenka in straight sets, her first win against the Belarusian, to advance to her third Grand Slam semi final. In the semi finals, Kerber beat Johanna Konta in straight sets to reach her maiden Grand Slam final where she faced and defeated defending champion and world No. 1 Serena Williams, earning her first Grand Slam title.[16]

Kerber's next scheduled tournament is the Dubai Tennis Championships.