TheSportsCampus

Serbia's Jelena Jankovic is the eighth and final player to qualify for the season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships-Doha 2009, set to take place for the second year at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha, Qatar, from October 27-November 1. The world's top eight singles players and top four doubles teams from the 2009 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season will compete for the coveted Sony Ericsson Championships title and a share of the record $4.55 million prize money.

Jankovic completes an all-star line-up that features Dinara Safina, the top seed as a result of the Russian reclaiming the World No.1 ranking on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour on Monday, October 26, 2009, as well as Serena Williams, Elena Dementieva, Caroline Wozniacki, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Venus Williams and Victoria Azarenka. The doubles competition features Cara Black/Liezel Huber, Venus Williams/Serena Williams, Nuria Llagostera Vives/Maria José Martínez Sánchez and Rennae Stubbs/Samantha Stosur. Russia's Vera Zvonareva and Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska have been named as singles alternates and will also travel to Doha.

"I am really happy about making it to the Sony Ericsson Championships for the third time in my career," said Jankovic. "It is always a nice feeling to end the season playing in the Championships as one of the best eight players in the world. I'm looking forward to returning to Doha and playing some great matches."

On the heels of a breakthrough 2008 season, which she finished as the World No.1, Jankovic's strong form toward the end of this year saw her draw ahead of her four closest rivals for the eighth qualifying position. She won a Premier Tour title at the Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open (Cincinnati), defeating Safina in the final for her career-first win over a reigning World No.1. She also won the Andalucia Tennis Experience (Marbella) and reached the final at the Toray Pan Pacific Open (Tokyo), losing to Maria Sharapova. Jankovic is one of three players on Tour to hold the World No.1 ranking this season (along with Safina and Serena Williams). Qualifying for the third time in her career, Jankovic has previously competed at the Championships in 2007 in the round-robin stage, and last year, when she advanced to the semifinals.

"Having Jelena at the Sony Ericsson Championships rounds out a tremendous field of accomplished players that definitely will deliver a fantastic week of tennis," said Stacey Allaster, Chairman and CEO of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour. "Jelena is a great competitor and I look forward to seeing her build on the success she had in Doha last season."

When the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Rankings are released on Monday, October 26, Safina will be ranked World No.1 and therefore the top seed at the season-ending event. After holding the top ranking for 25 consecutive weeks (April 20, 2009 - October 11, 2009), she will replace Serena Williams at the top of the rankings when the points earned at the 2008 year-end Championships come off. During the 2009 season, Safina has earned more ranking points than any other player on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour by reaching six finals which yielded three singles titles (Rome, Madrid, Portoroz).

The Championships were first played in 1972 and have been held in such notable venues as Madison Square Garden, New York City; the Olympiahalle in Munich; Staples Center in Los Angeles; and the Recinto Ferial Casa de Campo in Madrid. Former singles champions include Tracy Austin, Kim Clijsters, Chris Evert, Evonne Goolagong, Steffi Graf, Martina Hingis, Martina Navratilova, Gabriela Sabatini, Serena Williams, Justine Henin and Venus Williams.

Photograph Courtesy: Getty Images