Anna Kournikova was born on 7 June 1981 in Moscow, Russia. At the age of 7, her father began teaching her how to play tennis. Anna practiced everyday. When she was a teenager, she was entered in her first tennis competition. For her looks, Anna became known as the "Britney Spears of Tennis". In 1998, during the Paris Indoors of 1998, her fastest serve was clocked at 111.2 mph.
Anna's first years as a pro were restricted by recent WTA rule changes that limited the number of tournaments that minors could play in. So she played in only 6 WTA events in 1996. In her first Grand Slam appearance, the 1996 US Open, Anna reached the 4th round before she was defeated by Steffi Graf 6-2, 6-1. Anna also appeared in four International Tennis Federation-sanctioned tournaments in 1996, winning two of them, at Midland, Michigan, and at Rockford, Illinois. And in the first Fed Cup "tie" of 1996, she became the youngest player (14) to compete and win in Fed Cup competition, helping Russia defeat Sweden 3-0. Anna began the year ranked 299th. After ending it ranked 56th, she won the 1996 Sanex WTA Tour Most Impressive Newcomer Award.
During her professional career, Anna Kournikova never won a singles WTA title. Teaming with Martina Hingis, they won the doubles title at the 1999 and 2002 Australian Open. She won the European Championships and Italian Open Juniors at the age of 14.
Anna's first years as a pro were restricted by recent WTA rule changes that limited the number of tournaments that minors could play in. So she played in only 6 WTA events in 1996. In her first Grand Slam appearance, the 1996 US Open, Anna reached the 4th round before she was defeated by Steffi Graf 6-2, 6-1. Anna also appeared in four International Tennis Federation-sanctioned tournaments in 1996, winning two of them, at Midland, Michigan, and at Rockford, Illinois. And in the first Fed Cup "tie" of 1996, she became the youngest player (14) to compete and win in Fed Cup competition, helping Russia defeat Sweden 3-0. Anna began the year ranked 299th. After ending it ranked 56th, she won the 1996 Sanex WTA Tour Most Impressive Newcomer Award.
During her professional career, Anna Kournikova never won a singles WTA title. Teaming with Martina Hingis, they won the doubles title at the 1999 and 2002 Australian Open. She won the European Championships and Italian Open Juniors at the age of 14.
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