Diamond Games
| Diamond Games | |
|---|---|
| Defunct tennis tournament | |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Abolished | 2015 |
| Location | Antwerp Belgium |
| Venue | Sportpaleis Merksem |
| Category | Tier II (2002–2009) WTA Premier (2015) |
| Surface | Hard (indoors) |
| Draw | 28S / 16D |
| Prize money | $731,000 |
| Website | Sport.be |
The Diamond Games (due to sponsorship known for the last time as BNP Paribas Fortis Diamond Games and before that Proximus Diamond Games, GDF-Suez Diamond Games and Thomas Cook Diamond Games) was a professional women's tennis tournament organised in Antwerp, Belgium. The tournament took place in the Sportpaleis, at the beginning of February.
In 2009, with the restructuring of the WTA Tour and the retirement of both Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin, the tournament lost its status of being a WTA Tour tournament and evolved into an annual exhibition tennis event before returning to the WTA calendar in 2015.[1] Later that year, however, the WTA announced that in 2016, the Diamond Games would be replaced on the WTA calendar with a new tournament in St. Petersburg, Russia.[2]
The Diamond Games offered a trophy to any player who won the singles three times in five years. In 2007, Amélie Mauresmo won a golden racquet decorated with diamonds.[3] A new trophy was unveiled in 2008, which featured a golden racquet and a ball, and was decorated with 2008 diamonds.[4]
Past finals
Singles
| Year | Champions | Runners-up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| ↓ Tier II tournament ↓ | |||
| 2002 | Venus Williams | Justine Henin | 6–3, 5–7, 6–3 |
| 2003 | Venus Williams (2) | Kim Clijsters | 6–2, 6–4 |
| 2004 | Kim Clijsters | Silvia Farina Elia | 6–3, 6–0 |
| 2005 | Amélie Mauresmo | Venus Williams | 4–6, 7–5, 6–4 |
| 2006 | Amélie Mauresmo (2) | Kim Clijsters | 3–6, 6–3, 6–3 |
| 2007 | Amélie Mauresmo (3) | Kim Clijsters | 6–4, 7–6(7–4) |
| 2008 | Justine Henin | Karin Knapp | 6–3, 6–3 |
| 2009–14 | Only exhibition tournaments held | ||
| ↓ Premier tournament ↓ | |||
| 2015 | Andrea Petkovic | Carla Suárez Navarro | Walkover |
Doubles
| Year | Champions | Runners-up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| ↓ Tier II tournament ↓ | |||
| 2002 | Magdalena Maleeva Patty Schnyder |
Nathalie Dechy Meilen Tu |
6–3, 6–7(3–7), 6–3 |
| 2003 | Kim Clijsters Ai Sugiyama |
Nathalie Dechy Émilie Loit |
6–2, 6–0 |
| 2004 | Cara Black Els Callens |
Myriam Casanova Eleni Daniilidou |
6–2, 6–1 |
| 2005 | Cara Black (2) Els Callens (2) |
Anabel Medina Dinara Safina |
3–6, 6–4, 6–4 |
| 2006 | Dinara Safina Katarina Srebotnik |
Stéphanie Foretz Michaëlla Krajicek |
6–1, 6–1 |
| 2007 | Cara Black (3) Liezel Huber |
Elena Likhovtseva Elena Vesnina |
7–5, 4–6, 6–1 |
| 2008 | Cara Black (4) Liezel Huber (2) |
Květa Peschke Ai Sugiyama |
6–1, 6–3 |
| 2009–14 | Only exhibition tournaments held | ||
| ↓ Premier tournament ↓ | |||
| 2015 | Anabel Medina Garrigues Arantxa Parra Santonja |
An-Sophie Mestach Alison Van Uytvanck |
6–4, 3–6, [10–5] |
See also
- Belgian Open – women's tournament (1987–2002)
- Brussels Open – women's tournament (2011–2013)
References
- ^ "WTA Event In Antwerp Will Be Replaced With New Tournament In St. Petersburg". Vavel. 18 August 2015. Retrieved 2015-09-26.
- ^ "WTA Heads to St. Petersburg in 2016". Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Retrieved 2015-09-26.
- ^ "Amelie's diamond day". The Sydney Morning Herald. 19 February 2007. Retrieved 2015-09-26.
- ^ "The custom tennis racquet money can't buy". GiveMeSport. Archived from the original on 2018-09-20. Retrieved 2015-09-26.