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SOFIA, Bulgaria - The round robin wrapped up and semifinal match-ups were set at the Qatar Airways Tournament Of Champions Sofia on Friday, as Nadia Petrova outdid Tsvetana Pironkova and finished first in Group Sredets.

With Group Serdika's Top 2 already set - Caroline Wozniacki finished No.1, Roberta Vinci finished at No.2 - the Top 2 for Group Sredets boiled down to Friday's encounter between Petrova and Pironkova, the winner of which would finish No.1 in the group and the loser of which would finish No.2 in the group.

Pironkova had beaten Petrova in their only previous meeting and things looked headed the same way as she took the opening set, 7-5. But Petrova regrouped and came out very strong from there, winning nine of the next 10 games to win the second set, 6-1, and go up 3-0 in the third; Pironkova stopped the avalanche temporarily, winning three games to even it, 3-all, but Petrova rebounded with three of her own to close out a 57 61 63 win, improving to 3-0 in the group.

So, the semifinal match-ups are now set for Saturday, with the No.1s from each group playing the No.2s from the other group: Wozniacki will play Pironkova (Wozniacki has won all three of their previous meetings) and Petrova will play Vinci (Petrova and Vinci have split their four previous meetings).

"Roberta is one of those tricky players - she uses a one-handed backhand and uses a lot of slice, which is unusual for the women's game and brings a lot of trouble for her opponents," Petrova said. "But since we're playing indoors the conditions are faster, so if I'm serving well and putting pressure on her service games and being aggressive, I hope tomorrow's match will be in my favor."

Wozniacki will make a return to the Top 10 if she beats Pironkova, going from No.11 to No.10 (pushing Marion Bartoli from No.10 down to No.11).

Pironkova is excited for the match: "With each match I'm playing better and better, and I hope I can still keep improving tomorrow," the Bulgarian said. "It is going to be tough against Caroline, but I think I'll have my chances.

"The crowd has been amazing this week. They're getting bigger and bigger each day, which makes me very happy, and tomorrow we're expecting full capacity, so it'll be an amazing atmosphere out there. I'm very excited to play."

There were two other round robin matches Friday, though neither affected the semifinals. First up was Sofia Arvidsson facing Zheng Jie - Arvidsson was an alternate, stepping in for Maria Kirilenko, who had to withdraw from the tournament with an upper respiratory illness - and lightning struck again, as Zheng had to retire down 5-1 in the first set of this match with the same ailment.

Arvidsson was asked afterwards about having the same first name as the city. "Yeah, that's very special actually, it's really cool," she said. "I was so excited yesterday when they told me I get to play - and it's a very nice arena, so I'm very happy I got a chance to play on it. Seeing my name on the court was funny."

In the last match of the day, Hsieh Su-Wei and Daniela Hantuchova battled it out, Hsieh trying to use her mix of spins and angles to unsettle the hard-hitting Slovak - and it did, as the Taiwanese No.1 won in a close finish, 61 06 64.

"I was trying really hard to win today," Hsieh said. "I just played her in Pattaya this year and it was tough. She has a great serve, great return and great volleys - I just tried to get every ball back and stay consistent, and just play my game.

"It was a wonderful experience to be here and it has been a great year for me, my fans and tennis in Taiwan," Hsieh continued. "First we had our first WTA winner in 19 years then the second one, then I made it here to Sofia."

SOFIA, Bulgaria - Nadia Petrova edged Maria Kirilenko at the Qatar Airways Tournament Of Champions Sofia on Thursday afternoon, and - after Kirilenko was forced to withdraw from the event afterwards - Petrova and Tsvetana Pironkova secured spots in the semifinals of the season-ender.

For close to three hours - two hours and 48 minutes, to be exact - Petrova and Kirilenko put their aggressive games on display at Arena Armeec, having both won their first round robin matches in straight sets the day before. They had split their eight previous meetings - who would break the head-to-head tie?

After Kirilenko took the first set, Petrova stayed close in the second set, twice going up a break but losing those breaks right away, but eventually taking it in a tie-break anyway. They were neck-and-neck early in the third but Petrova made one final push and completely pulled away, reeling off four straight games from 2-3 - winning 16 of the last 20 points of the match, too - to finish it, 36 76(4) 63.

"In the beginning I couldn't understand why my shots were flying long so much - I was really making a lot of unforced errors that way, and it was frustrating," Petrova said. "I've been changing a lot of racquets and I'm still trying to figure out which tension to use, because I didn't really have enough days to practice here before starting to play, but today I switched to a tighter tension and I'm happy I could fight through those circumstances and beat such a tough player.

"This win for sure is going to give me some confidence," the Russian added. "She's the toughest opponent in the group and it was a very tight match, and now I have a 2-0 lead in the group - every little advantage helps here."

The match was so close, Kirilenko actually won more points than Petrova - 101 to 100. And another stat that might defy expectations - Kirilenko out-aced Petrova in the match, 9-7, somewhat of a surprise given Petrova has been the ace leader on the WTA two of the last five years (Serena Williams has been the leader twice, and Marion Bartoli snuck in there for one year too).

Unfortunately, Kirilenko was forced to withdraw from the tournament afterwards due to an upper respiratory illness, meaning Petrova and Pironkova will be the two players qualifying for the semifinals out of Group Sredets - they will play each other on Friday to determine who finishes No.1 and No.2 in the group. Zheng Jie will play an alternate, though neither can qualify for the semis.

Pironkova beat Petrova in their only previous meeting.

Kirilenko talked about the withdrawal later: "I'm very sorry that I cannot continue to play my matches here at the Qatar Airways Tournament Of Champions Sofia. It was such an honor to receive the wildcard and I just want to thank Tournament Director Stefan Tzvetkov for giving me the chance to compete here in Sofia. Unfortunately with this illness I can't finish the tournament as I'd have wished, but I've really enjoyed my time in Bulgaria and hope to be back."

SOFIA, Bulgaria - With just one more match for the season, she said she was going to leave every last bit of energy out there, and she really did - Nadia Petrova completely overpowered Caroline Wozniacki to win her third WTA title of the year at the Qatar Airways Tournament Of Champions Sofia.

Both players were looking strong going into the final, going undefeated in their round robin groups and fending off inspired opponents in the semifinals. But when it came to the final it was one way traffic, as the No.2-seeded Petrova was on fire, both off the ground and on serve - she held all seven of her service games and broke the No.1-seeded Wozniacki five times to cruise, 62 61.

Petrova's serve was particularly devastating in Sofia - she finished the week with 24 straight holds of serve (holding her last two service games against Tsvetana Pironkova in their round robin match, all 15 of her service games against Roberta Vinci in the semifinals, then all seven against Wozniacki).

"After my match against Vinci last night I didn't think I'd have enough time to recover, but I did all the right things and woke up feeling good," Petrova said. "I knew this was the last one and that I just had to give everything I had left.

"I had some long matches before this, so I had to keep this one to two sets. I didn't really have so much left in my tank, so I had to play smart and keep the points short. Caroline's a great mover and so consistent, so I mixed it up and kept her guessing so that she didn't know what was coming from my side.

"This is a great accomplishment and a great way to finish the season."

Petrova had already won WTA titles this year at 's-Hertogenbosch and Tokyo [Pan Pacific], making this the second time she has won three or more WTA titles in a season (she won five in 2006). She now has 13 total WTA titles.

The Russian was asked afterwards how her current form compares to her 2006 form, which took her up to No.3 in the world. "I cannot say I'm playing my best right now, but I'm definitely going in the right direction," she said. "I'm trying to bring the good years back right now though. Hopefully with the preparation I'm doing in the off-season for next year, you'll be able to see the old Petrova.

"I would love to play singles in Istanbul next year."

Wozniacki reflected on the loss and the overall week afterwards.

"Nadia played very well. Her service games were tough, and in the rallies I tried to push her back and make her move, but it just didn't go my way," Wozniacki said. "In the first set I felt like we had a lot of close games, but in the second set I was forcing myself too much and made too many unforced errors.

"I would have loved to win today, but I didn't, and I've had a good week. I played some good tennis during the week, which I'm very happy about."

And not just this week, but the whole fall - since falling first round at the US Open and subsequently falling out of the Top 10, Wozniacki has only been climbing back up, winning 18 of her last 21 matches of the season - and on Monday she will make her return to the Top 10, going from No.11 to No.10.

"I'm very pleased with how I finished the season. I feel like I'm playing very good tennis again, and that I've come back to the game I'm winning many matches with. I'm very much looking forward to the new season as well - but right now it's about having a nice holiday, and then coming back and practicing hard for that!"

Breakthroughs, ranking movers and much more - every week wtatennis.com will be serving up a summary of stats in WTA Odds N' Ends...

Nice Finish For NadiaNadia Petrova completed her season in glorious fashion at the Qatar Airways Tournament of Champions Sofia, going undefeated in round robin action then winning her semifinal and final matches to secure her third WTA title of 2012.- She finished the week with 24 straight holds of serve.- She tied Svetlana Kuznetsova for sixth place on the list of active players with the most WTA titles:1. Serena Williams: 462. Venus Williams: 443. Maria Sharapova: 274. Caroline Wozniacki: 205. Victoria Azarenka: 146t. Svetlana Kuznetsova: 136t. Nadia Petrova: 13

Wozniacki also had some significant accomplishments.-She won her 50th WTA main draw match of 2012 in the semifinals, the fifth straight year she has won at least that many - the longest such active streak.- She finished 2012 with 12 indoor hardcourt match wins, the most on the WTA.- She went up a spot to No.10 on the new rankings, and will be spending her 174th week in the Top 10 - sixth-most among active players:1. Venus Williams: 5542. Serena Williams: 5483. Maria Sharapova: 3234. Svetlana Kuznetsova: 2845. Jelena Jankovic: 2266. Caroline Wozniacki: 174

Mladenovic Takes TaipeiKristina Mladenovic was victorious at the first-ever WTA $125 event - the OEC Taipei WTA Ladies Open. She was pushed to three sets in three of her five matches en route to the title, including coming back from 3-0 down in the third set of her semifinal match. It was her biggest title to date, having previously captured four ITF Women's Circuit titles. Her best WTA outing is a semifinal showing at Québec City in September. Consequentially, Mladenovic skyrocketed 22 spots to a career-high No.76 on the rakings.

Mladenovic also took the doubles title in Taipei alongside Chan Hao-Ching. It was their first outing together. Mladenovic also has two WTA doubles titles, each of them coming this year. This was the first doubles title beyond the ITF level for Chan.

Ranking News- After reaching the final four in Taipei, Misaki Doi climbed seven spots to No.97 and made her Top 100 debut.- Angelique Kerber finished at No.5, making her the highest-ranked German on the year-end rankings since Steffi Graf was first in 1996.- Sara Errani finished at No.6, making her the highest-ranked Italian ever on the year-end rankings.- Victoria Azarenka and Serena Williams each finished the season with over $7 million in prize money. No player had ever gone over the $7 million mark prior to this year.

SOFIA, Bulgaria - They're the No.2 and No.3-ranked Russians in the world, together they're one of the best doubles teams in the world, and right now they can be found in the part of the world where eight of the best players in the world are battling it out for season-ending WTA glory - in beautiful Sofia, Bulgaria.

Trailing only Maria Sharapova, Nadia Petrova and Maria Kirilenko are the two best exports from Russia, and - fresh off the doubles title at last week's WTA Championships in Istanbul - they have travelled to Sofia to finish their singles seasons off at the Qatar Airways Tournament Of Champions Sofia.

Both of them played their first round robin matches of the week on Wednesday and both won in straight sets, beginning with the No.2-seeded Petrova, who beat No.6-seeded Zheng Jie, 63 63. It was her ninth win in the pair's 10 career meetings - and the only loss in that bunch came by means of retirement, too.

But Wednesday's win was anything but dominant, Petrova said: "The score may look a little easy, but it didn't feel easy to me at all. I started well but I wasn't feeling great on my serve - I didn't really feel in control of my game, and she broke my serve three times in the first set alone, which was disappointing.

"But I'm happy with my returning, and I'm hoping to serve better tomorrow."

In the next match on center court, No.3 seed Kirilenko cruised through the first set then bounced back from a 2-0 hole in the second set - saving two points for a 3-0 hole, too - to dispatch No.8 seed Tsvetana Pironkova, 61 64.

"I had never played against Tsvetana before. I saw a couple of games when she played yesterday, but it's always different just seeing the player and actually playing them," Kirilenko said after the match. "I decided to just see how it went the first couple of games, and then figure out what to do from there.

"I did everything right in the first set, I think. Everything was tighter in the second set, but that's normal, and I'm happy I could finish it in straight sets."

Petrova and Kirilenko are 1-0 in the Group Sredets round robin group now; Pironkova is 1-1, while Zheng is 0-2, having lost to Pironkova on Tuesday.

Not only have the two Russians been tearing up the doubles court together all year, they have both worked their way into the Top 15 in singles, even within striking distance of the Top 10. Petrova's season highlight came just a few weeks ago in Tokyo, where she won her 12th and biggest WTA title; Kirilenko had a slew of sizzling results during the summer season, reaching the quarterfinals of Wimbledon, the semifinals of the Olympics and the final of New Haven (after which she set a new career-high ranking of No.12).

Now Kirilenko and Petrova will play against each other in the only Group Sredets match on Thursday, with the head-to-head series tied, 4-4. They have only played once in 2012, with Kirilenko winning a bizarre one at Indian Wells, originally leading 61 51 but eventually closing it out, 61 57 62.

"I thought my game was awesome until 61 51, but then Nadia started playing very well," Kirilenko said after that match. "I wasn't making any mistakes - she was playing very aggressively and running well too. But I made sure to stay focused and not get upset, and just start fighting again in the third set."

"We've spent so much time playing and practicing this year that we know each other's weaknesses and strengths very well," Petrova said. "Tomorrow it'll be about who goes on the court and feels better and plays better on the day."

SOFIA, Bulgaria - Nadia Petrova and Roberta Vinci - a pair of WTA veterans who have both made career breakthroughs this season - have qualified for the Qatar Airways Tournament Of Champions Sofia, which is in two weeks.

With the two wildcards already announced last week - Maria Kirilenko and Tsvetana Pironkova - the remaining six spots in the eight-woman tournament are reserved for the six highest-ranked players on the WTA who have captured an International-level title during the year and who aren't playing in Istanbul.

Petrova, currently ranked No.13 in the world, captured her International-level title the week before Wimbledon on the grass courts of 's-Hertogenbosch.

"It's a good achievement to make the Tournament Of Champions - it means it's another year I won a tournament, which qualified me to play in this event," Petrova commented. "I think Sofia will be a good way to finish off the year."

Petrova has enjoyed a career renaissance this year, highlighted by her 11th and 12th WTA titles at 's-Hertogenbosch and Tokyo - the Tokyo title was in fact the biggest title of her career, and she defeated three Top 10 players at the same event for the first time to win it. She also has one semifinal (Carlsbad) and two quarterfinals (Charleston and Estoril) this year and has been one of the top doubles teams with fellow Russian - and fellow Sofia participant - Kirilenko.

"I guess the hard work pays off!" the former World No.3 said. "It's been a long season with lots of things going on, but it's really nice to be playing good tennis at the end of the season and be at the stage I am right now in my career."

Vinci, who currently stands at No.15, also won her International-level title the week before a Grand Slam event - at Dallas, right before the US Open.

"Last year I went to Bali and it was unbelievable, so I am happy to qualify for Sofia this year," Vinci said. "I don't remember ever being to Bulgaria, so I'm very excited to visit for the first time. I hope I can finish the season well."

After a 2011 season that saw her break into the Top 20 for the first time, Vinci has done even better in 2012, breaking into the Top 15 for the first time - her best moments this year came at the end of the summer during a nine-match winning streak, winning her seventh WTA title at Dallas and reaching her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at the US Open. She also reached two semifinals (Acapulco and Estoril) and four more quarterfinals (Paris [Indoors], Birmingham, 's-Hertogenbosch and Montréal) and has been part of the world's No.1 doubles team this year, alongside fellow Italian and best friend Sara Errani.

"I'm so happy with my season this year - I played a really good season," Vinci said. "I'm going to do my best in Sofia, and I'm also going to do my best in doubles in Istanbul with Sara - we played an unbelievable year, with victories at Roland Garros and the US Open, so all of this is a dream right now."

Both Petrova and Vinci are making their second appearances at the Tournament Of Champions, having both played it when it was a single elimination event last year - Vinci lost in the quarterfinals, Petrova the semifinals. This year it's a round robin format feeding into the semifinals and final on the weekend.

"It used to be easier in a way with the knock-out format, but now it's guaranteed every player will play three matches, which I'm sure will mean more competition and enjoyment for the crowds," Petrova said. "I'm really looking forward to it!"

The last four spots in the eight-woman field will be known over the next week.

MARIA KIRILENKO (RUS)Residence: Moscow, RussiaDate of Birth: January 25, 1987Birthplace: Moscow, RussiaHeight: 5' 9" (1.74 m)Weight: 132 lbs. (60 kg)Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)   NADIA PETROVA (RUS)Residence: Miami, FL, USADate of Birth: June 8, 1982Birthplace: Moscow, RussiaHeight: 5' 10 1/4" (1.78 m)Weight: 143 lbs. (65 kg)Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)

Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova have played periodically together as far back as 2008, in fact winning their first two events at Cincinnati and Moscow. The Russians committed to team up on a regular basis in 2012 and though they only captured two titles, they were elite events - Miami and the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships.

"It was so difficult to qualify for this tournament - we only did it last week in Moscow - so to be the last team in and win it is just great," Kirilenko said about their triumph at the season finale. "We had a great tournament here and this is an amazing feeling."

Other 2012 highlights included a run to the final at the French Open, bronze medals at the Summer Olympics in London and becoming one of the few teams to take down the Williamses in Grand Slam play with a third round upset of the sisters at the US Open.

"We both very much enjoy playing together, finding tactics to beat the other team," Petrova said. "We have good communication. She's always having fun on the court. If we lose, we're not very down and we look forward to the next one. Just being positive is the key for us."TEAM STATS2012 Record: 36-12Career Record: 49-15Career Record On Hard: 33-9Career Record On Clay: 9-3Career Record On Grass: 7-3Career Olympics Record: 4-1Career Grand Slam Record: 14-52012 HIGHLIGHTSWON (2): Miami, WTA Championships; R-Up (3): Roland Garros, 's-Hertogenbosch, Moscow

CAREER HIGHLIGHTSWON (4): 2012 - Miami, WTA Championships; 2009 - Moscow; 2008 - Cincinnati; R-Up (3): 2012 - Roland Garros, 's-Hertogenbosch, Moscow

KIRILENKO'S INDIVIDUAL DOUBLES STATSTitles: 12 (one WTA Championships)Career-High Ranking: No.5PETROVA'S INDIVIDUAL DOUBLES STATSTitles: 21 (two WTA Championships)Career-High Ranking: No.3

See where Maria & Nadia reside on the latest doubles rankings here.

SOFIA  - Russia's Nadia Petrova routed top-seed Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 6-2, 6-1 to clinch the season-ending Tournament of Champions in emphatic style here on Sunday in one hour and 27 minutes of play.

"It's been a really big pleasure playing here," Petrova said, thanking her coach Ricardo Sanchez. "We've been through ups and downs this season. But what a great finish!" she said.

Petrova arrived in Sofia from the WTA Championship in Istanbul, where she won the doubles title together with fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko.

"It's a great way to finish the season with a title in doubles and today in singles so now I'm just looking forward to a rest and getting strong and healthy for next year," Petrova said.

"Today didn't go the way that I'd hoped for, obviously. But Nadia played a very good match," Wozniacki shrugged. Petrova soon found her game, breaking Wozniacki's first serve and winning her own service game, despite two double faults before the Dane recovered to hold to love.

The Russian however kept calm to take her next service and broke Wozniacki's serve again in the fifth with extremely powerful cross-court drives to the sides that denied the Dane time and room to set the pace.

Petrova then managed to prevent Wozniacki from converting a break point in the sixth game.

Wozniacki won her next service game but failed to disrupt the Russian's very solid play, allowing her to take the set in 50min.

Despite massive support for her from the crowd in Sofia's Arena Armeec Hall, Wozniacki allowed Petrova to break her serve again at the start of the second set and win her own service game, Wozniacki only stopping the rot in the fifth game and then conceding serve again as she conceded the encounter.

Petrova won $270,000 for her win and clinched 12th spot in the end of year WTA ranking by pushing down Serbia's Ana Ivanovic. In reaching the final, Wozniacki also grabbed a year-end top ten ranking, moving up from 11th spot above Marion Bartoli of France, who was not competing here. The Tournament of Champions featured the six highest-ranked players who have won a title during the season but did not qualify for the WTA Championships, along with two wild cards. It closed out the WTA calendar.

Second-seeded Nadia Petrova of Russia grabbed the trophy of the Tournament of Champions in Sofia after unexpectedly beating top seed Caroline Wozniacki on Sunday.

Petrova gave Wozniacki surprisingly hard time throughout the final match of Qatar Airways Tournament of Champions in Bulgaria's capital.

Thanks to her high speed, stability and solid, seamless performance the Russian clinched her victory 6:2, 6:1 against the Danish star, who very often appeared toothless in her game and failed to impede her opponent.

Caroline Wozniacki however produced one of the best shots in the tournament – a short shot that took advantage of Petrova's inability to move quickly inside the court.

Local commentators lauded Petrova's coach Ricardo Sanchez for studying carefully the Danish star's style and knowing well her vulnerable points.

A day earlier Petrova defeated Roberta Vinci of Italy 6-7 (8-10), 6-1, 6-4 in a dramatic match that lasted 2 hours, 42 minutes.

Caroline Wozniacki, who began this year as Number one in the WTA rankings, was the group leader due to her high ranking in WTA.

Making it to the final and playing for her third title (after Seoul and Moscow) ensured Wozniacki's return to the top 10 when the rankings are updated on Monday. She will rise from No. 11 to No. 10, swapping with Marion Bartoli.

For Petrova, this is the third title of the year. During her previous four matches with Wozniacki, she had suffered defeats.

The tournament in Sofia featured eight tennis players, two of whom received a "wild card" - the best Bulgarian female tennis star Tsvetana Pironkova and Russian Maria Kirilenko, who is No. 15 in the rankings.

The 2012 WTA Tournament of Champions is a singles-only tennis tournament that was played on indoor hard courts in Sofia's Arena Armeec hall.

This was the fourth edition of the tournament, part of the 2012 WTA Tour.

The 2012 edition was the first to be held in Sofia, having been relocated from Bali, where the tournament was held for the previous three years and called the Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions.

Sofia will host WTA Tournament of Champions next year too.

Tags: Jie Zheng, Daniela Hantuchova, Caroline Wozniacki, Roberta Vinci, nadia petrova, Venus Williams, Russian, Tsvetana Pironkova, Qatar Airways, Magdalena Maleeva, WTA, Tournament of Champions, tennis, Maria Kirilenko, Bulgaria, sofia, Su-Wei Hsieh, Caroline Wozniacki » Subscribe to receive alerts by email for any of these keywords.

8:41AM EST November 5. 2012 - Nadia Petrova is the only women's tennis player this year to leave her last singles and doubles tournaments with trophies, and on Sunday it showed.

Soon after the 30-year-old Russian ended a great season by beating former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki in Sunday's Qatar Airways Tournament of Champions final in Sofia, Bulgaria, she talked to USA TODAY Sports. As in really, really talked. Petrova, who can be talkative but also taciturn, started the interview downright voluble.

Asked to explain the year she's had -- among her best in 15 years on the WTA tour -- Petrova did. Without interruption for two and a half minutes.

She closed with this: "Today I just played perfect tennis. ... I'm very happy the way ended the season."

Petrova's best-known for an aggressive game and a huge serve, but she credited yesterday's win to several things. To serving well, yes. But also to moving Wozniacki around. And to keeping Wozniacki guessing with varied shot selection.

"I kept the momentum going from the beginning until the end -- I didn't take my foot off the gas," says Petrova.

Coach

Her weekend capped a year in which Petrova has won three singles titles ('s-Hertogenbosch, Tokyo, Sofia) and two doubles titles (Miami, WTA Championships).

How to explain the success? Petrova began with one person: Her coach.

"The turning point was that after being just with a hitting partner previous season I started working with Ricardo Sanchez," says Petrova. "He really sees my game well and knows exactly how I should be playing. He remembers the days when I was No. 3 in the world, so he had already a picture in his mind for me. We started working, and I guess the hard work is paying off."

She likes how he breaks things down for her before a match. And when things aren't going well during a match "he always seems to have an answer."

Sanchez started the year with Wozniacki. (The stint was short-lived.) That probably helped Sunday, but Petrova adds, "Ricardo is such an experienced coach he doesn't need actually to coach someone to know how the person plays. He's seen them already so many times, and his players played them already so many times. So he knows everyone perfectly."

Doubles

Petrova has checked off both of her main to-dos this year. After starting the year ranked No. 29 she wanted to get back into the Top 20. She did: Petrova will end the year ranked No. 12.

Her other goal was shared by many others: To medal at the Olympics. This Petrova did with Maria Kirilenko, her countrywoman and primary 2012 doubles partner. The pair, who won a bronze medal, also won two other huge events this year -- Miami in March and the WTA Championships in Istanbul last month.

Petrova, who reached her career-high doubles ranking of No. 3 in 2005, is back in the doubles top five for the first time since then. Doubles success has helped her singles results.

"We both are good singles players, and we were able to transfer it into the doubles," Petrova says. "It's so much more fun because you have someone to communicate (with) and find the tactics to beat the opponents. It also helped us a lot in our singles game. It brings a lot of balance. And if you don't do well in singles at the tournament you still have doubles and it's great practice. It wasn't my concern rising up in the doubles ranking this year -- it just happened by itself."

The pair was the last of four teams to qualify for the WTA Championships. They ultimately beat the other contenders in a semifinal in Moscow to earn that last spot in Istanbul. "When we got there we were so excited and we won the title in doubles," says Petrova. "It gave me more positive emotions, and it kind of was a booster for Sofia."

But next year they'll play with other partners. Both will team up with veteran doubles specialists who are former doubles No. 1s. Kirilenko will play with Lisa Raymond, 39, and Petrova will play with Katarina Srebotnik, 31.

Petrova explains: "It's really hard after singles going and playing doubles. That's why I think it's better for us next year to focus on our singles, and when we're done with our singles matches we have partners full-time playing doubles. They're fresh, and they can help us out that way."

Russians and others

Now the No. 2 Russian in the rankings, Petrova said good things about the four other Russians in the top 50. There's this about the No. 1 Russian, Maria Sharapova: "She won French Open, the only Grand Slam she hasn't had. She showed again what she is made of."

Petrova noted that Kirilenko had one of her best seasons then continued: "And who else do we have? Pavlyuchenkova had a decent year. Makarova is getting more consistent and improving and showing that in the next couple of years she can break top 20 and be a dangerous player."

Asked about the year her latest opponent, Wozniacki, has had, Petrova paused. She seemed to consider if and how to reply. But reply she did: "I mean she's been No. 1 for two years -- this is a huge accomplishment. You know, a little slump can happen. But then she started picking up her game. She won Seoul and Moscow, and she got to the final here and she's back in top 10. And I'm sure she's going to do the right things in offseason to get stronger and try to regain her No. 1 spot."

Goals

So it's the offseason, and it's just in time for Petrova. When you consider both singles and doubles WTA main-draw matches this year, only Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci have played more. (Petrova played 57 singles matches and 61 doubles matches.)

First she'll take three weeks off, says Petrova: "My body got some beating this year. I need to rest, not just physically but mentally too."

Come December she'll start preparing for 2013. She looks forward to working with Sanchez on her conditioning and her game. She didn't start working with him until this year, so she didn't have his help during the last offseason. She hopes to make the most of their "four or five crucial weeks" and hopes we'll see "the old Nadia next season." The Nadia once ranked world No. 3.

This Nadia has two goals. The first is to get back into the Top 10. The second she reveals with a long sigh and a little optimism:

"And I'm having an eye on the big prize -- hopefully one of the Slams -- so that I can really say my career is perfect."

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