It was a dramatic year in the world of tennis with a lot of changes taking place at the very top of the game. While Britain's Andy Murray dethroned Serbian tennis ace Novak Djokovic as the Number One player of the world, the women's game also saw the big guns being challenged to the hilt by a group of emerging players who look good to compete with the best for a long time.
Angelique Kerber's rise to the top in the women's game has surely been the success story of the year. The German star won the Australian and the US Open and has been rightfully attributed to bringing about a renaissance of sorts in German Tennis.
Andy Murray was the man to beat all through 2016. After Djokovic claimed the first two Grand Slam's of the year, Murray stepped up his gear to win his second Wimbledon title and then defend his Olympic crown.
Meanwhile American war horse Serena Williams cemented her place as one of the modern day greats by equaling Steffi Graf's record of most singles Grand Slam titles (22) by a female player. She achieved this feat by winning the Wimbledon title this year.
In doubles, the Santina pair was like a juggernaut of sorts clinching a series of WTA titles .The Mirza-Hingis pair ended the year as the top doubles team. In men's doubles the Jamie Murray Bruno Suares pair were the dominant team of the season winning the Australian and US Open.
Argentina finally ended their jinx in the Davis Cup by beating Croatia in the finals to lift their maiden title.The Czech Fed Cup team completed a hatrick of titles after beating Italy in the 2016 edition of the Federation Cup.
So here is a round-up at the top stories in tennis which hogged the limelight for most of the year.
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1. Grand Slam Winners
A. Novak Djokovic defeats Andy Murray to win his 6th Australian Open title
Novak Djokovic started of the 2016 season in spectacular season by winning the first Grand Slam of the season.The Serbian Tennis ace won his 6 th Australian title by defeating arch rival Andy Murray in the men’s singles finals.
B. Novak Djokovic wins French Open, completes Career Grand Slam
Novak Djokovic won the 2016 French Open title by beating Andy Murray in the finals.It was Djoko’s first title at Roland Garros. The Serb tennis ace completed his career grand slam.
Garbine Muguruza stuns Serena Williams to win maiden French Open title
Garbine Muguruza won her first Grand Slam title by beating defending champion Serena Williams 7- 5, 6-4 at the 2016 French Open, denying the American her record-equaling 22nd singles Grand Slam title.
C. Andy Murray wins second Wimbledon Title
Andy Murray defeated big serving Canadian Milos Raonic to win his second Wimbledon crown Andy Murray defeated big serving Canadian Milos Raonic in the finals of the Men’s Singles at the All England Club. The title gave Murray his second Wimbledon crown. Raonic reached his first Grand Slam final.
Serena Williams wins 7th Wimbledon title, equals Steffi Graf''s record of 22 slams
Serena Williams powered her way to a seventh Wimbledon crown as the world number one finally claimed a record-equaling 22nd major title with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Angelique Kerber in women’s singles finals.
D. Swiss tennis ace Stan Wawrinka won the US Open beating Novak Djokovic in the grand finale
It was Wawrinka’s first US Open title and his third grand slam in all. Angelique Kerber beat Karolina Pliskova to win the US Open and lift her second Grand Slam of the year. Kerber added to her remarkable season with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 victory against Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic.
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2. Major International Events
A. 2016 Davis Cup
Argentina won the 2016 Davis Cup by beating Croatia in the finals. Argentina finally managed to lift the coveted trophy after ending runner-up on four previous occasions. In a pulsating final, Argentina came back from behind to win the title after being 1-2 down.
Argentina’s Juan Martin Del Potro got the better of Marian Cilic in the fourth rubber to level the tie 2 all.In the fifth and the deciding rubber, Federico Delbonis defeated Ivo Karlović in the final match to give Argentina its first Davis Cup title.
B. 2016 Fed Cup
Czech Republic beat Italy to win third consecutive Fed Cup Title. Czech Republic won the Fed Cup for a third time in a row after beating France in a hard fought final.
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3. Tennis at 2016 Olympics
Andy Murray defended his 2012 Olympic title by defeating Juan MartÃn del Potro in the final 7–5, 4–6, 6–2, 7–5, becoming the first tennis player ever, male or female, to win two Olympic singles gold medals.
Mónica Puig won Puerto Rico's first ever Olympic gold medal by pulling of an upset to beat Angelique Kerber 6–4, 4–6, 6–1 in the women's singles finals
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