Elena Dementieva pulled a huge surprise today in Doha, and it wasn’t an upset of her opponent, French Open champion Francesca Schiavone. After a desultory loss to the Italian, the 29-year-old walked off the court and into the sunset, declaring that she’s calling it a career.
Dementieva thereby established herself as a prime candidate for the ultimate mixed blessing when it comes to recognizing her achievements. She will now and forever be a candidate for the title of Best Player Never to Win a Major.
And it isn’t like Dementieva hasn’t come close before—almost too many occasions to count. She was in the singles finals at the French and U.S. Opens in 2004, and a major quarterfinalist or better on 10 other occasions, including this year at Roland Garros (she tore a calf muscle and had to abandon her semifinal against Schiavone, and thereby missing Wimbledon).
Dementieva’s best chance to win a major was at that French Open of 2004, in which she was crushed by underdog—and friend and contemporary—Anastasia Myskina, 6-1, 6-2. Myskina was ranked in the Top 10 for only two years and was out of tennis by 2007.
A frank, charismatic blue-eyed blonde from Moscow, Dementieva was known for her athleticism and world-class mobility, and sharp, fairly flat groundstrokes. She often struggled with her serve, which at times so thoroughly abandoned her that fans would gasp in horror as the double-faults poured from her racquet. Yet through those horrific displays of faulty mechanics and mental yips, she often found ways to win, albeit not against the very best of her rivals.
All told, Dementieva won 16 WTA titles and over $14 million in prize money. She was ranked in the WTA Top 10 for six years (excluding this year; she’s presently ranked No. 9), reaching a career-high singles ranking of No. 3 last spring. She also won six doubles titles and posted a career-high doubles ranking of No. 5 in April 2003.
Dementieva’s greatest achievement in a career punctuated by almosts was her gold-medal winning performance at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, where she outdueled three players who had been or would be ranked No. 1—Caroline Wozniacki, Serena Williams, and Dinara Safina—to satisfy her Russian countrymen in what is, to them, still the pinnacle of sporting events.
Should Dementieva in the future have trouble sleeping as she recounts the what-ifs of her solid, remunerative career, a glass of warm milk and a quick stroke of that precious gold medal will probably be enough to ensure that she rest more easily.
Peter Bodo is a senior editor for TENNIS.