Vera Zvonareva is set to return to action in 2026 after a sensational Dubai run as the former world No. 2 has signed up to play the Australian Open doubles with Ena Shibahara.
The Russian, who turned 41 in September, had been out of action since May 2024 and the belief was that she had retired. But then, she took a wildcard into the ITF Dubai earlier this month.
In her Dubai comeback, Zvonareva absolutely impressed as she won four singles matches to reach the final before losing to Croatian rising star Petra Marcinko. The 41-year-old also made the Dubai doubles final with Rada Zolotareva - they finished as runners-up after failing to serve out for the match.
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Zvonareva set to debut with Shibahara at the Australian Open
When Zvonareva teams up with Shibahara, they will be debuting as a pair. Shibahara, 27, has had notable success in doubles so far in her career as she has 11 titles in the competition and has been ranked as high as No. 4 in the world. Also, she reached the 2023 Australian Open final with Shuko Aoyama.
During her prime, Zvonareva enjoyed success in both singles and doubles at Melbourne Park - she made the Australian Open singles semifinal in 2009 and 2011, while she also won the tournament in the doubles category with Svetlana Kuznetsova.
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Zvonareva last played at Melbourne Parkin 2022. That year, the Russian lost to Belgian Elise Mertens in the singles first round and also had a round-of-16 outing with Viktoria Hruncakova in the doubles event.
