- published: 06 May 2014
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Elena Baltacha (Ukrainian: Олена Балтача; born 14 August 1983) is a British professional tennis player of Ukrainian background. Being a four-time winner of the AEGON Award, she is also a regular British number 1, a position she has held intermittently since 2002. As of 28 May 2012 she holds a current world ranking of No. 68. Her career high ranking of World No. 49 was achieved on 13 September 2010.
Over the course of her career she has won ten ITF singles titles (five $25,000, one $50,000, two $75,000 and two $100,000) and four ITF doubles titles (all $25,000). She has also twice been a runner-up in ITF events in singles and four times in doubles.
In 2010, Baltacha had victories over top 10 players, including two victories over Li Na and one against Francesca Schiavone, who at the time was the reigning French Open champion. In 2011, Baltacha won her most highest ranked tournament of the ITF tour winning the 2011 AEGON Nottingham Challenge.
Baltacha was born in Kiev, Ukraine. She comes from a sporting family: her father Sergei is a former professional footballer, representing the USSR and playing in the United Kingdom with Ipswich Town, St Johnstone and Inverness Caledonian Thistle, and her mother Olga represented the USSR in both the pentathlon and heptathlon at the Olympic Games. Her brother Sergei played football for Scottish Football League team St Mirren of Paisley and for Millwall.