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Michelle Larcher De Brito

Por
Residence: Bradenton, FL, USA
DOB: January 29, 1993
Birthplace: Lisbon, Portugal
Height: 5' 5" (1.65 m)
Weight: 125 lbs. (57 kg)
Plays: Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Status: Pro (February 7, 2007)
JANUARY - Fell in Australian Open qualifying.

FEBRUARY - Reached 2r at Memphis (as WC, l. to No.4 seed Keothavong).

MARCH - Fell 1r at Indian Wells (as qualifier, l. to WC U.Radwanska in 3s); fell in Miami qualifying.

APRIL - Did not play.

MAY - Fell 1r at Estoril (as LL, l. to No.7 seed Peer in 3s); fell in Madrid qualifying; reached 3r at Roland Garros (as qualifier in Grand Slam main draw debut, d. No.15 seed Zheng en route, falling to Rezai; win over world No.15 Zheng was third Top 20 win); made Top 100 debut afterwards on June 8 (rose from No.132 to No.90).

JUNE - Fell in Birmingham qualifying; reached 2r at Wimbledon (as WC, l. to Schiavone).

JULY - Did not play.

AUGUST - Fell 1r at Los Angeles (as WC, l. to Cirstea); fell in Cincinnati and Toronto qualifying; reached 2r at US Open (l. to No.18 seed Li).
2007 - Played first event of career at ITF/Midland, MI-USA, falling 1r (l. to Brandi 75 third set); second event of career was Tour debut at Miami, reaching 2r (as unranked WC, d. Shaughnessy in 1r before falling to No.16 seed Hantuchova; at 14y/1m/21d, was seventh-youngest in history to win a Tour main draw match); played rest of season on ITF Circuit.

2008 - Reached first Tour singles QF at Tashkent (l. to No.3 seed and eventual champion Cirstea) and 3r runs at Miami (as WC, d. No.17 seed A.Radwanska en route; l. to No.16 seed Peer) and Montréal (as qualifier, d. No.15 seed Pennetta en route; l. to No.4 seed Kuznetsova in 3s); had first two Top 20 wins at Miami (No.16 A.Radwanska), Montréal (No.18 Pennetta); reached 2r twice, at Memphis (as WC, l. to No.6 seed Wozniacki) and Stanford (as qualifier, l. to top seed S.Williams 46 63 62; led 64 20); fell 1r once and in Tour qualifying five times (incl. Wimbledon, US Open).
SINGLES
Quarterfinalist (1): 2008 - Tashkent.
Coached by father, Antonio Larcher de Brito ... Baseliner whose best assets are movement, groundstrokes; favorite surfaces are hard, grass ... Mother's name is Caroline; brothers are Sebastian and Sergio (twins, four years her senior); has dog called Armani (husky) ... Began playing at age 3 when father introduced her at local club; also trains at Mouratoglou Tennis Academy ... Speaks Portuguese, English ... Favorite types of music are hip hop, rap; favorite artist is Justin Timberlake ... Favorite movie is When A Stanger Calls; favorite book is DaVinci Code ... Also enjoys reading, walking her dog, shopping ... Favorite things about being a tennis player are seing the world, competing; least favorite thing is losing ... Favorite players are Seles, Hingis, Nadal ... Favorite tournament is Miami because it was her first Tour event ... Goal is to keep improving.
- Awards received include Portuguese Athlete of the Future by SPORT TV (awarded at the 10th Anniversary of the premier Portuguese sports channel in September 2008) and 2009 Female Athlete of the Year at 14th Gala do Desporto sponsored by the Confederacao do Desporto de Portugal (CDP).
- Junior highlights include youngest ever to win U16 Eddie Herr title (won it in 2005 when she was 12); and third player in 18-year Eddie Herr history to receive Rising Star Award (after Sharapova in 2000, Kleybanova in 2003).