[Enjoymms]

Clijsters Back for Many More Returns
Gannett News Service - Jul 20th, 2009

When Kim Clijsters returns to the women’s tour next month, don’t expect the preternaturally pleasant Belgian to snarl at the competition like a mother bear with a newborn cub - even though her 17-month-old daughter, Jada, will be in tow.

Clijsters insists she’s the same sociable person whose sweet disposition made her popular with fans and peers but also earned her, rightly or not, a knock she carried into retirement: underachiever.

“It never really bothered me,” says Clijsters, who held the No. 1 ranking for 19 weeks and won the 2005 U.S. Open before pulling the plug on her career in the spring of 2007 at 23. “I think it’s a compliment in a way. I’d rather be known as a nice person than not nice.”

If the athletic baseliner known for her gymnastic hardcourt splits and infectious smile hasn’t ditched nice for spice, summoning a killer instinct could determine her success in Act II of her career.

Now married, a mother and unranked, Clijsters kicks off her comeback Aug. 10 at the Western & Southern Financial Group Women’s Open in Cincinnati. She is a wild card, a status she will replicate at the other two events she plans to play this summer, the Rogers Cup in Toronto and the U.S. Open.

The decision to relaunch her career on cement during the US Open Series is a no-brainer. The USA has been a bastion of success on and off the court.

Twenty-three of Clijsters’ 34 singles titles have come on hardcourts, and more than a third were won on U.S. soil. Her husband, basketball player Brian Lynch, is American, and her lone Grand Slam tournament win came in New York.

“I have a lot of great memories from playing in America,” says Clijsters, who doubled her 2005 U.S. Open winner’s check to a then-record $2.2 million by virtue of her victory in the US Open Series the same year.

Rest of interview: http://www.jaxobserver.com/2009/07/2...-more-returns/

[Enjoymms]

I liked this comment from Lindsay best of all:

“I think she’ll be the first mom since Goolagong to (win a major).”

[EarnestKS]

Kimmie!

Moose, are you going to see Kim play WTT in two days? Is that what the countdown is for?

[Enjoymms]

Kimmie!

Moose, are you going to see Kim play WTT in two days? Is that what the countdown is for?

Wednesday night, 7:30. I have great seats, and an excellent camera.

Can't wait, Beau. So excited to see her back on a tennis court.

[Lotyqnag]

Woo Hoo......will be great to see her back.

Now, if that other player from Belgium ( whats her name) would just come back. The WTA would be so much better off.

[spacecrafty]

[EarnestKS]

Wednesday night, 7:30. I have great seats, and an excellent camera.

Can't wait, Beau. So excited to see her back on a tennis court.

Soooo jealous.

Tell Kim I love her, okay? Thanks!

[Enjoymms]

Tell Kim I love her, okay? Thanks!

Will do. You realize though, the next sentence will be "of course, I love you more".

[AssinHT]

Will do. You realize though, the next sentence will be "of course, I love you more".

Are you planning on pre-arranging this with Brian before the match start?

[TheBest-Host]

Woo Hoo......will be great to see her back.

Now, if that other player from Belgium ( whats her name) would just come back. The WTA would be so much better off.

Of course, I'm more thrilled about Clijsters coming back. But, I am warming to the idea of a Justine return (I don't see it happening though) or some phenom coming out of the blue.

[alexosnasos2]

Come in a hurry Kim! I can't wait to see the players going crazy with you returning each single ball they hit! This is going to be so funny! The Jankovices Kuznetsovas and Ivanovices of the life must be in home now waiting for the moment people will recognize that they were nothing but overachievers! They will look to Kim and realize how lucky they were for reaching all they did, because Kim is the real underachiever of all times in WTA!

[tarmpriopay]

Have fun Moose! Please blog about it!

[freddystone]

Kim is just so solidly grounded. Look at all these articles we read where top players say really silly, bitchy, or jealousy-driven things... And then there's Kim... Who always seems to know the right thing to say, and she says it with an air of sincerity that you can't help but admire... And would love to see others replicate.

I never saw a correlation between her being a genuinely nice person but not having a killer instinct. I've seen her slaughter lots of opponents in a totally merciless fashion... But there was just something about Justine that got her in the biggest moments... But I never believed that it was a "Kim is just too nice" problem.

I'm excited about her return. Moose and morct must be chomping at the bit!

[EarnestKS]

Will do. You realize though, the next sentence will be "of course, I love you more".

Fair enough