Clijsters Needs More Focus On Tennis to Win another Slam
Kim Clijsters is a two time Grand Slam winner. She hopes to increase that number before her career ends, as well as win in the other three Slams (Clijsters won the US Open twice).
She has one more opportunity this year in the US Open after she was ousted in the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon Championships.
Clijsters though, needs to focus more on tennis if she wishes to win more Grand Slam titles.
It is well known that the Belgian retired for two years before coming back in 2009. Clijsters retired then due to injuries and her desire to start a family after being newly married.
When Clijsters came back in 2009, she said that she wanted to think of it as a “second career.” She mentioned that her marriage and baby are factors to think about and balance with her tennis life.
It was a bit of a surprise when Clijsters won the US Open in 2009, setting records along the way.
Since then, however, her results have been mixed. She won a title but also lost in the third round of the Australian Open with the worst loss of her career.
She missed the French Open due to injury but came back to make the quarterfinals in Wimbledon. However, Clijsters needs more attention to her tennis life if she wishes to succeed more in this area.
Clijsters needs to play in more tournaments in order to improve her match fitness and overall physical fitness.
For example, after the Australian Open this year (January), she took two months off before returning to play in March. She cannot afford to do this if she wants to win.
Clijsters is a talented player and one of the best in terms of competitiveness, but she cannot afford not to be at her top shape if she wants to win a Grand Slam – which is against the best in the world who themselves are in their top shapes.
The Belgian world number 8 is 27 years old already and her window for winning another Grand Slam is fast closing.
Several young stars in women’s tennis are rising, while her top competition such as the Williams sisters, Sharapova, Wozniacki, etc. are still there. She cannot afford to have a part time tennis career and just enter a Grand Slam and hope to win it.
Aside from the fact that being match fit and ready is beneficial for her sharpness, focusing more on her tennis will help her to be better fit physically.
Already this year, Clijsters had to withdraw from the French Open due to a foot injury. It is likely that the reason she was injured was because her fitness levels were not at her peak and her body just broke down because it wasn’t used to the intensity and physical stress that a tennis tournament can bring.
It is understandable that Kim Clijsters is a mother and wanting to take care of her baby. It is only natural. However, if she really wishes to still play competitively and succeed, then she has to have additional focus on her tennis.
Her game is very good as it is, but there are still improvements as she will say. She cannot do this if her practice time is compromised.
She cannot do this if she will not play in tournaments. Without participating too much, Clijsters cannot gauge the competition, forcing him to rely on sheer ability, which is still immense.
She has the ability to win another Grand Slam (or more). It is now just a question of her desire and how much she is willing to sacrifice in order to achieve this goal of hers.
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