Jelena Jankovic gearing up for 2013 season – Tennis Special
Former world number one, Jelena Jankovic from Serbia, is gearing up for the upcoming season. The Serb is trying to be as competitive as she was few years ago when she ruled the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Rankings.
After enjoying a title-less season in 2012, Jankovic is eyeing to recreate her old magic in the upcoming season. She managed to secure two final showdowns but failed to grab the title. Adding further to her misery, the Serb was crashed out from opening round
of several tournaments.
Jankovic commented about her preparations for the upcoming season in an interview,
"Well, I did get to two finals this year and my form was getting better at the end of the year. I felt fitter and more complete. Unfortunately it was the end of the season and we stopped. So, I'll be preparing on and off court - it'll be important to get
myself as fit as possible because I've had some injuries the last few years, which wasn't the case when I was 20 years old. It's not the same now. But I'm trying to be as fit as possible and play at a high level, day in and day out. If you want to be a top
player, you need to."
The 27-year-old started her 2012 campaign standing at number 14 in the WTA Premier Rankings. She made a quarter-final showing at the Brisbane International where she lost to third seed Francesca Schiavone in three sets. Jankovic exited from second round
at the Apia International Sydney but cruised to the fourth round at the Australian Open, first of the four Grand Slam events held in Melbourne.
The Serbian veteran maintained her intensity at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and the BMW Malaysian Open in February where she secured semi-final berths.
However, she went off-track in the following month and fell to a four-match losing streak. The Serb crashed out from the opening rounds at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Sony Ericsson Open in Miami and the Family Circle Cup.
Jankovic lifted her game at the e-Boks Sony Ericsson Open in Copenhagen where she cruised to the semi-finals again. However, her bad patch started again as the Serb went on another four-match losing streak.
She snapped out from the streak at the French Open and went berserk at the AEGON Classic the following month. The Serb reached the title-round where she lost to the American qualifier Melanie Oudin in straight sets.
However, the gorgeous Serb lost her momentum again and crashed out from opening round at the Wimbledon Championships, London Olympics and several premier events.
Jankovic managed to find her rhythm towards the end but ended the season at number 22.
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