Justine Henin builds for fifth French Open title
Justine Henin was last seen at Roland Garros in 2007 celebrating her third consecutive French Open title, and the fourth of her career, but will it be a fairytale return for the Belgian in 2010?
Henin was ranked as the world No. 1 when she surprised the tennis world with her decision to quit the sport on the eve of her French Open defence in 2008, but like Kim Clijsters’ retirement before her, it was a decision that didn’t last the distance and this January Henin returned to the WTA Tour.
Clijsters has a lot to answer for in terms of the expectations we’ve placed on Henin in her return to court. By winning the US Open title in her third tournament after more than two years out of the game, she set the bar higher than her Belgian counterpart could reasonably have been expected to reach.
Henin, to her credit, came close with runner-up finishes in the first two tournaments of her return – the Brisbane International (lost to Clijsters) and at the Australian Open (lost to Serena Williams).
There have been a couple of hiccups along the way since, a second round loss to Gisela Dulko at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and a Fed Cup defeat by 126th-ranked Kaia Kanepi spring to mind, but the 27-year-old did begin her clay court season with the first title of her comeback Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart.
The final there, against the in-form Samantha Stosur, showcased both Henin’s strengths and weaknesses. That enviable one-handed backhand and sublime touch that are the hallmarks of the diminutive player’s all-court game were on display but so too was a fragility in Henin’s forehand, which quite inconveniently went on holiday during the second set before returning with a vengeance in the third as the former world No. 1 wrapped up the match.
There are players who might have taken note of that c***k in Henin’s armour as they cast their minds forward to Roland Garros.
That title was followed by a sobering first round loss to France’s Aravane Rezai at the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open, where Henin failed to win a solitary game in the deciding third set. The defeat was a shock at the time but one that might be viewed in a different light after Rezai bulldozed both Jelena Jankovic and Venus Williams on her way to the title at the tournament.
A current ranking of world No. 23 testifies to a comeback that by the high standards of part one of Henin’s has been solid if not spectacular. There are plenty of players who would have happily exchanged their start to 2010 for Henin’s, but few of them in the current top 10 (the out-of-form Svetlana Kuznetsova and Dinara Safina, who is beginning the slow process of returning from a serious back injury are probably the only two).
The absence of Clijsters (foot injury), who has defeated Henin in their two meetings so far this year, surely bolsters Henin’s chances somewhat, and should another Grand Slam final between Serena Williams and Henin come to fruition at the French Open, the stage would be set for the latter to reverse the Australian Open result on clay, a surface where she holds a 4-1 winning advantage over the world No. 1.
Henin will no doubt return to the French Open as sentimental favourite, and has shown just enough in almost five months back on the WTA Tour to think that maybe, just maybe, she might pick up her dominance of the clay court major where she left off back in 2007.
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