Kim Clijsters speaks about her family and the upcoming US Open
The second seeded tennis ace from Belgium, Kim Clijsters is a defending champion of the United States Open tennis tournament starting from Monday in the city of New York.
Clijsters, who is also a mother of a two and a half year old baby girl named Jada, made a comeback to professional tennis back in 2009 after a two year break. The Belgian got the better of current top seed, Caroline Wozniacki, from Denmark in straight sets to win the US Open title in New York.
Kim while commenting on her family and profession recently said in an interview that, ''It's all about keeping a balance, just taking care of both sides. There are days when I don’t practice much on the court and give my whole time to my little daughter Jada, as I want to make sure that she never feels neglected. And thankfully I am not the kind of player who will start panicking if I decide to rest for few days”.
There are a great variety of players, said the twenty-seven year old Kim, who feel obligated to strictly follow the work out rules as set for them by their trainers.
The Belgian however, on the other hand, is quite ok with taking a day off, if she thinks her daughter and family need her more.
''I am the kind of player that if I don’t practice on a single day or two, my game won’t be affected in any way”, said Clijsters with a tattoo of her daughter’s name on her left arm. ''In this way, I am perhaps more easy going kind of a person. I love to live in the moment and don’t want to miss them”.
With a tennis racket in Clijsters hand, she is at her best on the hard surface. All three of her Championship trophies this year came on hard courts, including her ATP Cincinnati Masters title which serves as a tune up event prior to the United States Open tennis tournament.
''I have always played more comfortably on hard courts. It is not just a case this year but in fact when I was a teenager during the initial stages of my career I used to play more effectively on hard courts”, Clijsters said. ''I don’t know the reason, all I know is that I can move more freely on such surfaces and I can hit the ball better. Everything seems easier on it”.
She holds a fourteen match winning streak at the United States Open tennis tournament, grabbing the trophy on the last two occasions she appeared at Flushing Meadows back in 2005 as well as in 2009.
Clijsters skipped the Championship in 2006 as a result of a wrist injury, and then remained away from the tour for a period of two and a half years during which the Belgian got married and gave birth to a baby girl.
Clijsters, while commenting on her possibilities at Flushing Meadows this season said that she does not go for numbers like her 14-0 record. Rather she said, “All I know is that if I play well I can beat anyone on the court in New York”.
Kim suffered a hip injury earlier this month at the Rogers Cup women’s tennis tournament held in Montreal, however, she says that she is fit enough to contest at Flushing Meadows.
If she genuinely is able to play at her very best, the Belgian is likely to advance to the later stages of the tournament. Particularly when the top ranked Serena Williams and two time champion Justine Henin are both out of the competition as a result of injury.
''As Serena and Henin are not participating in this year’s United States Open tennis tournament, Kim definitely has bright chances of successfully defending her title at Flushing Meadows”, said John McEnroe.
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