Justine Henin has made it definite, she will return to the WTA Tour at the Brisbane International which is scheduled two weeks before her comeback to Grand Slam tennis at the 2010 Australian Open.
As a former No. 1 ranked player, it will be great to have Henin back in the realm of women’s tennis. The 27-year-old Belgium has 41 WTA Tour titles, an Olympic gold medal, has won three of the four majors, and is a seven-time major winner.
Even though she had a No. 1 ranking when she retired, Henin does not have a protected ranking. She has been granted wild-card entries for the main draws at Brisbane and the Australian Open. She will have to earn her way back.
Fellow Belgian, Kim Clijsters, has shown the way for Henin. After reaching the Semifinals of the Australian Open in 2007, Clijsters, who is 26 years old, took time off to get married to American pro basketball player Brian Lynch on July 13, 2007, and give birth to their first child, Jada Ellie Lynch on February 27, 2008. Clijsters started her comeback by reaching the Quarterfinals in her first event back at Cincinnati in August. She topped it off by winning the 2009 US Open, only her third event since she began her comeback. Clijsters has since climbed back to a No. 18 ranking.
Clijsters should serve as an inspiration to Henin, who has set as her goal to win at Wimbledon, the only Grand Slam singles event she has not yet won. Time will tell if Henin can make her comeback as dramatic as Clijsters did. Perhaps between Henin and Clijsters, there will be a return to some stability at the top of the women’s tennis rankings. Since Henin retired, the No. 1 spot has been difficult for anyone to hold on to. Various players have attained the No. 1 ranking, only to fall out of the spot a matter of weeks later.
Henin retired in May, 2008 while ranked as No. 1, and took 15 months off. Questions still remain as to why she retired, but she says she is happy to begin her second tennis career at the Brisbane International. Her plans are to play at least until the 2012London Olympics.
