Kim Clijsters to retire again from tennis

The return of Kim Clijsters to the women’s tennis tour in the summer of 2009 came at a time when the game really needed her sportsmanship and competitive grit.

She won the US Open three tournaments into the comeback by taking out both Venus Williams and Serena Williams. She won the tournament again in 2010 – making it her third US Open overall with a win in 2005, the year before her first retirement.

Then in early 2011, it looked like Clijsters was settling in for a nice run at the top when she won the Australian Open for the first time and ascended to the number one ranking.

But her body betrayed her shortly after that and the Belgian star has suffered through a series of injuries that have kept her off the tour for long stretches and sent her ranking all the way down to number 44.

To no one’s surprise, Clijsters has just announced that she will be retiring for the second time after this year’s US Open. She will give herself a chance to win two of the three major titles that elude her: Wimbledon, and The Olympics. She is skipping the French Open where she was twice the runner-up but never the champion.

Clijsters, 28 and the mother of a young daughter, said Flushing Meadows is the ideal place for her to end her playing days.

“That is where I enjoyed my greatest triumphs and it is a very special place for me,” she said. “The stadium is only about 45 minutes away from our house in the United States and my parents-in-law will be able to be present.”

She can certainly leave the game this time more fulfilled with her accomplishments. No longer an under-performing champion with just one slam victory, she will leave at the very least a four-time slam champ and is a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame.