Kim Clijsters, the former World No. 1 and four-time major champion, startled tennis fans a few days ago when she announced her return to the WTA tour at the Chicago Fall Tennis Classic.
In the first round, the Belgian faced Su-Wei Hsieh. Clijsters has received wildcards at the Monterrey Open and even the US Open, where she is a three-time champion, since falling to Garbine Muguruza in the WTA Dubai Open last year.
Unfortunately, the renowned tennis player lost all of these matches and was unable to make significant progress in the individual tournaments. This will be the Belgian’s first professional tennis match after winning the US Open last year.
Clijsters and Su-Wei Hsieh are also meeting on the WTA tour for the first time. Let’s have a look at how the game went.
Kim Clijsters makes an admirable effort
During baseline rallies, the Belgian took some time to settle into the match, as her opponent was able to get the better of her on several occasions. Clijsters, on the other hand, was tough on defence, fending off multiple breakpoints.
The Taiwanese player, on the other hand, won the first set 6-3. The second set became a roller coaster ride with momentum moving from one player to the other, and both players began to play their best tennis.
@tennis_gifs point by Clijsters at 1-2 15-15 in the 3rd against Hsieh. ?
— Jeffrey Boiten (@hetissjev) September 27, 2021
After multiple breaks of service exchanges, it was the Belgian who emerged victorious, winning the set 7-5. Even the third set went the same way, with Su-Wei Hsieh drawing the first blood by breaking Clijsters’ service and taking a 4-3 lead.
However, the Belgian lost her serve once more, giving Su-Wei Hsieh the opportunity to serve for the match. Given the way the match has gone thus far, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Belgian broke Hsieh’s serve once more.
Despite a valiant effort, Kim Clijsters was unable to break the Taiwanese player’s serve and lost her comeback match, 3-6,7-5,6-3. It was heart-warming to witness the former world number one put forth such a valiant attempt to get back into the game.
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