Kim Clijsters announces third retirement from tennis after comeback stalled by Covid-19 and surgery

Kim Clijsters has announced that he is retiring from tennis for a third time and will no longer play “official tournaments”. The four-time Grand Slam champion stepped away from the sport as a 23-year-old in 2007, but returned in 2009 after giving birth to her daughter and won back-to-back US Open titles as well as the Australian Open. Ad/> She retired again after the 2012 US Open, only to return in February 2020.

TennisSwiatek, Alcaraz soar over Sunshine Double, but who else shone?04/04/2022 AT 09:29 Her comeback was stalled by the Covid-19 pandemic and she also underwent knee surgery. Clijsters, 37, played five matches since her latest return, not winning any, and her last appearance was at Indian Wells in October. Nadal to miss Barcelona Open, no fixed return date Raducanu 'very motivated' for 'challenge' of clay season She wrote on Instagram: “Hi guys, I want to share with you that I have decided to no longer play official tournaments.

“I can’t wait to see what new adventures will cross my path. Thank you to everyone who has supported me over the past two years.” Clijsters won 41 titles, held the world No.1 ranking on four different occasions, and triumphed at the season-ending WTA Finals on three occasions. She has three children and has moved to New Jersey from her native Belgium.

“It’s been on my mind for a while,” she told the WTA. “I still love to hit the ball. With my schedule three, four days was enough to keep my rhythm under control but definitely not good enough if I decided to play another tournament.

/> “Say, if I picked Australia, it’s three, four weeks. That’s just not possible at this stage in our family life. Life just sort of takes over, right? “My passion for tennis will never leave no matter what I