She started the week as the main contestant for the Suzanne Lenglen cup. She was sharp and focused in her first round clash and things were going according to plan. It all came tumbling down though, as today Kim Clijsters suffered one of the most shocking loses of her 'second' career.
The Belgian, making a welcomed return to the tour after injuring her angle at her cousin's wedding, was loud and clear about her intention of winning a first French Open title this year, having stumbled in two finals before (i.e. in 2001 she lost to Capriati and in 2003 to Henin). The medical problems impeded her from entering any claycourt tournament before Roland Garros. Even her participation in the French capital was a question mark for a long time, Clijsters struggling to recover from a lengthy time-out. However, she dismissed any worries with a convincing first round display, reassuring everyone that she is back at her best. In her second round match, Kim faced young gun Arantxa Rus from the Netherlands. She was in control for most of the dispute, quickly building on a one set 5-2 advantage. When people were leaving the Philippe Chatrier Court convinced that their favourite made it through to the next round, the inevitable happened. Clijsters' game completely fell apart, the Belgian being able to win only 1 of the next 11 games. She used to go through such lapses before, during the first part of her career. However, after taking time off to start a family, the issue appeared to have been solved. She showed more consistency and kept her cool under pressure. Nevertheless, the problem came back, once in the Australian Open third round in 2010 when she lost 6-0, 6-1 to Nadia Petrova and once this year, in Sydney where she lost the final after holding a 5-0 first set lead.
As she didn't sustain any injury, it's clear that her mind disconnected once more. She got carried away, her mindset was not there anymore and, as the match didn't end when it was supposed to, the competitiveness and focus vanished. Making an astonishing number of enforced errors, her opponent was offered the most important victory of her career. Probably 'victory' is not the most appropriate word, as Clijsters beat herself with her erratic, self-destructive display. Nevertheless Arantxa proved strong enough not to choke under pressure, to take her chances and to win a match that seemed way beyond her reach. For Clijsters, she should put all her efforts into preparing for Wimbledon, a tournament she can easily win.
photo: Reuters
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