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Clijsters: A Phenomenon! May 15, 2002 Voetbalmagazine by Filip Dewulf (Thanks Marly) A girl, not a robot. Kim Clijsters is a phenomenon. An unequalled fighting machine and an ideal daughter-in-law presented in a strapping body. Filip Dewulf analyses the charming young lady from Bree for you. Kim Clijsters conquers the world in an astonishing manner. Not only does she conquer the world rankings more and more, but in the hearts of people there is more and more a place for the Limburg girl. It is rare to see so much playfulness, sincerity and a down-to-earth attitude in a world star to be. It is amazing how easy the daughter of Lei and Els stays upright in a world that is characterized by show, competitiveness and internal competition. Kim stays true to herself and by doing so she gains the confidence of her colleagues and the appreciation of the public. The people around her support her sense for realism and keep their down-to-earth attitude with the same ease. Coach Carl Maes wouldn’t be the first coach who feels himself, and pretends to be, more important than his protégé. With the results he obtained, it would be for other people far more difficult to remain in the shadow and not scream out loud that their part in the success was of capital importance. However, he remains coolness itself and a big part of the tennis world is finding their way to sympathetic Carl. Father Lei pulls the rest of the strings in a firm manner. The Golden Shoe of 1988 sometimes comes across rather surely and his seeming disinterest for the career of his daughter has often a not so genuine touch to it, but his presence does have a positive influence on the performance of his dear daughter. Kim is anything but a plaything of the press and, also thanks to father Lei’s shielding, she can more or less afford herself some sort of freedom of movement. Playful Kim doesn’t know any boundaries on court either. Her game is complete and applicable on all surfaces. She prefers hardcourts and grass, because it suits her powerful baseline game best. But she is also more than strong enough on the slower clay courts. Just like in Paris last year, Clijsters showed in Hamburg what she can do on clay. She surprised friend and enemy with top level clay court tennis and a victory over the semi-official number one in the world. After she got run over in the first set by rolling-machine Venus Williams, she kept her cool, stayed patient in the rallies, and pulled up her level. It became truly world-class tennis in which the game of Venus grew pale. With her first serve Kim often laid out the basis to get the initiative back into her hands, and then the second serve was excellently adapted, through which she never had to surrender control at all. She dictated with forehand and backhand, and regularly got a winner when she sped up. As soon as she had found an opening in the famous wall of Venus, Kim always came very suitably to the net to clinch the matter with a drive volley. To make it all even more confusing to her opponent, a drop shot was regularly taken out of her arsenal in a clever manner. But the most impressive of all is again her famous spreading position. Not for nothing the daughter of a Belgian gymnastics champion, Kim is making a name and fame for herself through her daring defensive technique. With this technique she retrieves an enormous amount of balls and it is especially very handy on the slow clay courts. The sliding is exemplary and makes the difference between Williams and her on the red surface. Still a bit more than Justine Henin, and just like her boyfriend Hewitt with the men, Kim sets the standard when it comes to legwork, to the extent that the technique she uses has never been seen in women’s tennis. The last part of a run for a difficult ball is concluded by planting the foot firmly on the ground. One jumps extra to the ball as it were. It gives a better balance and even more range. Kim masters it perfectly and applies it on every surface like a real daredevil. It is seen a lot in men’s, but first introduced at the women by our two Belgian ambassadors. The physical capacity of Clijsters is really astonishing. During a match, she naturally is almost each time the one who is dictating the rallies. But even after three tough sets in difficult conditions, she stays as fresh as a daisy on court. Check last year’s Roland Garros. Blessed with the physical capacities of her father and the suppleness of her mother, it is a real ace in women’s tennis today. Seles, Davenport, and Hingis don’t have these possibilities. It gives her an extra value in the heavy battle at the top. Sometimes there are casualties during these continuous hostilities. The season is long and demanding. Not even Kim could escape the injury epidemic that haunted the circuit. An arm injury seemed to stop her vigorous run. At least it caused a difficult start of the season with a painful Australian Open. After doctor’s advice it was decided to set up a select revalidation program and to play a limited tournament schedule. Now and then the troubles of the injury still emerge. Lack of match rhythm and reactions of muscles after a long period of inactivity meant that Kim couldn’t always go all the way. Even the feasibility of the daring scheme, with the enforced rests after periods of action, was doubted. Something striking during this recent period in her career was the serenity in which she dealt with the injury. In a world where in season and out of season doctors certificates are waved about in order not to be forced to admit that one is beaten by a better one, blonde Kim never hid herself behind the plagued arm. Patience and a correct evaluation of the condition were preached, with the known result. Of course, the mental qualities of the Limburg teenager have been beyond any doubt for a long time. She is a fighter of the purest blood. Examples of her all-bounds exceeding persistence are numerous. In Hamburg she got a real spanking in the first set, but didn’t let it get to her. At Roland Garros she was in a seemingly lost position against a direct Belgian competitor, but she never surrendered. This part of her class is also somehow genetically determined. One of the characteristics of Lei Clijsters was his mental toughness during a match. And mother Els too has experienced and has overcome enough setbacks in her life. Kim’s driven nature is prompted by an enormous love of tennis. She was and still is possessed by the game, and as a kid she had to be dragged off the court just to get her to put the racquet aside for a bit. Her will to win is indelible. But maybe the most important thing of all is that she is excellent in keeping her emotions on and off court separated. She strolls through the circuit like nothing can touch her and lives a happy life. She is an ideal cocktail to become a real champion. She is already a champion in the eyes of her continuously growing number of fans, with all the expectations that come along with it. But she still is just a girl, not robot. And that’s why she was kicked out in the first round in Berlin instead of reaching the second round. An exhausting week at the tough clay of Hamburg had claimed its victim, and it’s almost a given fact that the winner of a tournament will always have a tough first round in the next tournament. Kim is not invincible. She is only 18. There will be some hitches, now and then, and it will surprise the people but the best horse stumbles sometimes, especially when it’s only a foal. She has made so much improvement and impressed the people so many times, that one might start to think that she is infallible. She knows better, though. Until now her career has only gone crescendo. Even a nasty injury couldn’t spoil it. The right sorts of people to guide her surround Kim. She walks a path of hard work and through this, will probably improve. It is something she has continuously done so far, as she proved again in Hamburg. For the first time she could clinch victory over one of the Williams sisters of the women’s tour. Her tennis technique is better than the Williams sisters, although she hasn’t reached the same strength on fast surfaces until now, but that can also be fixed with a bit more experience and insight. Her mental strength is okay; the body must endure and a bit of luck is needed, and then she’ll end up at the absolute top: being the number one in the world! She makes a unique pair with her Australian boyfriend. Maybe she would give it all up, say goodbye to the whole tennis world and start a family. If the baby is not going to be a tennis player then…!