The Comeback Mom: Clijsters ready to kick off her third act in Dubai

What do Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Michael Phelps, Roger Clemens, Martina Hingis, Floyd Mayweather, Brett Favre and Kim Clijsters have in common? Aside from being some of the most heralded athletes of all time, they have all come out of retirement at one point or another—some more than once.

After listening to her body, Clijsters hung up her racquet for the second time at the 2012 US Open to focus on her off-court life, but now wants to give the balancing act another shot. And so, as a wild-card entry, the Belgian is set to kick off her much-anticipated third installment next week in Dubai.

"For the past seven years, I've been a full-time mom," the mother of three said in a video she posted on social media in September. "And I love it. I really, really do. But I also loved being a professional tennis player. And honestly, I miss that feeling. So... what if I tried to do both? Could I be a loving mum to my three kids and the best tennis player I can possible be?”

Clijsters will join a slew of fellow thirty-somethings Grand Slam champions on tour, including Venus Williams, 39; Serena Williams, 38; Samantha Stosur, 35; Svetlana Kuznetsova, 34; Maria Sharapova, 32; and Angelique Kerber, 32. The Bree resident was originally slated to make her return in Monterrey, but her level in a variety of training sessions appears to have convinced Clijsters she’s ready to begin competing now.

"She's hitting the ball very strong," Belgium's top-ranked player, Elise Mertens, was quoted saying by RTBF. "Her level is good.”

Added former ATP player Xavier Malisse, "It was a very good session. Eventually, she found her rhythm... her shots are still fantastic,” he told 7sur7. "Here and there, there is still some roughness, but that is normal from so many years of not competing. If she doesn't get injured, I think she'll do fine."

Clijsters will be tested right away, drawing world No. 8 Kiki Bertens as her first-round opponent. Bertens is playing into the weekend at this week's St. Petersburg Open.

Getty Images

Armed with a bubbly personality and splits that befit a gymnast, Clijsters burst onto the tennis scene in 1999 at 16 when she reached the fourth round of the US Open, losing to fellow teen Serena after leading 5-3 in the third. Clijsters consolidated that showing less than two years later, reaching her first major final at the 2001 French Open.

Two years later, she returned to the Roland Garros championship match. Having started her 2003 season with a bang by winning Sydney, Indian Wells and Rome, many pundits had picked Clijsters to win her first major over her compatriot Justin Henin. However, it was the older Belgian who emerged the victor, 6-0, 6-4.

The all-Belgian appearance on one of the sport’s biggest stages ignited their now-storied professional rivalry. It was further magnified that August when Henin, a year older than her rival, scored her third straight win over Clijsters in San Diego. Clijsters, famously known for her gracious speeches, win or lose, was not happy with the loss, publicly accusing Henin of faking injury during the match.

"It's not the first time she has done this," Clijsters said. "I think she has probably had to do it in every one of our matches. It's a sign that she is not at her best and so she has to resort to other means to get out of scrapes. Looking at the way she was moving around the court afterwards she didn't look like she was in real pain. It's to her credit that she is able to turn matches around by acting in this way."

Henin did not take the accusation sitting down.

"She can think what she wants. She said that because she was disappointed to have lost the match. I can understand that. But I adhere to fair-play," Henin responded. "I think some players don't like the fact that a player of my stature-less imposing than theirs—is strong and capable of tirelessly running around the court."

That same month, Clijsters took over the No. 1 ranking, making her the first player in her country to sit at the pinnacle of the professional tennis. With that honor though, she also became the first woman to attain that feat without winning a Grand Slam title, an asterisk that would follow her for the next two years.

All the hard work and patience would pay off. In her fifth Grand Slam final appearance, Clijsters got the major monkey off her back by winning the 2005 US Open, defeating Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova and Mary Pierce along the way.

Unfortunately, after enduring an injury-marred 2006 season, Clijsters was forced to call it quits in May 2007. It didn’t take long before she attained two more titles: wife and mother. A few months after her retirement, she married American basketball player Brian Lynch, and soon gave birth to daughter Jada.

Sadly, amid her new-found bliss, Clijsters’ father Leo passed away in early January of 2009. Leo, a former professional soccer player, had played a big part in her and younger sister Elke’s tennis development. Two months following the devastating news, Clijsters held a press conference in her home town of Bree to announce her return to the tour.

“I have missed playing tournaments most. I am doing it for the challenge,” she said. “I have been training for 11 or 12 weeks. Training harder than ever before. Then this drive came back.”

In her third event back, she claimed the 2009 US Open crown to become the first mother to win a Grand Slam since Evonne Goolagong in 1980. The wild card also accomplished something that no other player has ever done: she beat both Serena and Venus en route for the second time in her career. She would go on to win another title at Flushing Meadows the following year, and backed that up with the Australian Open crown in 2011.

Getty Images

In February 2011, Clijsters added another first to her long resume when she became the first mom to hold the No. 1 ranking, albeit for only one week—her 20th career week at the top. Then, injuries took their toll once again, sending the four-time major champion off in 2012 at her most successful tournament, the US Open. She had been battling hip, abdominal and ankle injuries for a while, and finished with 41 singles titles and 11 doubles trophies.

In 2017, the mother of three received the ultimate tennis accolade: she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, alongside 2003 US Open champion Andy Roddick, historian Steve Flink and, posthumously, coach Vic Braden.

“This is a real chance to look back at all I have learned in my life,” she said. “Sometimes, like when my dad died, you feel like life can’t get any worse. Then you realize everything turns out O.K.

“Life, like tennis, really is all about passion,” Clijsters added. “Sometimes you just have to stand there and take it all in.”

Whether or not this second comeback lives up to expectations is a question only Clijsters can answer. Rest assured, the former No. 1 will bring plenty of passion to the court when she finds herself facing a mix of familiar rivals and fresh faces.