Enjoying the challenge
When Clijsters helped to open the new Court No 1 roof at Wimbledon this summer, Williams told reporters Clijsters was still good enough to play at the top level.
Clijsters said she has been enjoying the challenge of training and getting back into top shape and hopes to begin in time for the Australian Open in 2020.
But she will only come back for good when she is 100 percent ready.
“I really mean this, what we’re doing right now has already been worth it,” she said of her work with her fitness trainer Sam Verslegers.
“Training together and pushing each other and motivating, I really like this. For me, being successful, or my first kind of success, is to get myself to feel where I want to be at, to know that I feel ready to be able to compete, where I’m fit enough to play tough matches, in heat, on a tough surface, that’s when I think I will feel I’ve reached where I want to be.
“If I feel in December that I’m not anywhere near where I want to be, I’m not going to go somewhere for the sake of it. I still have three and a half months so I think I can have a lot of improvement. If then I feel (ready), OK.”
“I’m still not even close to where I hope I can get to but the process is a lot of fun and I’m at a stage now where I am going to start to play more tennis, physically I feel like I have the power in my legs again, my core is stronger.”