Henin confirms tour return in Brisbane

Henin confirms tour return in Brisbane

Former No. 1-ranked Justine Henin has confirmed she’ll make her return to the WTA Tour at the Brisbane International two weeks ahead of her comeback to grand slam tennis at the Australian Open.

“After a 15-month absence I am pleased to begin my second tennis career at the Brisbane International,” Henin, a seven-time major winner, said in a statement yesterday. “It will be great to get back to playing competitive tennis again and with the strong field, the same court surface and a similar climate to Melbourne, it will be the perfect preparation for the Australian Open.”

Fellow Belgian comeback player Kim Clijsters is also in the women’s draw, along with former French Open champion Ana Ivanovic.

Despite having a No. 1 ranking when she retired in May last year, the 27-year-old Henin does not have a protected ranking. She has been granted wildcard entries at Brisbane and the Australian Open.

Henin announced shortly after Clijsters won the US Open in September. Clijsters herself was coming back from two years in retirement and became the first mother since Australia’s Evonne Goolagong Cawley at Wimbledon in 1980 to win a grand slam singles championship.