Kim Clijsters feels "very lucky" to play in same era as Jennifer Capriati, Steffi Graf, Monica Seles, Venus and Serena Williams
Kim Clijsters feels "very lucky" to have played against the likes of Monica Seles, Jennifer Capriati, and Steffi Graf, as well as Venus and Serena Williams at some point in her career, something very few players have had the opportunity to do. Clijsters credits her fellow tennis greats as well as the Big 4 of men's tennis for helping her learn and improve as she grew in her career.
The start of Clijsters' tour-level career collided with the end of Graf and Seles' careers, and the second half of Capriati's career. However, her rivalries with both Venus and Serena Williams were among the most prominent ones of her career. While Clijsters competed against each of them at different stages of her career, she is grateful for all those experiences.
Along with her fellow WTA superstars, the Belgian great believes she was also lucky to play most of her professional tennis in the same era as the Big 4 of men's tennis - Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray.
"I feel very lucky that I've been able to play in an era where it started early, as 1998 was my first year on tour. I played against Capriati, I was able to play against Steffi (Graf), Monica (Seles), and then I was able to play Venus and Serena, watch Roger and Rafa compete, and Andy, Novak," Kim Clijsters recently said on The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast.
Further elaborating on her experiences of playing alongside a plethora of women's and men's tennis legends, Clijsters highlighted that she learned a lot even when she just watched them practice on an adjoining court or caught their matches live on TV.
"I feel so lucky that I've been a part of watching these guys and women compete at a level, and they've helped me improve and get better, just to learn from them. Even when they're practicing next to you or you're watching them from your hotel room on TV, you absorb so much. Without a doubt, that whole generation has had a huge impact on even the professional players that were playing," Clijsters expressed.
How Kim Clijsters' fared against the likes of Seles, Graf, Capriati, and the Williams sisters
Four-time Grand Slam champion Kim Clijsters faced both Steffi Graf and Monica Seles just once each on the WTA tour, losing on both occasions. Meanwhile, she had quite a competitive rivalry against Jennifer Capriati, with both players winning three matches each. Capriati beat Clijsters in the latter's maiden Grand Slam singles final at the 2001 French Open.
Meanwhile, Clijsters faced Serena Williams nine times on the tour and was only able to win twice. However, both those victories were quite significant, coming in the final of the 2002 WTA Finals and the semifinals of the 2009 US Open. Her most competitive rivalry was against Venus Williams, with Clijsters just about edging their head-to-head record 7-6. The Belgian beat the American in the 2005 Stanford Open final, the 2010 Miami Open final, and the 2010 US Open semifinal.