Martina Hingis is playing World TeamTennis, but don’t call it a comeback.
This week marks the beginning of the 35th season of World TeamTennis, but the anniversary may be overshadowed by the return of Martina Hingis. The former world No. 1 is making WTT her return to professional competition since her two-year doping suspension came to an end last October. Is she, perhaps, using the pro league as practice ground for a comeback to the WTA tour?
The short answer is no. When Hingis announced she was going to play WTT for the New York Buzz, she stressed that she wasn’t aiming for a comeback, or a “second career” as Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin have deemed their returns to the tour. “Tennis gave me a lot of things and sometimes you have to put things behind,” Hingis said last spring. “It’s a lot of sacrifice, as well. I wouldn’t want to risk it anymore.”
But playing WTT to get in some pro matches is a familiar scenario for her. After an ankle injury forced Hingis to take an indefinite break from the WTA tour in 2003 and ’04, she came back to pro tennis by playing for the New York Sportimes. Her team ended up winning the championship in 2005. And when she returned to the tour full time, she played well enough to reach the Top 10. She was never quite able to match her previous results, including five Grand Slam titles, and her come back was cut short because of the positive drug test for cocaine at Wimbledon in 2007.
During her suspension, Hingis, who turns 30 in September, seemed to move on in her life. She competed in equestrian events and appeared as a contestant on a popular game show in Switzerland. And her once rocky love life appeared to be back on a positive track when she got engaged to Swiss attorney Andreas Bieri last year. (Their engagement has since been broken off.)
WTT founder Billie Jean King wanted Hingis to play last season, but she couldn’t because of the suspension. Then, King and WTT commissioner Ilana Kloss ran into Hingis at Wimbledon Village last summer, and asked her to play again.
“The World TeamTennis format fits her lifestyle and her personality,” King says. “It also captures her strengths in tennis—she is strong in singles, doubles and mixed doubles. She’s a deep thinker who sees the court very well and we know she will draw a crowd wherever she plays.”
For Hingis, it’s an opportunity to get back on court with a team. “I had a great experience last time,” she says. “I’m looking forward to being back on court and enjoying the team atmosphere.”
Hingis got a taste of playing doubles again at Wimbledon this year, when she and her former partner, Anna Kournikova, participated in the Ladies Invitational event. They reached the semifinals, losing to Tracy Austin and Kathy Rinaldi, 7-5, 7-6 (4).
Unlike most marquee players who commit to three or four matches, Hingis will suit up for a full 14-match schedule. She’ll be playing on the Buzz with Britain’s No. 1 doubles player, Sarah Borwell, up-and-coming American Alex Domijan and former top junior Scoville Jenkins. She’ll also get to compete against some of her old tour foes. On July 19, she’ll face the Sportimes’ Clijsters and John McEnroe in New York. She faces Serena Williams, who leads Hingis 7-6 in head-to-head competition, on July 9. “I always enjoy playing against [the Williams sisters],” she says. “I have some really good memories from the past and look forward to seeing them on the other side of the court again soon.”
Depending on the results, we may see more of Hingis on the court in the future.