There is a New Spirit of Good Will Among the Players in Doha

Written by: Staff on 27th October 2010

There is a New Spirit of Good Will Among the Players in Doha |

The entry list at the year ending WTA Championships in Doha might have a depleted look with marquee names like Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Justine Henin, Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova all absent. But the atmosphere among the eight singles contestants, two alternates and four doubles teams at the Qatar Tennis Federation’s Khlaifa Stadium appears far more convivial. Who says so? None other than Kim Clijsters.

Three times U.S. Open champion Clijsters maintained she has noticed a marked change in the way the leading women players interact. There are fewer embittered people around, she says. “What I like about the game is the spread of personalities,” she said. “We’ve seen the guys hang out together for years and it’s something that’s growing on our side.

“It’s an individual sport but there’s more of a team spirit, which sends out a good vibe to the outside world and to potential sponsors.”

Clijsters is of course in a perfect position to judge, having experienced almost two careers after going into premature retirement, starting a family, and then returning to the sport. And she cites Stacey Allaster, the WTA’s chief executive for instigating the more friendly atmosphere after the very business-like reign of Larry Scott.

“Stacey has done a great job in helping make the sport grow through a tough financial crisis,” said Clijsters. “I understand people might enjoy seeing a little bit more rivalry and more nastiness in the women, but in the long run what we have created and where we are is so much more professional and ladylike.

“In the locker room when I was younger, the Americans would be in one corner and we’d be in the other. I never played a part in that. I certainly didn’t look at the fourth round of the draw, think who I might be playing and not speak to that person for a week.

“Being a mother, I don’t socialise with the girls as much as I used to, but we all get along, which is right for the sport.”

Topics: Alternates, Good Vibe, Justine Henin, Kim Clijsters, Leading Women, Locker Room, Maria Sharapova, Marquee Names, Nastiness, New Spirit, Open Champion, Premature Retirement, Serena Williams, Socialise, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Team Spirit, Tennis Federation, Venus Williams, Women Players, Wta Championships