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BSP-22
TENNIS-WTA-LISICKI-WIMBLEDON
Fallen giant Lisicki eyes unlikely Wimbledon comeback
BERLIN, March 31, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – The 2013 Wimbledon finalist Sabine
Lisicki has said she is hoping to make an unlikely return to the All England
Club this summer after a dramatic decline in recent years.
Lisicki, 29, has battled a string of injuries and plummeted to 298th in
the world rankings since losing the Wimbledon final in straight sets to
Marion Bartoli.
She was knocked out in the first round of Wimbledon in 2017, and failed to
qualify in 2018.
Yet in an interview with Bild on Sunday, the German tennis star said that
she is determined to return to the biggest stage.
“I have unfinished business at Wimbledon, and it would be great if I can
be there this summer,” said Lisicki.
She will return to WTA tour action this week, having been granted a wild
card for the Charleston Open.
Though she will turn 30 in the autumn, the German insisted that she is not
too old to make a comeback.
“There are plenty of good players who are older than 30 and are
celebrating the biggest successes of their careers,” she said.
Lisicki claimed that she had now returned to full fitness and had never
thought about calling time on her career.
“Giving up is not an option for me,” she said.
“If it was up to me I would be crawling off the court at the end of every
training session.”
“Roger Federer once said that I take defeats too much to heart, and he was
right. I don’t just play tennis, I live the sport. And my emotions have often
carried me to victory. That’s just how I am.”
BSS/AFP/BZC/1925HRS