Dubai: At the 2010 Dubai Tennis Championship, Jelena Jankovic revealed she was still house-hunting as she shifted to Dubai. She is the second tennis star after Roger Federer - if you count out current Australian Open mixed doubles champion Katarina Srebotnik that is - to make the emirate her home and as the 2011 edition nears, the Serbian tells XPRESS exclusively why Dubai remains so close to her heart.
"I went to Dubai many times before and every time I go there I enjoy it - I love the people and the place. There's a lot of things to do, and of course I love the climate. They also have some great training facilities over there, so for me it's a great place to go in between tournaments," said the world No 8 who has won 12 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour titles.
The former world No 1 has been to the final here in 2005 and said she would love to win on home soil. "It would be so nice to win the Dubai Championship - I was in the final there a few years ago and I love the crowd and the atmosphere over there, so it would be very special," she said.
While many criticise Jankovic for not having won a Grand Slam title despite being No 1 - her best was reaching the 2008 US Open final - her career has been plagued by injuries, something that saw her slide down the rankings.
"Because last year, especially the last six months of last year, I had a lot of injuries. I had a really hard time. You know, I couldn't even practise. I had a hard time playing the matches. So that was one of the things that kind of took me off. But now I'm feeling good, looking forward to competing and battling and hopefully getting back to my best," the 25-year-old said.
"I worked really hard in the off‑season. I'm working with a new coach now, Andrei Pavel, so that's something new for me. Again, I worked really hard on my fitness just to be strong and be fit enough for the upcoming season so that I can, you know, hold up in those matches and play hopefully injury‑free," she added.
Jelena's journey
- Teamed up with Jamie Murray to win the 2007 Wimbledon mixed doubles title
- Best year on tour was 2008 when she reached the final of US Open, the semi-finals of the Australian and French Open and the fourth round at Wimbledon
- Also won four titles during the 2008 season
