Clijsters may resume play in February

Kim Clijsters may be playing again as early as February 13, despite her earlier reports that she would require 2 months to heal the ankle injury sustained at the Australian Open.

"I've been to the doctor and the ultrasounds have been good, so I'm ahead of schedule," Clijsters said on her website.

"I'll do anything to get fit again and secretly hope to still be able to play in Antwerp."

The 22-year-old Belgian was forced to retire from her semi-final against France's Amelie Mauresmo at the Australian Open last month when she fell and hurt her right ankle.

Initial tests suggested an eight-week break from competition but she now hopes to return to training in the next few days. "I'm seeing my physio three times a day and I should be able to cycle from next week onwards," Clijsters said.

She will make a final decision on her return on Feb. 7 when she has a further examination.

My favorite part is that she secretly hopes to play again. Some secret. A few other articles have suggested she'll be retiring even earlier than expected (career-wise), but the article provides little solid information. Slow news day, I guess.