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- Jelena Jankovic battled back from the brink of defeat on Sunday night to keep her fall revival going and win her milestone 15th WTA title at the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open.

After ousting No.3 seed Venus Williams in the semifinals the day before, Jankovic had the difficult task of pulling off back-to-back upsets on back-to-back days as she had to take on No.1 seed Angelique Kerber in the final. And for two grueling hours the top-seeded German was in control, even on the brink of victory - she was up 6-3, 6-5, just a game away from winning her fifth WTA title of the year.

But the No.4-seeded Jankovic held her ground, held at love to push the second set to a tie-break, won the tie-break and only got better from there, rolling to victory in the third set, 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-1.

This is Jankovic's second WTA title of the year, having won Guangzhou a few weeks ago. It's actually the first time the Serb has won two WTA titles in the same year since 2009 (Marbella and Cincinnati).

Additionally, it's the milestone 15th WTA title of the former World No.1's illustrious career.

On the other side of the net, Kerber wasn't just a win away from her fifth WTA title of the year - had she won, she would have qualified for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.

"I had an amazing week in Hong Kong," Jankovic said at the trophy ceremony. "It's been unbelievable - Hong Kong is such a beautiful city, it's my second time here and I'm really falling in love with it.

"And Angie, thank you so much for letting me win today! You've beaten me so many times, so I'm happy I could finally do it. You're an amazing competitor and fighter and I'm sure we'll play again soon."

"First of all I want to say congratulations to Jelena for a great week," Kerber said. "I tried as hard as I could. I was fighting until the last point. Some days you have a little bit of pain everywhere in your body, but I was really just trying my best until the end of the match. Jelena just played too well tonight."

Both finalists had only good things to say about the incredible crowds that came out during the week.

"Without you, this tournament wouldn't be as special as it is," Jankovic told the fans. "Thank you so much for coming out throughout the week and filling up this stadium - tonight was almost a full house! It was an amazing atmosphere and an amazing energy, and hopefully we will see you all next year."

"Thanks to all you guys," Kerber said. "Thank you for your support the whole week - I was trying as hard as I could and you really helped me keep fighting out here. I hope to see you all next year!"

Srpska teniserka Jelena Janković zbog povrede neće učestvovati na na Australijan openu, a još uvek nije odlučila da li će u narednoj godini završiti karijeru.

SMIZVOR: B92 PETAK, 8.12.2017. | 11:30
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"Rešila sam da odložim povratak na teren, mada nisam sigurna da ću još igrati", rekla je Jankovićeva za Sportski žurnal.

Glavni krivac je povreda leđa koja je muči otkako je postala vrhunska teniserka.

"Operisala sam ih u oktobru u Madridu, ali još idem na terapije. Zato smatram da je najbolje da sačekam još malo da vidim kako će se razvijati situacija i da li ću moći ponovo da maksimalno treniram".

Jelena nije postavila nikakve rokove, mada je rejting oko 60. pozicije zaštitila odmah posle Ju-Es opena, u septembru, kada je videla da mora da napravi pauzu.

"Ova zaštita važi šest meseci, tako da bih mogla da se vratim do Indijan Velsa ili Majamija – objašnjava Jankovićeva. Ali o tome sada na razmišljam, primarno mi je da se potpuno oporavim. Za ovih 17 godina igranja na VTA turu nikada nisam imala ni dana pravog odmora i zato sada prvi put uživam. Zato i ne želim ni o čemu da razmišljam, niti se brinem, već da se potpuno odmorim. U srcu bih želela da nastavim karijeru, ali neću sada o tome da donosim odluku", zaključila je Jelena Janković.

Jelena Jankovic has been MIA since the US Open, on the sidelines as her ranking dropped to No. 159.

It was revealed by Sportski žurnal last Friday that the 32-year-old had back surgery in October in Madrid. And not only will she miss the beginning of the season, the former No. 1 might be done.

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“In my heart, I would like to continue my career, but I will not make a decision about it now,” she told the newspaper.

She could return at Indian Wells or Miami with a protected ranking (60), and take advantage of the new wild-card rules.

Indian Wells is the site of her first big pro tournament, the closest geographically to her home in Rancho Santa Fe, California and the site of her biggest title, back in 2010. She has played it 16 times.



Tough years for durable Jankovic
But the last few years have been a struggle physically. And at a certain point a player who has been No. 1 will get weary of constantly playing at less than 100 per cent. And now, getting back into top form after serious surgery.

As young as 32 seems in the current tennis climate, the perspective changes somewhat when you consider Jankovic has been playing top-tier tournaments for 17 years. She has more than 1,200 WTA and Grand-Slam level matches on her odometer between singles and doubles.

Jankovic
Jankovic on the practice court at the US Open in September. Will that end up being the final tournament of her career? (Stephanie Myles/Tennis.Life)
Add to that, Jankovic has been extraordinarily sturdy during those years, missing relatively little time in Tour. She has played every Grand Slam, every year, since the 2004 Australian Open.

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Jankovic at the Australian Open in January. She won’t play it this year – for the first time since 2002. (Stephanie Myles/Tennis.Life)
When she’s feeling physically, there are few players at the top level who genuinely seem to enjoy what they’re doing on court – even when things aren’t going well.

But she’s going to miss this one.

Fun times on court
In her honour, Tennis.Life presents a gallery of some fun Jankovic moments through the years.



The best moment might have been this one – at the Rogers Cup in Montreal in 2014. In the middle of an entertaining marathon against Coco Vandeweghe (won by the American 7-6 (8), 2-6, 7-5 after Jankovic had defeated Sloane Stephens in another crowd-pleaser, 6-7 (7), 6-,4 7-6 (4) in the first round), she was attacked … by bugs.

jj2
And then, there are the JJ bags.

Here are some fantastic incarnations.







We’d be remiss in failing to mention Jankovic’s apparent 10-year head cold, which always had us wondering why she hasn’t managed a tissue sponsorship through her career.



If this is the end, she’ll definitely be missed.

On the plus side, it looks like she’s maximizing her time away, doing a lot of traveling and enjoying real life.