She returned to the game in 2006 and while she quickly re-established herself as a Top 10 player, she found out that she was not really a contender for the major titles. A positive test for cocaine in 2007 caused Hingis to walk away from the game for a second time. Even as she maintained her innocence, Hingis said she did not have the energy to fight a long-drawn court case and a result, she was handed a two-year doping suspension.
In 2013, a 32-year-old Hingis decided to return to the tour once again but this time only for doubles. She partnered with Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova but the pair failed to click as a team, winning only 3 matches in 5 events during the American summer hardcourt stretch. While Hingis may not have expected immediate success on her return, the early losses were certainly something she as not ready to deal with. Once again, Hingis packed up for the season and announced that she would think about her plans for the 2015 season.
Hingis failed to enter any of the tournaments during the Australian circuit in January, leading people to wonder if the poor results had caused her to walk away from the game once again. But she did return to the courts in March at the Indian Wells event, only if it was to motivate and encourage Sabine Lisicki - who she had agreed to coach now. While the duo did lose in the first round of Indian Wells, they went on to win the Sony Open in Miami with wins over three top teams.
While the Hingis-Lisicki partnership did not survive when it came to coaching or doubles, perhaps the taste of her first victory in seven years caused Hingis to stick around on the doubles tour. She partnered with Italian Flavia Pennetta and the two reached the finals in Eastbourne.
After a first-round loss at Wimbledon with Vera Zvonareva, Hingis got back with Pennetta and after a couple of early losses, the duo went all the way to the US Open finals.
Hingis seems to have found the right chemistry with Pennetta and the duo claimed titles in Wuhan and Moscow, narrowly missing out on a berth at the WTA Tour Finals in Singapore (they finished ninth just a handful of points behind the eighth placed team). But the recent wins has ensured that Hingis is back in the Top 10 doubles rankings this week as she climbed four spots to No. 9 in the latest WTA rankings.
This is the first time since 2000 that Hingis will finish in the Top 10 of the world doubles rankings. Now 34, the Swiss Miss has already confirmed that she will be back in 2015, albeit for a limited schedule. Tennis fans can be assured of Hingis continuing to play as long as she is able to keep the titles coming. When the wins dry up, Hingis will walk away from the game once again. And this time, it will most likely be forever.
A large part of me wants to disagree, but there's probably some truth in that.
I'll just have to enjoy every last moment of however long she decides to play.
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