Jelena Janković, one of the finest defenders in Women’s Tennis, has captured the hearts of many Tennis followers over the years with her jaw dropping fighting spirit and physical ability displayed in her performances. Some may tag her as an underachiever in her generation, especially considering how she built the reputation of challenging the Williams sisters at the highest level of competition – placing her name in a list of the few women who gave the American stars much to think about on court. Janković currently leads her head-to-head record versus Venus Williams at 7-6 while having a losing one versus Serena at 4-10.
Born in Belgrade, Serbia, Janković was a breath of fresh air on the WTA Tour; seeing as how the Tour had predominantly known Russian, American and Spanish female stars…also a touch of German, French and players from the Czech Republic.
She raised the Serbian flag under the guidance of renowned mentors like Nick Bolletieri by winning the Junior Australian Open title in 2001. Since then she went all the way to Semi-Final and Quarter-Final appearances at the French Open and US Open in 2007 before ending the year at World number 3. She was behind Justine Henin(1) and Svetlana Kuznetsova(2).
The following year (2008), she registered two Semi-Finals at the Australian Open and the French Open, together with a runners-up trophy at Flushing Meadows, and at the conclusion of that Calendar season, Janković was crowned World number 1 with a sizeable lead ahead of Serena Williams(2) and Dinara Safina(3).
When healthy, she is certainly a force to be reckoned with. She hardly ever underestimates any opponent she faces on any given surface. She gives 100% in a match. If she has to slide all over the court to return each ball she can, then that is exactly what she will do; including turning up the aggression, particularly off her backhand shots, in the attempt to produce her A game; so that ultimately, win or lose – she will exit the court with fewer regrets…if any.
