Apia International Sydney Tennis - Australian Open Series

Stubbs and Raymond set to reunite

Charlotte James Friday 13 November 2009 5 Comments »

More than 15 years since their debut as a doubles pair, Rennae Stubbs and Lisa Raymond are reuniting to play the 2010 season together, starting at the Medibank International Sydney.

Stubbs turns 39 next March and says she is confident that the pair will be able to draw on the experience that carried them to three Grand Slam women’s doubles titles including the Australian Open in 2000.

“We play a very similar game, neither of us serves and stays back,” says Stubbs.

“We’re on the same page, trying to be aggressive and when we’re at the net it’s pretty hard to get the ball through us or around us because most people would consider us two of the better volleyers in the world.”

“We both have good hands, good overheads and I think just trying to keep the points short and being aggressive is what will make us a good team.”

Stubbs says she and 36-year-old Raymond have some clear objectives for their first tournaments since they lost in the first round at Wimbledon in 1995.

“Our goals would be to be as competitive as we can be and enjoy playing together again,” she says. “Once you get to a certain age and you’ve accomplished as much as we have individually and together the most important thing is we go on court and enjoy what we do.

“We don’t need to prove anything to anyone, only to ourselves. Enjoying it is key, but being competitive and winning the tournament – that’s always the goal when you step on the court.”

Stubbs enters her 21st professional season off the back of a successful partnership with Sam Stosur.

Although the pair didn’t win a title together in 2009, they reached the Wimbledon finals and the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Championships doubles finals, Stosur taking a step back from doubles at the end of the year to concentrate on singles.

And while Stubbs says she has no plans for 2010 to be her farewell tour, she is pragmatic about her future in the sport.

“I’m pretty realistic about my career,” she says. “I had a great time this year playing with Sam and it gave me a little bit of joy back on the court to be competitive and have fun.

“It comes down to two things, my enjoyment level and my health – my ability to play competitive tennis and enjoy it. If those factors are there I’ll continue to play as long as I can and if they’re not then it’ll be time to pack it in, call it a day and look back on my career and be proud of it.”

Sixteen pairs will contest the men’s and women’s doubles events at the Medibank International Sydney.

Peng Shuai and Su-wei Hsieh (TPE/CHN) are the reigning women’s doubles champions while Richard Gasquet (FRA) and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) were champions in the men’s doubles in 2009.

Tags: Lisa Raymond, Rennae Stubbs

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