2011 arrived and Kim was the hot favourite for the title. Kim had never won there before despite being called “Aussie Kim” by the affectionate Australian fans. So winning there will mean a lot to Kim. After an impressive drubbing of Safina in her opening round, Kim’s level dropped off but it was sufficient enough for her to reach the finals. A day before the finals, an old friend contacted me. We kind of lost contact for a while and he wanted to catch up while watching the finals. My friend was with me when we caught the 2005 US Open semi-finals together, so he knew how crazy I am when it came to Kim.
Anyway, we watched the final at his place and reconnected, amidst all the crazy cheering. It was very comforting to see that events like this can bring people back together. We talked about how much has changed since then and the missed opportunities in life. Also, I wished him all the best and hoped that he stays strong for whatever challenges he has to face. Of course, Kim won the tight final and it brought a nice end to a warm meet-up.
There are many other moments when Kim’s play coincided with events of my life but that will be too boring. I just wanted to say that Kim has been a role model for me on how to treat people and knowing what’s important in life. Watching her play has been my privilege and I will definitely miss her when she retires after US Open this year. I don’t think I’ll ever be as fanatic as I was with Kim with any other tennis player (which might be good), but it was a sweet journey growing up with Kim. I will close this long tedious write-up with a quote of Kim’s,
“You don’t have to hate your opponents to beat them.”
That’s what I’ve been trying to implement in my life and I hope I can achieve this someday. Thank you Kim for making a difference in my life and it was a nice ride. :)
"You'll be missed, Kim."
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