World No19 Elina Svitolina confirmed she has been working with Belgian legend Justine Henin during her preseason training block in Abu Dhabi this month but is still unsure about their partnership moving forward.
Svitolina, 21, is back practicing at Zayed Sports City for the third straight offseason as she plots her assault on 2016.
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The Ukrainian, who made her first major quarter-final at Roland Garros last June, has also been working with her British coach Iain Hughes in Abu Dhabi. She had spent some time practicing at Henin’s academy in the past.
“She (Henin) has been here with me, we’ve been practicing a little bit but we’ll see about our partnership for 2016. A bit later we’ll know about it,” Svitolina told Sport360 at the Hilton Capital Grand Hotel in Abu Dhabi on Friday.
“Yes (it’s like a trial). Iain is here, we’ll be travelling everywhere together. It’s great. I have a big team. Of course sometimes I need to change like sparring partners and fitness coaches. But everyone has their own job and we’re doing a good job I think and we’re looking forward to 2016.”
On what she feels Henin could bring to the table, she added: “It’s good to have something fresh but still I’ve been working a lot with my coach (Iain) and he’s brought a lot to my game. So we will see how it will go with Justine. Of course it’s going to be an amazing opportunity because she’s such a great champion. I have a good team and I think some little bits will help me improve more.”
Svitolina will kick off her 2016 season partnering her compatriot Alexandr Dolgopolov at the Hopman Cup in Perth starting January 3.
*Stay tuned for our full interview with Elina Svitolina in Saturday’s Sport360*
