MADRID, Spain (AP) -- After watching three Grand Slam titles slip away, winning the WTA Championships to finish the season with a No. 1 ranking was the perfect finale for Justine Henin-Hardenne.
"I proved some things to myself at the end of the season and I'm No. 1, so today is as good as winning a Grand Slam," Henin-Hardenne said Sunday. "It was a tough challenge for me. I didn't really know what to expect when I got here."
The French Open champion cut short her recovery time from a muscle tear in her right knee just to compete in the season-ending championships for the first time since 2003.
"I came here saying we'll see just day after day, just live this moment right now, that's what I did great during the last few days and I probably never enjoyed my tennis like I did this week," she said. "It was amazing."
Henin-Hardenne was the fifth player to reach all four Grand Slam finals and the WTA Championships final in the same year, and the first since Steffi Graf in 1993.
