Former world number one Lindsay Davenport [Images] will juggle motherhood and professional tennis by returning to singles action at the WTA event in Bali in September, organisers told Reuters on Tuesday.

The 31-year-old quit the tour at the end of 2006 having missed much of the year with a back injury. She gave birth to a son, Jagger, in June.

An Olympic gold medallist and three-times a grand slam tournament winner, Davenport said last year that she could not imagine playing again but the lure of the Tour has proved too great.

"I'm excited to be playing Bali once again," Davenport said in a statement released by organisers of the event which starts Sept 10.

"It's such a beautiful environment and everyone is so friendly and supportive of all the players. It's always a great week and a lot of fun.

"I've really enjoyed playing the tournament in the past and feel it's the perfect place for me to begin playing singles again."

The American has not competed on the WTA Tour since reaching the Beijing [Images] quarter-finals in September 2006.

NO STROLL

The previous week, as defending champion in Bali, she reached the semi-finals, falling to eventual winner Svetlana Kuznetsova, and partnered Corina Morariu to claim the 36th doubles title of her career.

In her career, Davenport won the Australian Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open singles titles plus the 1996 Atlanta Olympics [Images] gold medal. Her 51 singles titles put her ninth on the all-time list.

Davenport began her professional career in 1993 and was one of the pioneers of the power game in women's tennis.

In the early stages, her strength was offset by a struggle with her weight but she devoted herself to fitness training and in 1998 won the first of her three major titles by defeating top seed Martina Hingis [Images] 6-3, 7-5 in the US Open.

She beat Steffi Graf [Images] in the 1999 Wimbledon final and captured the Australian Open title in the following year.

Davenport struggled with injuries in 2002 but came back to win 13 tournaments in 2004 and 2005.

Her 4-6, 7-6, 9-7 loss to Venus Williams in the 2005 Wimbledon final was the longest championship match in the tournament's history.

Davenport's return to the Tour will be no stroll. Other entrants in Bali include world number three Jelena Jankovic of Serbia, Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova [Images] and Swiss left-hander Patty Schnyder.

She is scheduled to prepare for her singles return by pairing up with Lisa Raymond in the doubles at New Haven next month.

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