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By Lauren Lynch
© Maxim

(September 21, 2010) Anna Kournikova returned to the US Open earlier this month, and has reclaimed cover girl status this week. Fresh off her US Open appearance where she doubled up with Martina Hingis in an exhibition match against Pat Cash and Mats Wilander, Kournikova graces the cover of Maxim Magazine.

Anna looks positively patriotic in the photos, which were shot near her Miami home. She still plays World TeamTennis and exhibitions and has continued her work with the USO, traveling to conduct meet-and-greets with American troops.

"I still play a lot of tennis on a daily basis," Kournikova tells Maxim". I've been traveling a lot and visiting a lot of bases in different parts of the world: Turkey, Guam, Germany. And my (most recent) trip was to Afghanistan and Iraq and I had an amazing time."

She never won a singles title on tour, but was one of the premier doubles players in the world. Kournikova captured 16 doubles titles, including the Australian Open, achieving the No. 1 ranking in the world along with Hingis in 1999.



The Moscow-born Kournikova retired from the tour in 2003 because of problems with a chronic back injury. She moved to Bradenton, Florida as a child to attend the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, has long called south Florida homee and recently became an American citizen.

"You know, I've always considered myself half Russian and half American," Kournikova says. "It never seemed to really matter if I had a passport or not. But when I started working with the USO and the troops overseas, it just seemed the logical next step."