Kim Clijsters will not play at the U.S. Open, making Wimbledon the last Grand Slam tournament of her career.
The fourth-ranked Belgian will also play doubles at Wimbledon, which starts June 25, in case of an early exit from the singles.
"That way, I would be able to stay a bit longer at my last Grand Slam tournament," Clijsters said on her Web site. She has not yet decided if it will be mixed or women's doubles.
After losing to Li Na of China in Key Biscayne last month, Clijsters complained about a bad back and has found it tough to resume training.
"The will is not fully there yet, but I want to get used to clay again," Clijsters said before her next appearance at the J&S Cup in Warsaw, where she is the defending champion. The tournament starts April 30.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Teenage sub for Serena Williams clinches U.S. win
With Serena Williams sidelined, Fed Cup teammate Vania King showed she can do more than sing.
The 18-year-old King won raves for her rendition of the national anthem to start the weekend, then substituted Sunday for Williams and sealed the U.S. team's victory over Belgium.
King beat Kirsten Flipkens 4-6, 6-4, 7-5, giving the Americans an insurmountable 3-0 lead en route to a 5-0 victory. They'll face Russia in the semifinals after Wimbledon.
Serena and Venus Williams won in singles Saturday, then became cheerleaders rooting from the bench for King.
"It's a great feeling, because they're champions I really look up to," King said. "It's really honoring."
"She had a great performance," Serena Williams said. "It was a pressure match, because it was the clincher. She was down a lot, but she was able to come back. I thought it was a great match."
Williams pulled out a few hours before she was to face Flipkens, citing soreness in her right knee diagnosed as slight inflammation. She said the knee started bothering her before Saturday's match, but she didn't think it would hamper her preparation for the French Open next month.
The 18-year-old King won raves for her rendition of the national anthem to start the weekend, then substituted Sunday for Williams and sealed the U.S. team's victory over Belgium.
King beat Kirsten Flipkens 4-6, 6-4, 7-5, giving the Americans an insurmountable 3-0 lead en route to a 5-0 victory. They'll face Russia in the semifinals after Wimbledon.
Serena and Venus Williams won in singles Saturday, then became cheerleaders rooting from the bench for King.
"It's a great feeling, because they're champions I really look up to," King said. "It's really honoring."
"She had a great performance," Serena Williams said. "It was a pressure match, because it was the clincher. She was down a lot, but she was able to come back. I thought it was a great match."
Williams pulled out a few hours before she was to face Flipkens, citing soreness in her right knee diagnosed as slight inflammation. She said the knee started bothering her before Saturday's match, but she didn't think it would hamper her preparation for the French Open next month.
Saturday, April 7, 2007
Golovin, Petrova advance to final
France's Tatiana Golovin moved a step closer to her first WTA Tour singles title, beating Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in cold and windy conditions Saturday in the Bausch & Lomb semifinals.
The eighth-seeded Golovin, 0-3 in WTA Tour finals, will face top-seeded Nadia Petrova, a 7-6 (4), 6-1 winner over Sybille Bammer.
"The conditions were very, very tough to handle. It was windy and it was really cold out there," Golovin said. "I was proud of myself because I was able to keep at it. We both could have played better."
It was the French teen's first win over the sixth-seeded Ivanovic in six tries, but the outcome could have easily been a sixth consecutive loss.
The two 19-year-old players battled on serve into the 10th game of the first set, when at 30-30, Ivanovic made a pair of unforced errors to hand Golovin the first set.
Ivanovic won the second set to even the match, and had numerous chances to gain the upper hand in the third set.
She had at least one breakpoint opportunity in each of Golovin's first four service games in the third set, including eight chances in the first three games. But she was only able to convert on the eighth chance, to shave Golovin's lead to 4-2.
"I had chances in all of those games, but she served very well today and played some very good points in some deciding moments which obviously was a key today," Ivanovic said.
Even when she held a 5-2 lead in the third set, Golovin said she didn't feel secure.
The eighth-seeded Golovin, 0-3 in WTA Tour finals, will face top-seeded Nadia Petrova, a 7-6 (4), 6-1 winner over Sybille Bammer.
"The conditions were very, very tough to handle. It was windy and it was really cold out there," Golovin said. "I was proud of myself because I was able to keep at it. We both could have played better."
It was the French teen's first win over the sixth-seeded Ivanovic in six tries, but the outcome could have easily been a sixth consecutive loss.
The two 19-year-old players battled on serve into the 10th game of the first set, when at 30-30, Ivanovic made a pair of unforced errors to hand Golovin the first set.
Ivanovic won the second set to even the match, and had numerous chances to gain the upper hand in the third set.
She had at least one breakpoint opportunity in each of Golovin's first four service games in the third set, including eight chances in the first three games. But she was only able to convert on the eighth chance, to shave Golovin's lead to 4-2.
"I had chances in all of those games, but she served very well today and played some very good points in some deciding moments which obviously was a key today," Ivanovic said.
Even when she held a 5-2 lead in the third set, Golovin said she didn't feel secure.
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