Share

Clijsters into last 16

Melbourne - Defending champion Kim Clijsters reached the fourth round of the Australian Open by beating Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova in straight sets on Friday.

Clijsters edged a close first set before running away with the second to win 6-3, 6-2 on the Hisense Arena.

It was the Belgian's first match on Melbourne Park's secondary court since she had a meltdown against Nadia Petrova two years ago and lost 6-0, 6-1 in 52 minutes, her heaviest ever defeat at a grand slam.

"I wanted to play well, to really focus and not let that happen again," she said on Friday. "I think it made me focus a bit more."

Clijsters was not at her best against Hantuchova, whom she last met in Brisbane two weeks ago when a hip injury forced her to withdraw from their semi-final.

The match was closer than the scoreline suggested, with Hantuchova missing a number of chances to put pressure on the defending champion with some simple mistakes.

The 11th seeded Belgian broke Hantuchova five times in the match, but was broken twice herself as she made only 56 percent of her first serves.

Clijsters also made 18 unforced errors in a sometimes sloppy display but was rescued by her ability to smash winners from all over the court, 27 of them compared with 12 from Hantuchova.

"I wasn't playing my best tennis but I fought all the way," Clijsters said.

"I just tried to do my best out there."

Clijsters will next play the winner of the Li Na-Anabel Medina Garrigues match later Friday.


We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1473 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2251 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE