News / Sports
Australian Open: Women’ Semis Set as Kim Clijsters Defeats Martina Hingis and Maria Sharapova Downs Anna Chakvetadze
Kim Clijsters defeated Martina Hingis in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open for the second consecutive year to advance to the semifinals. Clijsters’ 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 win puts her in the semifinals for the fifth time, yet she has never won the Grand Slam event.
Set to retire at the end of the season, Clijsters was far from sharp against Hingis yet she battled throughout the match.
Clijsters, seeded number four in the Australian Open, mixed her shots well and made the number six seeded Hingis move all over the court. Clijsters broke Hingis’ serve in the last game before hitting a forehand winner to end the match.
Maria Sharapova advanced to the semis after a 7-6 (5), 7-5 win over fellow Russian Anna Chakvetadze.
Sharapova, the world’s number one, had trouble with her serve throughout the match but was able to come up big when it mattered most.
Sharapova will now face Clijsters while on the other side Serena Williams will be taking on Nicole Vaidisova.
