PREVIEW: Australian Open Ladies Final Four

The 2006 Australian Open Ladies semifinals will be highlighting some of the best players on the current WTA tour. All four women have been former number one players and Kim Clijsters will regain the No.1 ranking next week regardless of how she does in the last two rounds of this tournament. Did anyone think that we could have a chance at seeing an All-Belgian final again so soon? After Justine Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters were out for long periods of 2004, the Belgian countrywomen stormed back to the tour in 2005 by winning a Grand Slam trophy apiece. Now in the first Grand Slam of 2006, they seem poised to repeat former glory.

No. 8 seed Justine Henin-Hardenne vs. No. 4 seed Maria Sharapova
Henin-Hardenne is playing so strong at this tournament that it is hard to picture anyone, including Maria Sharapova, stopping her from securing a place in the final. Except for losing one set to Lindsay Davenport in the quarterfinals, she has steamrolled her opponents in straight sets. The reigning French Open champion and 2004 Australian Open champion has a 2-1 career match rating against Sharapova and has defeated her in straight sets each time.

Maria Sharapova, although ranked No.4 in the world, has not played her best tennis here in Melbourne this year. Her quarterfinal match against Nadia Petrova was mediocre at best and unless she has improved drastically, you can expect to see Henin-Hardenne win the match.
Pick to Win: Justine Henin-Hardenne

No. 3 seed Amelie Mauresmo vs. No. 2 seed Kim Clijsters
Mauresmo demolished Patty Schnyder in their quarterfinal match and she could easily be considered a favorite to win this tournament. Kim Clijsters, on the other hand, was forced to work hard for a spot in the semifinals. Martina Hingis stretched her to three close sets, but in the end, the new world No. 1 reigned victor. Kim certainly was not at her best as she had forty-nine unforced errors. Her forehand was just as deadly as ever, but her backhand returns were off during most of the final two sets.

Although Mauresmo is clearly playing better than Clijsters at this point, Kim does lead Amelie 8-3 in career matches. Mauresmo did win their last meeting at the WTA Championships en route to winning the title, but Clijsters was by her own admittance, dead tired and simply just wanting to go home and rest during the off-season. After winning nine titles in one spectacular season, the U.S. Open champion simply ran out of steam. Prior to this victory, the last time Mauresmo beat Clijsters was at the 2002 U.S. Open.

Mauresmo’s mental strength will be severely tested by the battle-hardened Clijsters. Clijsters is a much more powerful player than Mauresmo and can run down just about any ball the Frenchwoman sends her way. The match will be a close one, but I still think we will see an all-Belgian final.
Pick to Win: Kim Clijsters

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