Kim Clijsters won a battle of comeback kids Down Under on Tuesday, beating Australian darling Alicia Molik in straight sets in the second round of the $220,000 Brisbane International.
In a battle between two players who came out of retirement last year - as well as two of the most popular players in Australia - Clijsters, the No.1 seed, cruised past wildcard Molik in exactly an hour, winning eight games in a row right off the bat and, after watching her opponent close to 3-all in the second set, reeling off three more to dust off the straight set win, 60 63.
"We've known each other for a lot of years, and even though we haven't played a match for a long time, the feeling is still there," Clijsters said. "I was able to read her serve well today. I also tried to use all the angles to make her move."
"I'm glad that I played her here before Melbourne," Molik said. "I'm not very disappointed. I was playing mostly at pro level in the past months. I watched a lot of matches on TV, but it's different when you are actually playing this level."
Clijsters could be on a collision course with fellow Belgian and close rival Justine Henin, who came out of retirement herself and is playing her first event back here. On Monday she won her first round match against Nadia Petrova, the No.2 seed.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Singles - Second Round
(1) Kim Clijsters (BEL) d. (WC) Alicia Molik (AUS) 60 63
(3) Ana Ivanovic (SRB) d. Timea Bacsinszky (SUI) 62 26 64
(7) Melinda Czink (HUN) d. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) 63 26 61
Andrea Petkovic (GER) d. Vania King (USA) 46 62 61
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