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Henin-Hardenne, Clijsters advance

Kim Clijsters slides as she reaches out for a forehand shot during her semifinal match against Lindsay Davenport at the Acura Classic in Carlsbad, California, Saturday. PHOTO: AP

Justine Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters advanced to the championship of the Acura Classic on Saturday, setting up a rematch of this year's French Open final between the Belgium countrywomen.

Henin-Hardenne, the reigning French champion, beat unseeded Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-1, 6-3 in the evening semifinal of the US$1 million tournament at La Costa Resort and Spa.

Earlier, Clijsters moved into position to win her second hard-court title in two weeks by topping Lindsay Davenport 6-3, 6-3. Clijsters won her tour-leading fifth title last week at the Bank of West Classic. In the French Open final on clay, Henin-Hardenne beat Clijsters 6-0, 6-4. They later played on grass in the Netherlands with Clijsters prevailing in the second set when Henin-Hardenne retired.

Clijsters leads their all-time series 8-6 with a 4-1 edge on the hard-court surface used at this tourney.

"I'll have to play great to win," Henin-Hardenne said. "It's great for Belgium to have Kim and me in the final again. I know her well, and she knows me."

The third-seeded Henin-Hardenne jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set against Kuznetsova before being broken for the only time in the match. Kuznetsova then had three game points on her service, but Henin-Hardenne recovered to win the first of six straight games.

In their only previous meeting, Henin-Hardenne beat Kuznetsova in this year's Wimbledon quarterfinals 6-2, 6-2.

"It was more tough in Wimbledon," Kuznetsova said. "I played a good game here, but I was a bit unlucky. She's a top player, and she knows how to play well at the right moments."

Henin-Hardenne had 16 winners and 18 unforced errors, while Kuznetsova committed 29 unforced errors with 10 winners.
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