Wimbledon is her biggest goal in 2004. She said she has to improve her grass-court game to match the power of the Williams sisters. Serena Williams, the 2003 Australian Open champion, didn't recover from a knee operation in time to defend the title. Venus Williams, coming back from six months off with recurring abdominal muscle problems, was upset in the third round.
Henin-Hardenne said Clijsters deserved to win a Grand Slam title and her time would come soon. Clijsters is 0-4 in Grand Slam finals. In addition to losing three to Henin-Hardenne, Jennifer Capriati beat her 12-10 in the third set at the 2001 French Open.
Men's doubles finals
France's Michael Llodra and Fabrice Santoro won their second consecutive Australian Open men's doubles title, beating twin brothers Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan of the US 7-6 (4), 6-3.
After the trophy presentation, the French players celebrated by stripping to their underwear and throwing most of their clothes and towels to the crowd at Rod Laver Arena. Llodra emptied the contents of his sports bag and walked off the court bare-chested, dangling the team's trophy in one hand.
"It wasn't a bet," said Santoro after being asked if he was auditioning for the stage production of The Full Monty in Melbourne.
"And we didn't plan it ahead of time," added Llodra. "We were just having some fun."
The French pair won their 50th match together when they beat Gaston Etlis and Martin Rodriguez of Argentina in the semifinals. They first teamed at the 2002 Australian Open, when they lost in the final.
The 25-year-old Bryan brothers won the 2003 French Open title in their 21st major together and were seeded No. 1. It was the third time they have advanced to the final in the last four Grand Slam tournaments.
The Bryans were down a break at 5-6 in the first set after being up 4-1 but broke Santoro's serve to send the opener to a tiebreaker. The French team took the first set on a hard overhead smash by Llodra that went between the Bryans.
In the second, the French side closed out the match when Santoro held his serve. Llodra and Santoro raised their arms triumphantly when Bob Bryan's forehand from the back of the court went wide.
The match was a replay of the Masters Cup final in Houston after the Bryans took over the No. 1 ranking. They beat Llodra and Santoro in five sets in the final after defeating the French pair in the round-robin portion of the tournament.
The Bryan brothers will represent the United States in next week's first-round World Group match against Austria in Connecticut.
"You always are disappointed when you let a Grand Slam get away," said Mike Bryan. "We were up 4-1 and we thought we were going to have a good day. But we had two set points in the first and let them get away. In doubles, it always comes down to just a few points."
Bob Bryan said they will use the loss as motivation for future matches.
Llodra and Santoro have teamed three times to represent France in the Davis Cup, with a record of 2-1. Although Llodra is on the team to play Croatia in Metz next weekend, Santoro has been dropped from the French team for the first time since 2000.
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