Kim Clijsters survived three match points before a rain break then produced a remarkable comeback after the weather cleared to beat Maria Sharapova 2-6, 7-6, 6-2 and win the Cincinnati Open on Sunday.
Sharapova had three championship points at 5-3 in the second set before rain left her stranded at deuce, two points from victory, and ending up having 74 minutes to ponder the missed chances before play resumed.
Belgian Clijsters emerged from the break a different player and steamrolled the Russian in the third set after winning the second set tiebreak from 3-0 down.
“I think it certainly gave her time to relax and more than the conditions themselves, I think it was about just maybe her going in and having a chance to think about what she needs to do differently,” said Sharapova, who took a medical time-out in the third set to treat a heel injury. “She came out and started playing really good tennis.”
After holding serve following the rain-break, 27-year-old Clijsters broke Sharapova before holding again to take the game into a tiebreak.
She clawed her way back from the 3-0 deficit to take the tiebreak 7-4 and broke Sharapova in the third game of the final set when the Russian double-faulted.
The Belgian failed to win on three title points, but held her nerve in the end to secure a US$350,000 prize and her 38th WTA win.
The victory, watched by her daughter Jade, was her fourth since returning to the sport after a two-year maternity break.
Clijsters returned to the tour at this event a year ago and went on to win the US Open, the Brisbane International and the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.
“You can’t start a match when you come out of the locker room like that, you can’t start it at 0-0. You have to be ready to go and you have to get yourself a little bit pumped up and fired up. That’s what I tried to do,” she said. “To me, obviously being my first tournament that I played last year, it was already special. It’s kind of just for everybody in my team; it was just nice to be back at the place where we started last year.”
“To win it this year, you know, means a lot. Obviously after the [foot] injury and everything as well to beat players like Maria and [Flavia] Pennetta this week is good to take to with me to Montreal next week and then obviously the US Open is ahead,” she added.
Sharapova, who was thrashed by Belarusian Victoria Azarenka for the Stanford title earlier this month, could be in doubt for the Montreal event due to her injured heel.
“I still haven’t really gotten a chance to evaluate anything,” she said. “I’ll probably see how it feels tomorrow.”
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and