It will be a familiar scene for Belgium's most famous sportswomen when Justine Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters meet in their third major final at the Australian Open today.
The pair have been competing and traveling together since they were 10 and even shared a room when they were teenagers trying to make a name on the tour.
Their careers have taken off since then and they are now two of the most recognizable faces in the sport, perched at the top of the ladder with Henin-Hardenne ranked No. 1 and Clijsters No. 2.
However, there will be no room for sentiment today when they contest their third grand slam final in less than a year, with the No. 1 ranking also at stake.
"Kim and me are getting used to this situation," said French and US Open champion Henin-Hardenne.
"It's an all-Belgian final, it's huge for a little country."
While Clijsters's game is based around her strength and power, she also has a reputation for losing her nerve in crunch situations.
The 20-year-old holds a 9-8 edge in their head-to-head battles but Henin-Hardenne won the two matches that really count.
She beat Clijsters in the Roland Garros final last June then again in Flushing Meadows in September.
"In those matches I knew where the problem was and I knew it wasn't psychological," Clijsters said.
Both have been in devastating form this year, coasting into the final without losing a set.
It was almost inevitable that the two Belgians would meet in the final after the women's draw was hit by the withdrawals of former champions Serena Williams, Jennifer Capriati, Monica Seles and the early exit of Venus Williams, who was playing her first tournament in six months.
"This is important, it's a grand slam final. That's going to be another great moment in my career," Henin-Hardenne said.
The pressure was already on Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso before their 2-1 defeat to Manchester City on Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League raised further questions about his future. Arsenal remain perfect in this season’s competition and three points clear at the top of the standings after a 3-0 win against Club Brugge, while defending champions Paris Saint-Germain were held 0-0 at Athletic Bilbao. The clash between Madrid and City was the standout game of the round amid reports this week that Alonso had lost control of the locker room. Speculation over his position is likely to intensify after the latest
‘HIGH STANDARD’: The Thunder are on track for a Finals-Cup double after they scored 22 three-pointers in equaling the best 25-game start to a season in NBA history The Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday bagged a 16th straight victory, thrashing the Phoenix Suns 138-89 to romp into an NBA Cup semi-final clash with the San Antonio Spurs, who stunned the Los Angeles Lakers 132-119. NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 28 points to lead the reigning NBA champions Thunder, who improved to 24-1 to equal the best 25-game start to a season in league history. They dominated from start to finish to book their place in the final four of the in-season tournament in Las Vegas, where they are tomorrow to take on the Spurs. The New York Knicks and
TOP OF THE TABLE: Evann Guessand put the visitors ahead early in the game and Flavius Daniliuc equalized before Youri Tielemans got the winner in the second half Aston Villa on Thursday extended their winning streak to eight games in all competitions with a 2-1 victory against Basel in the UEFA Europa League to secure at least a playoff spot. Villa were tied with Olympique Lyonnais, who beat Go Ahead Eagles 2-1, and Midtjylland, 1-0 winners over Genk, atop the standings of the second-tier European competition on 15 points with five wins from six games. They have bounced back from a poor start to the season and are third in the Premier League, including a 2-1 victory over leaders Arsenal on Saturday. At St Jakob-Park in Basel, summer signing Evann Guessand
Tony Jefferson intercepted a Jalen Hurts pass in overtime to give the Los Angeles Chargers a 22-19 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday in an NFL thriller between playoff contenders. Justin Herbert, playing a week after surgery on his broken left (non-throwing) hand, withstood a career-high seven sacks to throw for 139 yards and a touchdown for the Chargers. Cameron Dicker kicked five field goals, including the 54-yard game winner in overtime. The Chargers defenders forced Hurts to throw four interceptions and surrender a fumble for a career-worst five turnovers as the Eagles fell to 8-5 with a third
RSS