Clijsters, Henin in all-Belgian clash for title

BRISBANE, Australia – Kim Clijsters confirmed a highly anticipated all-Belgian final against Justine Henin with a victory over Andrea Petkovic on Friday at the Brisbane International.

Top-seeded Clijsters beat the 22-year-old German, 6-4, 6-2, in the semifinals, hours after seven-time Grand Slam title winner Henin secured a spot in the final of her first tournament since returning from retirement.

Henin, who advanced, 6-3, 6-2, over 2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic, leads Clijsters, 12-10, in career head-to-head duel after winning their last three meetings – all in 2006.

“I don’t think anybody, not even in Belgium, anywhere in the world, expected this would ever happen again,” Clijsters said. “It’s nice to be a part of this new kind of Belgian tennis final again.”

Henin quit in May 2008 when she held the No. 1 ranking. She announced her comeback last September, soon after 26-year-old Clijsters won the US Open in her third tournament back after more than two years in retirement.

“It’s always special when I play Kim. It’s a day I like a lot,” Henin said of a final against Clijsters. “It’s a perfect situation to play if it’s a Belgian final. That’s what a lot of people hoped for and expected.

“We’ve had a lot of great fights over the years. But a lot of things happened to her, a lot of things happen to me. It’s going to be a different situation.

“Of course, I want to win this tournament now. Let’s see.”

During her time off the tour, Clijsters got married and had a child. Unranked and unseeded at New York in September, she become the first mother to win a major since Evonne Goolagong Cawley at Wimbledon in 1980. (AP)