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Clijsters shines on return as Dechy, Sprem exit
Former world number one Kim Clijsters celebrated her long-awaited return from a serious wrist injury with a demolition job against Croatia's Jelena Kostanic in the Antwerp Open first round on Tuesday. Belgian Clijsters, sidelined since last October, needed only an hour to beat the Croatian 6-2 6-3 but Nathalie Dechy of France and Croatian Karolina Sprem suffered surprise early exits. Clijsters, who last played when she retired in the second set of a match in Belgium against Russia's Elena Bovina, looked as if she had never been away. Moving freely and dominating her 35th-ranked opponent from the baseline, she broke Kostanic in the first and fifth games before taking the opening set in 30 minutes. She broke the Croatian's serve again in the third game of the second set before wrapping up the match with another break when Kostanic sent a forehand long on the first match point. "I wanted to play again so badly and I am really surprised everything went so well," Clijsters told reporters. "Physically, I was 100 percent and I did not have to hold back at all out there." Clijsters, 21, reached last year's Australian Open final before suffering wrist injuries which led to her pulling out midway through a tournament in Berlin in May 2004.
ABORTIVE COMEBACK She had surgery to remove a cyst on her left wrist -- she is right-handed but has a two-handed backhand -- in June before making an abortive comeback in Belgium in early October, her first tournament for five months. Dechy, world number 13 and semi-finalist in last month's Australian Open, lost 7-6 6-4 to Czech Klara Koukalova while world-ranked 17 Sprem was beaten 7-5 6-3 by Russian qualifier Anna Chakvetadze. "I never found the proper tempo," said Dechy. "I was not feeling a 100 percent mainly because I have a little flu and also because I haven't been able to practise a lot indoors this winter." Two other qualifiers advanced to the second round, Camille Pin of France beating Spain's Marta Marrero 6-1 6-2 and Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia defeating Italian Maria Elena Camerin 3-6 6-2 6-4. In the day's late match, Mary Pierce of France eased past Czech Iveta Benesova 6-2 6-1. Pierce, who won the Australian Open in 1995 and the French Open in 2000, will meet compatriot and top seed Amelie Mauresmo in the second round. It will be their second meeting in successive weeks, Mauresmo having beaten Pierce 6-4 6-3 in the last 16 of the Paris Open.
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