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Davenport, Clijsters in race for year-end No. 1 ranking
(AP)
Updated: 2005-11-08 16:51
Davenport opens Tuesday against Russian Nadia Petrova, while Clijsters takes
on Mary Pierce, and Maria Sharapova plays Patty Schnyder in a round-robin format
that will decide the four semifinalists. Dementieva and Amelie Mauresmo are in
action Wednesday.
 "I feel like I've never really played all that well at Staples, and I'd like
to change that," said Davenport, a four-time finalist who has won the
season-ending championships once.
Ending its four-year run in Los Angeles before moving to Madrid next year,
the tournament is without the Williams sisters, who failed to qualify for the
eight-player field. Bothered by injuries, Australian Open winner Serena and
Wimbledon champion Venus took the rest of the year off after losing in Beijing
in September.
French Open winner Justine Henin-Hardenne qualified, but is out with a
hamstring injury.
"It definitely would make it more exciting if three of the four Grand Slam
winners were here," Davenport said. "You can't force someone to go out on the
court when they don't feel like they want to compete at this level."
Clijsters, the 2003 winner, missed last year while recovering from wrist
surgery.
"I'm just happy to be here after just watching it on TV last year," she said.
"The goal I set at the start of this year was trying to get to the
championships, and I did. I want to play as well as I have been throughout this
whole year."
Sharapova is the defending champion and the only other player besides
Davenport and Clijsters to reach No. 1 this year, having spent seven weeks at
the top between August and October. She reached the semifinals at three of the
four Grand Slam tournaments.
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