Rome, May 18: Second-seeded Belgian Kim Clijsters beat Japanese 13th seed Ai Sugiyama 6-3 6-2 so will meet Amelie Mauresmo in the final of the Rome Masters. Sugiyama led 2-0 in the first set on Saturday (May 17) before the 2001 Roland Garros finalist found her rhythm, striking a series of clean winners past her occasional doubles partner. Mauresmo versus Clijsters promises to be a tight contest. They stand at two victories apiece from their previous four meetings, all on hard courts. Fourth seed Amelie Mauresmo inflicted only the second defeat of the year on world number one Serena Williams in their semi-final. Mauresmo won 1-6 7-5 6-3.


Bureau Report