Kim Clijsters swept aside Virginie Razzano 6-3 6-2 in less than an hour at the Hopman Cup on Thursday to give fourth-seeded Belgium a 1-0 lead over France. Clearly unaffected by the illness which has struck her Australian boyfriend Lleyton Hewitt, Clijsters was back to her best after an uncharacteristic slip-up earlier in the week against Italy's Francesca Schiavone.
''That was much better today,'' Clijsters said afterwards. ''I started feeling good out there, hitting the ball well.'' Motoring around the indoor court at Burswood Dome tirelessly, Clijsters ripped through the first set, pounding winners from the baseline past the lunging Frenchwoman.
The world number five refused to let up on Razzano in the second set and jumped into a 3-0 lead before the 72nd-ranked 18-year-old could get on the scoreboard. Razzano only managed to win two games in the second set as Clijsters imposed her superiority.
Belgium's Xavier Malisse takes on Australian Open runner-up Arnaud Clement in the second singles before the two nations clash in a mixed doubles.
In the night session at the western Australian venue, second seeds Australia face third-seeded Spain in a crunch group B-clash. Bureau Report