48 hours: Mates' big day becomes one-sided fizzle

By TERRY MADDAFORD

It was the tennis version of mate against mate but without the intensity we will see in this week's State of Origin.

Kim Clijsters did her best, but it was nowhere near good enough against Justine Henin-Hardenne in the all-Belgian French Open tennis final.

It was the second time in as many grand slams this year that two players from the same country have stood on opposite sides of the net chasing the big bucks.

But, unlike the showdown in Melbourne, where the sisters Williams squared off in the surreal atmosphere of a closed court to biff-bash their way through the Australian Open final, there was rarely a shot in anger at Roland Garros.

The King and Queen of Belgium made the trip. It was hardly worth the airfare.

From the time Henin-Hardenne broke Clijsters in the opening game, this shaped as a yawn.

Neither the recently married 21-year-old Henin-Hardenne, at 57kg, nor her 68kg 19-year-old opponent - looking for an early present for the 20th birthday she will celebrate with long-time boyfriend Lleyton Hewitt today - could ever be described as heavyweights.

But Henin-Hardenne, in particular, showed she has what it takes.

Back at the stadium she first visited as a 12-year-old with her mother to watch the final between Steffi Graf and Monica Seles, Henin-Hardenne carried on from where she left off in her celebrated win over world No 1 and top seed Serena Williams in that much-discussed semifinal two days earlier.

No booming serve - although at 155-160km/h it was useful enough - just a series of well-placed ground strokes which quickly made true her pre-match "I'll fight for every point" pledge.

Before the match, played in front of a packed stadium which, as these occasions do, attracted big names including Ilie Nastase and the still-glamorous Gabriella Sabatini, the pair made much of their heritage.

Clijsters admitted it would be difficult playing someone she had grown up with. Henin-Hardenne said having two players in the final was "unbelievable for Belgium".

Only three of the sport's heavyweights, the United States, Australia and France, have managed that at a previous grand slam.

Once the niceties were dispensed with it was all business between the only two players to have won twice on the WTA Tour this year.

Clijsters went into the match with a 7-3 career record in tour matches between the pair, but her older rival won their last encounter, a tough three-setter on clay.

Also to Henin-Hardenne's advantage was the tougher route she took to the final.

Clijsters was taken to three sets only once and played no one seeded higher than 15th; Henin-Hardenne's three matches before the final were all against top 20-seeded players.

It was disappointing that the final was so one-sided. A great occasion deserved better.

The spectators, who let themselves down badly two days earlier by showing their anti-American sentiment in booing Serena Williams, were more hospitable this time. They wanted a great match but didn't get it.

Still, it made for good television and, more importantly, it showed some depth is returning to the women's game which for too long has been the domain of the powerfully built who stand back and deliver.

The emergence at this level of players such as Henin-Hardenne and Clijsters gives hope that some of the romance which has been stolen from women's tennis is coming back.

Where better to continue that than at Wimbledon in a couple of weeks?

High point

The Warriors, and the Little General in particular. After coach Daniel Anderson took a gamble by dropping a couple and giving others a start, the boys returned to something more like it. Eliminate the unforced errors and they would be back in the firing line. Dragging 16,000 to Ericsson after the run of outs showed they have the support, which will continue to grow as they do.

Low point

Serena Williams' outburst at the French Open. Sure, the crowd was on her back - one has to wonder whether that was more to do with French feelings over the war in Iraq - but was that reason enough to virtually snub Justin Henin-Hardenne as their paths crossed at the net after the Belgian's epic victory? And then to follow Fred Couples' lead by having a blub on TV. Really.