Justine Henin-Hardenne (BEL) v Kim Clijsters (BEL)
Ladies' Singles Semi-Final - 2006

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Five years after being a runner-up to Venus Williams in the 2001 final, Justine Henin-Hardenne of Belgium reached her second Wimbledon final after defeating compatriot Kim Clijsters.

Clijsters broke for early leads in both sets only to see her rival up her game to strike back. The first set should have belonged to Clijsters. She dominated the baseline rallies, and while Henin-Hardenne was doing well at the net, there were not enough of these points to make a difference.

The breakthrough came at 3-3. A wild forehand return from Henin-Hardenne yielded break point and a good return forced an error. Clijsters was at 4-3 and 30-0, looking serene when she was tempted towards the net, having spurned many an opportunity up until then. It was a mistake. From there attacking play by Henin-Hardenne brought her the break back, and she bounced forward to grab the set.

The second set went all the way to a tie-break with Henin-Hardenne forcing errors from her opponent to clinch the match with a dazzling backhand pass.

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