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Belgium is a country known for charming chocolates and bewitching beers. Now you can add women's tennis to that delectable list.
While the first two flavors are readily available locally, it was nice to get a taste of the third this week as the Sony Ericsson WTA tour stopped by the Rexall Centre at York University.
The final match of the tournament featured Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne, the only two Belgian females entered in the women's singles draw.
With a 9-9 career head-to-head record, the two close friends were expected to produce a spectacular finish to a week of action that fell short of expectations.
Clijsters entered with the hot hand, winning five titles on the tour this season, but had lost to her pal seven-of-nine times in their championship meetings.
The windy conditions clearly troubled Henin-Hardenne, who had lost only twice in her previous 32 matches. She fell behind 4-1 early in the first set after her serve was broken twice in her first three service games. She regrouped to level the match briefly, but Clijsters took the set, 7-5.
From that point, momentum clearly favored Clijsters as she made quick work of Henin-Hardenne in the second set, losing only one game.
Even with storylines aplenty for a final that offered two of the tournament's top talents, Center Court was visibly unfilled. Seating was readily available for almost every match throughout the week and attendance numbers fell short of expectations. Pre-tournament projections expected roughly 155,000-160,000, but the total figures reached just over 136,000.
The absence of Maria Sharapova, Venus Williams, and Lindsay Davenport obviously affected the turnout. Serena Williams, one of the most recognizable faces in women's tennis, did participate, but retired after a round three win over the 14th-seed Flavia Penetta. Without the biggest attractions, the casual fans were thin in numbers.
But the ones who were present on Sunday did get a treat.
Two years ago, after Martina Navratilova won the doubles title with partner Svetlana Kuznetsova, she declared it would be her last time playing in Toronto. Not only did she return to play this year — to the delight of many — she immediately apologized for her false claim after winning the doubles title in exhilarating fashion with teammate Anna-Lena Groenefield.
The 48-year-old Navratilova and 20-year-old Groenefield found themselves in an unusual position after dropping the first set, 7-5, to their Spanish opponents Conchita Martinez and Virginia Ruano Pascual. The duo hadn't lost a single set prior to the finals. With the crowd clearly in Navratilova's corner, the tandem rallied to take the following two sets, 6-3 and 6-4.
But the burning question remained: will Martina Navratilova be back for one more appearance?
"Who, knows," she responded in regards to her return to Toronto. "You may see me back here in two years."
If she does return, she will be 50-years-old by her next visit.
"Nothing. I say nothing. I'm just not saying anything at all," she continued, keeping her plans flexible. "It's great to be here now. I appreciate it very much. It's a big bonus to still be playing and be healthy enough to be able to compete. Found me a great partner, so that makes it better. Yeah, so I'm not planning anything."
Navratilova and Groenefield will team together in the upcoming U.S. Open.
The Toronto tournament had a tough act to follow after the men's stop in Montreal provided excitement throughout, especially with a thrilling final between young stud Rafael Nadal and all-time great Andre Agassi. But the audience at the Rexall Centre also felt like they got a piece of history watching the female legend make her fifth doubles final appearance in Canada and capture her 175th career doubles titles.
Star power was not as bright as previous years and attendance statistics did disappoint, but the well-organized tournament and its planners have much to be proud of.
Poor fan support and good tennis mix like Mondays and me.
"The two prime movers in the universe are time and luck." — Kurt Vonnegut
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