Clijsters up to friendly challenge
Betting tips 
/ Andy Morris / 20 January 2012 / Leave a comment Bet Now
The Belgian ace, who has a ranking of 14, comes into the match in good form after dropping just one game against France’s Stephanie Foretz Gacon in the second round.
It's the women who come to centre court on Friday night, with Andy Morris seeing both games as challenges of different sorts.
The evening crowd at Hisense Arena will be anticipating an all-action affair between Kim Clijsters and Daniela Hantuchova on Friday.
Clijsters' win here last year was by popular acclaim as she played wonderful tennis throughout the two weeks.
The Belgian ace, who has a ranking of 14, comes into the match in good form after dropping just one game against France's Stephanie Foretz Gacon in the second round.
There had been reports before the tournament that she might be struggling with a hip injury, which she suffered in Brisbane. But she answered those doubts in 47 ruthless minutes against Foretz Gacon.
Hantuchova, who is a good friend of Clijsters and the same age as the Belgian, has got no further in Melbourne than the semi-finals four years ago. Currently ranked 21, she has been taken all the way by both Varvara Lepchenko and Lesia Tsurenko in her first two matches.
On Rod Laver Arena on Friday evening, fifth seed Na Li of China faces Anabel Medina Garrigues in what could be an interesting test.
The Spaniard is seeded 26th, but showed in her 6-1 6-0 demolition of Olga Govortsova in the second round that she must be taken seriously.
