Crowds for Clijsters


Kim Clijsters beat Serena Williams 6-3 6-2 in an exhibition match umpired by Martina Navratilova in front of a world record crowd in Belgium.

The crowd of 35,681 at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels surpassed the previous record of 30,472 set in 1973 when Billie Jean King took on Bobby Riggs in the "Battle of the Sexes" in Houston.

Clijsters was supposed to play fellow Belgian Justine Henin, but the former world No. 1 was forced to withdraw after sustaining an elbow injury at Wimbledon, so the organisers changed the name of the event from "Best of Belgium" to "Best of Belgium versus Best of the World".

Beside Martina Navratilova, Roland Garros champion Francesa Schiavone attended the event too.

It is just over a month to go until Kim attempts to retain her US Open crown. After nearly a year back on the tour, Clijsters is now ranked number 7 in the world, and has had some great results in 2010, taking two titles, including the prestigious Sony Ericsson Open, in Miami.