The 'graveyard' strikes again as Clijsters falls

The graveyard swallowed its second big fish in two days yesterday. The women's No 5 seed, Kim Clijsters, was eliminated on Court 2, the venue of Pete Sampras' forlorn exit on Wednesday.

The Belgian 19-year-old lost in straight sets, 7-6, 6-2, to Elena Likhovtseva of Russia to become the highest seed to go out so far. Clijsters' compatriot, Justine Henin, seeded No 6, had a better afternoon, progressing past Denisa Chladkova of the Czech Republic, 6-2, 7-5, and playing superbly at times in the process.

There was also a win for the defending champion, Venus Williams, who started shakily, but came through 6-3, 6-1 against Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain, who knocked out Martina Hingis last year. Monica Seles, seeded No 4, also beat a big name, Paraguay's Rossana Neffa-De Los Rios, to ensure the big names, metaphorically, will be strongly represented in the third round.

Clijsters reached the quarter-finals last year, but has been troubled this season by a shoulder injury. She was never on her game, losing a scrappy first-set tie-break and going downhill from there. She lost her service three times in the second set, handing Likhovtseva a third-round match, probably on a show court, against Britain's Elena Baltacha.

"It's been tough for me this year, and I knew it would be," Clijsters said. "It is a challenge trying to find the right balance between playing, practising and resting, but it is one I have to succeed at. The shoulder still gives me pain, but not quite as much as losing big matches.

"I've cut back on my schedule to get some rest, and it means I don't have my rhythm when I come to a Grand Slam with everyone expecting me to do well."

Likhovtseva said she was looking forward to meeting Baltacha on a grand stage. "The bigger the better," she said. "She's a good player," she added of her next opponent. "I know she serves good and I know she can play."

The same can be said for Henin, when she keeps her nerve. Last year's beaten finalist dropped only four points as she took a 5-0 lead in her first set against Chladkova, but then had a characteristic wobble, dropping her serve and losing her dominance.

"We have to stay focused all the time because the lower-ranked players have a lot of motivation and have nothing to lose so come out swinging," Henin said. "But on the whole, I was happy with the way I played and finished the match."

In one of the best-quality matches so far in the women's event, Henin took chance after chance, playing exquisite winning backhands from the baseline and net alike. Chladkova produced a series of walloping double-backhanded replies, but they were simply not enough.

Henin now faces the Swiss teenager, Myriam Casanova, ranked No 180 in the world, who yesterday eliminated the No 29 seed, Barbara Schett, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3.

Seles ultimately progressed impressively, 6-4, 6-0, after upping the ponderous early tempo and forcing her opponent into errors. "I started off a little bit slowly," she said. "The last time I played her I lost to her, but once I won the first set I felt much better." She now faces Japan's Ai Sugiyama in the third round tomorrow, en route to a possible quarter-final against Henin and, if successful, a semi-final with Venus Williams.

Asked about the power of the Williams sisters and Jennifer Capriati, Seles said: "They have to be the favourites. I'm just looking forward to playing my next match."