NEW YORK(AP) Kim Clijsters returns to New York for the first time since her U.S. Open victory, and the snow is not the only difference from her summer visit.
She won't be facing Serena Williams in a showdown.
Clijsters instead will face Ana Ivanovic in a four-player exhibition Monday night for the Billie Jean King Cup at Madison Square Garden. Williams had to withdraw from their matchup because of a leg injury.
It's always disappointing when such a great champion pulls out,'' Clijsters said Monday at a news conference before the exhibition.I'm sure she would have loved being here. I'm hoping she gets better and that we'll be able to see her in Miami.''
It's been six months since their U.S. Open semifinal and Williams' infamous tirade against a line judge after she was called for a foot fault near the end of the match. Clijsters went on to win the U.S. Open title in just her third tournament back from a two-year retirement and giving birth to her daughter, Jada.
The other one-set, no-ad semifinal features Venus Williams against Svetlana Kuznetsova, with the winners playing a best-of-three final for $1.2 million in prize money.
Venus Williams is coming off victories at the clay-court Mexican Open on Saturday and the Dubai Championships.
I'm just going to try to make a quick adjustment back to hardcourts again,'' Venus said.Flip-flopping surfaces, which is never that easy, but I'm up for the challenge.''
It's been 10 years since Clijsters played at the Garden at age 17 and reached the quarterfinals of the tour championships. She's since married Brian Lynch, a former basketball player. They travel with Jada and attended a Knicks game Saturday on Jada's second birthday.
It's the first time for me to be in New York with snow, and we are just enjoying it as a family,'' Clijsters said of the recent 21-inch snowfall in Central Park.Last night, we took a carriage ride with Jada through the park.
``We did it during the Open, but it's just nice to see it with the snow now, people ice skating. It was different, a little more relaxing.''
King, who attended the inaugural showdown last year and did TV commentary, is unlikely to attend Monday night because she is recovering from a recent double-knee replacement.
While my heart and mind are with you for this great event, my body is still recovering from the double-knee replacement I underwent just a few weeks ago,'' King said in a statement.I plan on being back on the tennis court in the very near future, and I hope this year's BNP Paribas Showdown will inspire you to get active and stay fit.''
Venus Williams and Ivanovic played in last year's showdown, and Venus lost to her sister in the final. Serena has missed two tournaments since winning the Australian Open in January.
Serena's looking forward to being back on tour,'' Venus said.She really, really wanted to be here, but hopefully I can fly the Williams flag pretty well.''
So how close is Serena to playing again?
``Last night I did ask her how she was, but I fell asleep before she could respond,'' Venus said, laughing about their text messaging.
Ivanovic, the 2008 French Open champion, recently hired Heinz Gunthardt to help her out of a slump. He's the former coach of Steffi Graf.
At No. 3, Kuznetsova is enjoying her highest ranking in several years. She has a 4-4 career record against Venus Williams.
Before the final, the International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees Gigi Fernandez, Owen Davidson and Brad Parks will be introduced on court. They are part of the 2010 class announced Monday that includes doubles specialists Todd Woodbridge, Mark Woodforde and Natasha Zvereva.
The showdown final will be broadcast on ESPN2. It's part of ``Tennis Night in America,'' an effort by the U.S. Tennis Association to get youth signed up to play.