NEW YORK(AP) Kim Clijsters has made a successful return to Grand Slam tennis, defeating Viktoriya Kutuzova 6-1, 6-1 in the opening round of the U.S. Open.
Clijsters, the 2005 U.S. Open champion, played her first Grand Slam match since the 2007 Australian Open on Monday, and needed 58 minutes to dispatch her 79th-ranked opponent.
Clijsters retired later in 2007 and had a baby last year, but decided to come back this season. This month, she made the quarterfinals in Cincinnati.
Other winners in the first round included eighth-seeded Victoria Azarenka, 12th-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska and 26th-seeded Francesca Schiavone. Five-time defending champion Roger Federer was to play later Monday.