14th seed Kim Clijsters became the latest high seed casualty at the 2010 BNP Paribas Open when she fell to 23rd seed (and head-jerker) Alisa Kleybanova 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4). Up next for the Russian is Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro, who took out top seed Sveta Kuznetsova in the round prior.
“What got me to be ahead was I was playing aggressive tennis and being dominant,” Clijsters said about her performance, which saw her get back into the match by winning the second set but losing a 4-0 lead in the third. “[Kleybanova] put me under pressure during those long rallies and I kind of just backed off a little bit.” Clearly her rust from not having played competitively since the Australian Open (save for two matches at the Billie Jean King Cup earlier this month) was showing.
But before she bowed out, Clijsters played to her girlier side by joining the rest of the WTAers who’ve been toting cute gym bags onto the court. From the current batch of accessories at Fila, Kim chose the brand’s Signature Quilt Bowler. We’ve been eyeing the gold version of that same bag…
Buy: Fila Signature Quilt Bowler, available in white, black, chinese red, and gold, $49.99, at buy.com. And her outfit: Center Court Sleeve Top, in ebony/white and white/hot coral, $48; Wrap Skort, ebony/white/hot coral, $45; Jacket, $68.