LOS ANGELES, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Fourth seed Justine Henin of Belgium and countrywoman No. 5 Kim Clijsters set up a quarterfinal battle with straight-set victories Wednesday in the opening round of the WTA Championships.
Henin took advantage of Elena Dementieva's numerous mistakes to post a 6-3, 6-3 victory over the Russian. Dementieva made 40 unforced errors and nine double faults.
"I think it was a hard first match," Henin said. "It's always difficult, especially in the tough conditions. We could practice only from yesterday on this court. It's hard to have good feelings, but I'm pretty happy that I made the quarters."
The 20-year-old Henin, who is getting married next week, captured two tournaments this season but lost four finals to the Williams sisters. She has moved up to a career-high fourth in the rankings.
Clijsters needed just 57 minutes to dispose of American Chanda Rubin, 6-1, 6-2. She recorded five breaks and won 82 percent of her first serves.
"I felt like I had to show in the beginning of the match I was very competitive out there, and I was trying to be very aggressive and keeping her under pressure," said Clijsters, who has won two of her last three events.
"She was giving me a few breaks in the beginning of the first set, so I felt even more comfortable. Even if I lost a break, I felt like I was dictating most of the points. I wasn't really worried out there."
The 19-year-old Belgian is 4-4 lifetime against Henin, who has picked her compatriot to be in her wedding party.
"Of course, it's always nice in one way and a pity in another way," Clijsters said of their meeting. "It would be nice if we could play each other in a semi or final."
Although her season came to a disappointing end, Rubin had an excellent year after undergoing knee surgery in January. She won two titles and reached the fourth round at three majors.
In evening matches, Venus Williams faced Patty Schnyder of Switzerland. Williams has qualified for this event five straight years but withdrew three times with injuries.
Monica Seles took on fellow-American Lindsay Davenport in the other night match.
