By Kim Douglass
©Mark Peterson

(January 26, 2011) Injury is as common to an athlete as victory. As time goes on, the body can only take so much pounding before showing signs of wear. To the person that must suffer through the pain of an off-season and long rehabilitation where their body may only pale in comparison to its former glory, the signs are more noticeable.

Currently in her 14 years as a professional player, fans would never believe that Kim Clijsters is playing the Australian Open where mentally she's 100% but physically, that remains to be seen. Though she hasn't lost a single set since entering the land down under, including today in her match against Vera Zvonareva, 6-3, 6-3, she's currently battling a leg injury.

Clijsters admitted to needing pain-killers to get through her match against Agnieszka Radwanska,a victory that gave her entry into todays semifinals. Initally, the third seed played down the injury but eventually conceded to suffering from a partial tear of her left adductor muscle, an injury that posed a major concern in her face off against Zvonareva.

"When I land with my serve and even move or land on my left leg, it pains my muscle" Clijsters told journalist.

She later commented on the double layer of strapping she's had to wear to protect the injury. "The strapping is not something I'm used to...Under the white strapping, I had a cross strapping to keep the muscle together and it gave some tighter feeling - kind of pinched my leg together."

However, despite the pain, it was clearly experience that triumphed over youth as the Belgian was able to succeed once more over Zvonareva.

The Russian defeated 25th-seeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, 6-2, 6-4, in straight sets to advance to the semifinals for the second time in three years.

“I had to stay aggressive,” Zvonareva told reporters. “She’s such an aggressive player herself. You don’t want her to just keep going for her shots. I was trying to hang in there and fight for every point.”

Going back and forth, the two players traded points for 33 minutes before Clijsters ended things and took the first set 6-3, hitting 6 winners while her oppenent committed 13 unforced errors.

Opening the second set, it was clear from the start that Clijsters had her eyes on the prize, while her opponent was simply outmatched. After 73 minutes, the former world number one took the victory with an easy drop volley.

Thursdays match marked the 10th meeting between the two players, because of this victory, Clijsters will now be ranked No.2. Most notably fans will remember the 2010 U.S. Open final played between the two where Clijsters won 6-2, 6-1.

In a court side interview after the match, Clijsters said "I lifted my level compared to my other matches...I've played in a lot of big matches and you learn from them."

The Beligian moves on to face Li Na of China in the finals.