Ivanovic, a 22-year-old Serbian nfl throwback jerseys
beauty who won the 2008 French Open before her slide, faces a Belgian second seed who has won 17 US Open matches in a row, her 2005 and 2009 titles sandwiched around injuries and a two-year layoff.
"It's going to be exciting," Ivanovic said. "I've been playing really well. Kim is a great player. She hasn't lost a match here in a long time."
Clijsters has three victories at Ivanovic's expense but in a way they have never been truely tested against each other.
Ivanovic defaulted from a 2005 match, took only three games off Clijsters in a 2007 quarter-final before the Belgian's home fans in Antwerp and injured her left foot three games into a Cincinnati semi-final and retired two weeks ago.
"I was really disappointed that I had to stop in Cincinnati, so it's kind of a new opportunity for me," Ivanovic said.
"It's definitely going to be important to take charge early in the points because she likes to dominate. She's a tough competitor. She strikes the ball really good. She doesn't give you much. You have to work hard for your points."
When Ivanovic struggled, Clijsters was supportive.
"She and I are good friends and I'm happy to see her doing well again," said Clijsters. "I followed her very closely when I wasn't playing.
"I saw her win the French Open and kind of from there (she) just lost it a little bit, had an injury as well when I played her in Cincinnati. The first three games we played I think were pretty good tennis."
Ivanovic still treasures kind messages from Clijsters during her down time.
"I have great respect for her," Ivanovic said. "When I was struggling, she was messaging me. She was very supportive. That's really rare and really nice to see. In those times, you know who your friends are."
From the glory of San Diego Chargers jersey
a 2008 French Open title, Ivanovic slumped to 65th in the rankings before fighting back under former Steffi Graf coach Heinz Guenthardt.
"He's like, 'Just keep swinging at that ball.' It sounds so simple, but it's true," Ivanovic said. "It has helped a lot. It's probably one of the most important things he's told me lately."
Ivanovic has more faith in her game now.
"That's exactly what biggest change is," she said. "I realize why I'm playing good and what I have to do to play good. Even when the doubt creeps in, I just know I have to stick with my game plan."
Confidence growing with every victory, Ivanovic has already matched her best US Open result from 2007 by reaching the fourth round after winning only one match on the Flushing Meadows hardcourts over the past two years.
"There have been tough moments but I'm really happy I managed to stay strong in those times and just push through it," Ivanovic said. "It's just a lot nicer because you feel like all the hard work is paying off."
Ivanovic is 50 pages into the third book in author Stieg Larsson's popular series that begins with "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" and "The Girl Who Played With Fire", seeing herself a bit like fiesty heroine Lisbeth Salander.
"I do recognize myself in some of Pittsburgh Steelers jersey
them. I do get very stubborn sometimes," Ivanovic said. "That's a little bit annoying to my coaches but hey, you have to take the bad, too."
Now Ivanovic wants to write her own story - "The Girl Who Won The US Open".
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