Flushing Meadows, NY (Sports Network) - Former top-ranked star Kim Clijsters will compete for her second U.S. Open title against ninth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki after topping second-seeded defending champion Serena Williams in straight sets in a match that ended on a controversial code violation.
Williams was serving to stay in the match and was down 15-30. She was called for a foot fault on her second serve in the next point to go down 15-40 and took exception to the call by the line judge. She then verbally abused the judge, pointing her racquet and finger and yelling at her.
Following the exchange, the line judge jogged over to the chair umpire to complain about Williams' tirade. Williams then disputed with the chair umpire and supervisor, and a code violation for unsportsmanlike conduct was called -- the call awarded the next point to Clijsters, which ended the match with a 6-4, 7-5 final.
"I haven't really thought if I have any regrets," Williams said after the match about the tirade. "I try not to live my life saying, 'I wish, I wish,' but I was out there and I tried and I did my best.
"I was totally fine because I realize at that time I got a point penalty and it was match point. What am I going to do, complain? It is what it is."
Clijsters, who took more than two years off to start a family, is now in the final of her first Grand Slam since returning to professional tennis. In the last three U.S. Opens in which she has participated, Clijsters has reached at least the final each time -- including a win in 2005.
"I think that Kim played really well, and I think she came out with a really good plan," Williams said. "I think the next time we play, I'll know a little more about her game and what to expect."
Williams was uncharacteristically rattled throughout the match, committing 31 unforced errors and slamming and breaking her racquet into the ground following an error to end the first set. Clijsters was much more consistent on her first serve in terms of percentage (69-55) and won 70 of the 127 total points.
"It's unfortunate that a match that I was playing so well at had to end that way," Clijsters said. "You know, obviously, yeah, I still -- to this point I'm a little confused about what happened out there just because I was so focused. You know, just trying to win that last point for me. So then things ended up ending a little bit different than I expected."
The 26-year-old Belgian Clijsters is 1-4 in career Grand Slam finals and will face a first-timer, as Wozniacki spoiled an all-Belgium final possibility by topping surprise semifinalist Yanina Wickmayer 6-3, 6-3 in a match between a pair of 19-year-olds.
"I'm in a Grand Slam final. I mean, I'm in the U.S. Open final. I cannot describe it with words. I'm so excited. I'm so happy I pulled it through today," Wozniacki said. "I'm really looking forward to it. It's a dream come true to play the finals of a Grand Slam, and now I'm here. So I mean, I have absolutely nothing to lose."
Both matches waited out over a day's worth of rain, and Wozniacki's match was pushed over to Louis Armstrong Stadium. Wozniacki, who had never advanced past the fourth round in a Grand Slam before this tournament, will now be on the ultimate stage after converting 6-of-11 break point opportunities in the match.
Wozniacki came into this tournament after winning her sixth career title in New Haven in the prelude to the U.S. Open, and now she will look to be the third teenager to win this title in six years (Svetlana Kuznetsova, 2004; Maria Sharapova, 2006).
Clijsters and Wozniacki are set to face off Sunday night, barring further inclement weather.
The winner will pocket $1.6 million.