Fourth seed Kim Clijsters overcame a late wobble to beat Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova 6-1, 7-5 on Monday and set up a mouth-watering Australian Open quarter-final against Martina Hingis.
Belgian Clijsters, playing her last Australian Open, saw off her 15th-seeded opponent in 79 minutes on Rod Laver Arena to reach the last eight at Melbourne Park for the fifth time.
"I played one looser game and that made her really step up," Clijsters told a news conference. "In the second set she was taking some more risks and was a bit more aggressive and it worked for her.
"I feel like I'm seeing the ball well and moving well but it's hard to say how close to my best I am."
Clijsters made a fast start and breezed through the opening set in 27 minutes, but Hantuchova dug in to level the second at 5-5.
Clijsters maintained her composure despite wasting four match points before clinching victory on her fifth when her opponent sent a backhand wide. The 23-year-old Clijsters, who is retiring at the end of the year, has not dropped a set in the tournament and is looking forward to facing her good friend Hingis in a repeat of last year's quarter-final which the Belgian won.
"It's going to be fun," Clijsters said. "Tomorrow is a completely different match from last year, she has beaten me before. You always have to be ready for your opponent to play their best tennis."
