Kim Clijsters, who has vowed to quit tennis in two years, says her retirement plans won't increase the pressure on her Saturday as she bids to finally claim her first Grand Slam title at the US Open.
Clijsters appears to have her best Grand Slam chance to date when she takes on France's Mary Pierce for the US Open crown.
She has burned up the American hardcourts in the two months prior to the US Open, with three titles in four starts.
She opened her year with unlikely triumphs from the unseeded ranks at Indian Wells and Miami, signalling her return from nearly a year off with a career-threatening wrist injury in spectacular fashion.
Here at Flushing Meadows she has raced down balls and worn down opponents with her speed, agility and sheer determination.
But while Clijsters says she always counts on her fitness to get her through, she says it's harder and harder to maintain.
She was feeling it after a tough 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 quarter-final win over Wimbledon champion Venus Williams.