Justine Henin-Hardenne wins her third French Open

Justine Henin-Hardenne's image on the outside of the Family Circle Cup stadium

Defeating Svetlana Kuznetsova in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, Justine Henin-Hardenne once again proved that she is the greatest clay competitor in the women's game. Though she came into the French Open with no 2006 clay tournament wins, Henin-Hardenne's did not drop a set throughout the red clay Grand Slam.

Kuznetsova appeared to be rattled once again in the early part of the match, hitting balls long and delivering a very weak second serve. But she began the second set by defeating Henin-Hardenne in a love game, breaking her in a love game, and then winning two more points right away on her own serve. Henin-Hardenne looked tired, and was obviously vulnerable to Kuznetsova's deft movement. But Henin-Hardenne broke back and then increased the intensity of her serve to once again take control of the match. As she did so, Kuznetsova's confidence visibly crumbled.

After the match, Kuznetsova remarked that she had expected a much more attacking game from Henin-Hardenne, and apparently had been prepared for that.

Since returning from almost a year off (2004) with a terrible virus, Henin-Hardenne's serve has not been what it was, though this is something never mentioned by tennis commentators. During this tournament, however, her serving skills returned, making her game complete once more.