Tennis: Serena battles to victory over Clijsters

Seventh seed Serena Williams shrugged off a hostile crowd and rallied for a 4-6 6-4 6-2 victory over Kim Clijsters.

The victory was her second Indian Wells Masters Series title.

Williams advanced to the final in a walkover on Thursday night when sister Venus pulled out complaining of tendinitis in her knee just minutes before their semi-final.

Williams was greeted by boos when she took the court against Clijsters, and the jeering continued sporadically throughout the match.

"I want to thank my God for giving me strength," said Williams, adding to the crowd: "You guys were a little tough for me."

Clijsters, the 17-year-old 14th seed, has now lost all three of her matches against the 19-year-old Williams.

Meanwhile, Andre Agassi will face American compatriot Pete Sampras for the 30th time in their careers in the final of the Tennis Masters Series.

Sampras twice battled back from 1-4 deficits to record a 7-5 6-4 win over Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov.

Agassi was a 6-4 3-6 6-4 winner in a scrappy, sloppy match against Australian Lleyton Hewitt.

Sampras, 29, can boast a 17-12 advantage in the series, which began professionally in 1989 in Rome with a clay-court victory by 31-year-old Agassi.