Kim Clijsters has reached her second US Open final after knocking out top seed Maria Sharapova.
The number four seed continued her recovery from a career-threatening injury with a 6-2 6-7 (4/7) 6-3 victory over the Russian.
After winning the first set, Clijsters could have closed out the match when leading 6-5 in the second but Sharapova managed to survive five match points before taking the semi-final to a third set.
However, the Belgian, who has six titles this season, was too strong in the decider and booked her place in the final.
Clijsters will now be favourite as she aims to win her first Grand Slam title by beating Mary Pierce in the final. The Frenchwoman, seeded 12th, had earlier come from behind to beat the number six seed Elena Dementieva in the other semi-final.
