^41 Tennis

Top seed Kim Clijsters, who is hoping to overtake Serena Williams this week as the world's top-ranked female player, cruised past Emilie Loit 6-1, 6-1 on Wednesday in her opening match of the 635,000 dollar WTA tournament.

Clijsters, of Belgium, won easily by taking 11 of the final 12 games in front of about 400 fans at centre court.

Under sunny hot conditions, she hammered four aces and broke Loit's serve five times, including three times in the second set.

"I feel like I have been playing good tennis for the past few weeks," said Clijsters.

"I played consistent throughout this match."

Clijsters' overpowering win sets up a third round clash with Nadia Petrova or her Russian compatriot Maria Sharapova.

Clijsters has a 3-0 career record against France's Loit but this is the first time she has beaten her on hardcourts and the first time either has played at the new 150 million dollar multi-purpose sports complex in Carson, a suburb of Los Angeles.

"Every time you come to a new place you have to adjust to it," said Clijsters.

"You need to get in some practice matches before you start playing."

Loit said she just couldn't seem to get untracked against Clijsters.

"It wasn't a great match," said the unseeded Loit.

"In the first set I didn't have many opportunities and in the second I rushed it too much on some game points."

Clijsters is using this tournament as a warmup for the US Open which begins later this month.

"I look forward to it and I hope to do something special at the US Open," she said.

"I am going to slow down a bit in the next few tournaments and concentrate on singles."

Clijsters said on Wednesday that she has been the No. 1 ranking is in the back of her mind. Her boyfriend, Lleyton Hewitt, was

recently knocked off his perch after being ranked top in the world for two straight years.

"I am thinking about it and when it comes, if it comes, I will enjoy it but I am not there yet," Clijsters said.

Under the WTA's complex scoring and ranking system, Clijsters needs a strong showing at the Los Angeles tournament.

US Open defending champion Williams had surgery on the quadriceps muscle near her left knee and will miss six to eight weeks.

Ukrainian teenager Viktoriya Kutuzova won her second straight match in as many days, defeating 15th seed Alexandra Stevenson 63, 3-3 after the American was

forced to retire with an injury on Wednesday.

"I needed to try and move her around a lot," said the 14-year-old Kutuzova, who is making her WTA Tour debut.

"My game is improving and I think I will get better each day I play."

Kutuzova beat Russian Lina

Krasnoroutskaya in straight sets in the first round match on Tuesday and she admitted she has surprised everyone -- including herself -- with her success in Los Angeles.

"I came here just to play for the first time and learn and then I realised that 'hey, I can play with the professionals'."

Stevenson quit in the second set with a strained shoulder and is going to talk to her doctor before deciding when to play again.

Second seed Lindsay Davenport also advanced on Wednesday, cruising past Barbara Schett, of Austria, 6-3, 6-1.

Fifth seed Jelena Dokic continued to struggle this year, winning the first set before falling to unseeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova 4-6, 7-6, 6-3. Dokic

was given a bye through the first round.

Other seeded players to advance Wednesday included South Africa's Amanda Coetzer, Meghann Shaughnessy of the US, and Francesca Shiavone of Italy.