Hantuchova, Kuznetsova reach Indian Wells tennis final
by Greg Heakes
March 17, 2007
INDIAN WELLS, United States (AFP) - Former champ Daniela Hantuchova set up a
finals showdown with second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, while China's Li Na
suffered a semi-final defeat at the Pacific Life Open on Friday.
Hantuchova, the lone former women's champion remaining, defeated Li 7-5, 4-6,
6-1 in the semis of the 5.3 million dollar ATP/WTA hardcourt tournament.
This marks the first final of the year for Hantuchova who made a name for
herself by capturing the 2002 Indian Wells title.
"There is definitely something very special about this place for me,"
Hantuchova said. "It is a fantastic feeling to be back on the court and in the
finals once again."
Hantuchova will play Russia's Kuznetsova in Saturday's final. Kuznetsova
defeated Sybille Bammer 6-7 (5/7), 6-4, 6-1 in a two hour, 39 minute marathon
semi-final on Friday.
Hantuchova got help in the final game from Li, who served up consecutive
double faults on the final two points in front of a crowd of 4,000 at the
main Indian Wells Tennis Garden stadium.
"I don't know why. I just couldn't serve in the court," Li said.
Li was trying to become the first Chinese to reach the finals of a Tier 1
tournament. She also made the semis of the WTA Tier 1 Berlin tournament last
year.
Li was pleased with her overall performance here and said she plans to reward
herself by going shopping at a nearby mall Saturday.
"It is my second time to play Indian Wells and I got to the semi-finals,"
Li said. "This will give me more confidence for my next tournament in Miami.
"I want to go shopping tomorrow. A lot of Chinese girls went yesterday and I
want to buy a nice gift for myself because I played in the semi-final here."
In 2004, Li became the first Chinese to win a WTA Tour title by capturing the
Guangzhou tournament in southern China.
On Friday, Hantuchova won 11 of 12 points to open the third set. She broke
Lee twice early in the set jumping out to a 4-0 lead.
Hantuchova had 15 winners and 31 unforced errors to Li's 30 winners and 53
unforced errors.
Li began the match by winning the first seven-straight points. She found her
form in the second set but then struggled with her serve in the final set.
The temperatures in the Palm Springs area have been 10 degrees Celsius above
normal the past week. The high was expected to reach 38C (101 Fahrenheit) on
Friday.
"It was tough because it was so hot and conditions were very, very difficult,"
Hantuchova said. "I felt like physically I was feeling much better on the
court."
Li said she plays mind games with herself to try and overcome the heat.
"If I start thinking the weather was hot, so the weather was more hot. Maybe
next time I will just keep telling myself the weather is cold," said Li.
Li has made a habit of fighting back from the brink of defeat in her matches
the past few weeks but the magic wasn't there on Friday.
"My legs just felt so heavy," Li said. "I couldn't jump or hit a big serve."
Li's ranking will improve this week from the No 17 she had going into the
event as she gets closer to cracking the top 10.
"Every player wants to be in the top 10. I will learn how to get to the top
10," she said.
On Wednesday, top seed and defending champion Maria Sharapova and third seed
and former champion Martina Hingis were eliminated.
The draw was already missing big names Serena Williams, Amelie Mauresmo and
Justine Henin, who decided to skip this event.
............省略
Li, at No. 17 China's top-ranked player ever and one notch above Hantuchova,
kept it close in the first set then won the second. But Hantuchova took
control quickly in the third, setting the pace with well-placed groundstrokes
as Li began making mistakes.
"I definitely felt like I had the edge in the third set. I felt very, very
good," said Hantuchova, a willowy 5-foot-11, 123-pounder. "I changed my dress,
tried to drink a lot and had a banana and just tried to stay calm and stay
cool."
Li said she may have been overly eager to play short points in the third set.
"I was a little bit tired. I wanted to hit a lot of winners because I didn't
want to play a lot in the court," she said. "I wanted to hit one or two good
shots and then finish the points.
"So I missed a lot."
Looking drained, she lost the final two points of the match on double faults
after having only one double fault earlier.
Hantuchova, a native of Slovakia who lives in Monte Carlo, beat Martina Hingis
in the final at Indian Wells five years ago. Hantuchova, who was 18 at the
time, went into that tournament as a relative unknown, upset third-seeded
Justine Henin in the fourth round, then beat the second-seeded Hingis for the
title.
That was Hantuchova's first tour victory -- and she hasn't won since.
"It's just a fantastic feeling to be back on the court in the finals once
again. I'm going to enjoy it and have a great time," she said. "Really, it's
amazing."
Hantuchova believes her game getting steadier.
"Before, it was too much up and down," she said. "I was never really stable.
But now I know what it takes to win big tournaments and to have great wins.
"I think with being mentally much, much stronger, I feel like the best times
are still ahead."
Updated on Saturday, Mar 17, 2007 2:26 am EDT
※ 編輯: okk 來自: 59.115.135.235 (03/17 19:11)
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