LOS ANGELES, 9 November 2003 — Justine Henin-Hardenne booked her place in the semifinals of the WTA Tour Championships — and assured herself of the year-end world No. 1 ranking — with a 6-2, 6-1 round-robin victory over Jennifer Capriati on Friday.
Henin-Hardenne, who won the French Open and US Open titles this year but could only wrest the No. 1 ranking away from compatriot Kim Clijsters for a week in October, made sure she’ll top the rankings at the end of her stellar season by reaching the semifinals of the elite $3 million Championships.
Clijsters, meanwhile, completed round-robin play undefeated on Friday, rallying to beat France’s Amelie Mauresmo 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.
The defending champion here, Clijsters had already qualified for today’s semifinals, while the fate of Mauresmo, who finished the first phase 1-2, hinges on Red Group rival Chanda Rubin’s match yesterday against Elena Dementieva.
Russia’s Anastasia Myskina kept her hopes of advancing alive with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Japan’s Ai Sugiyama.
Myskina bounced back from two early service breaks, which saw her trailing 4-1 in the opening set, to win in 65 minutes.
More importantly, she recovered from a three-set loss to Henin-Hardenne that had kept her on court until nearly midnight Thursday and up crying after that.
“I’m really proud of myself that I was able to recover,” Myskina said. “It was tough for me. I didn’t sleep well. I was thinking ‘How stupid can you be, to lose a set when you’re up 5-0?’”
Henin-Hardenne, who had sought medical treatment for her racing heart and the lingering effects of a sinus infection during that late-night win over Myskina, looked fit as a fiddle as she dominated Capriati.
“I knew before the match that if I won, I was going to qualify for the semis and then be No. 1 in the world,” the 21-year-old Belgian said. “It gave me so much determination. I was coming onto the court so focused.”
Capriati was hampered by a hip flexor muscle strain suffered in her opening match on Wednesday.
“I don’t think I could move to the fullest of my capability,” she said. “I didn’t feel like I could go all out.”
Henin-Hardenne didn’t face a break point in the 59 minute match, while breaking Capriati twice in each set.
Asked if she was surprised that Henin-Hardenne’s speedy recovery from her previous night’s marathon, the disappointed Capriati indulged in a little sniping.
Capriati was going to need a quick turn around herself to advance. She was due to take on Myskina in a make-or-break match last night.
Nagyova and Kurhajcova Book All-Slovak Final
In Pattaya, Thailand, training partners Henrieta Nagyova and Lubomira Kurhajcova claimed upset victories yesterday to set up an all-Slovak final at the Women’s Open.
Former champion Nagyova beat top-seed, Thailand’s Tamarine Tanasugarn, 6-2, 7-5 and Kurhajcova swept aside fourth seed Anca Barna of Germany 6-0, 6-0.
It took unseeded Nagyova two hours and two minutes to overcome some fierce resistance from Tanasugarn, who has yet to win the only WTA Tour event held in her homeland.
Nagyova, who won the title in 1997 and was runner-up in 2001, finally closed out the match on her fourth match point after failing to convert three match points as she served at 5-4.
“It was a tough match and the conditions were really very, very tough. We were sweating unbelievably,” said Nagyova after a match played in on-court temperatures exceeding 50 degrees.
Tanasugarn was not too disappointed by her defeat and will go into the 2004 season with confidence.
“She played very well and handled the pressure well, but I’m happy with making the semifinals at home,” said Tanasugarn. “It’s not easy because everybody expects me to win and it would be a good feeling for me to win a tournament at home.
“But a semifinal at the end of the season makes me look forward to the next.”
Barna was simply overpowered by the unseeded Kurhajcova.
The German rallied well throughout the match but was unable to win the points against a more aggressive opponent.
