DUBAI, 26 February 2004 — World No. 1 and defending champion Justine Henin-Hardenne was back in form after bronchitis forced her out of the Antwerp tournament last week, scoring a straight sets win over Tunisia’s Selima Sfar in the $585,000 WTA Dubai Open yesterday.
The top seed came away a 6-1, 7-5 winner over the top Arab women’s player as former world No. 1 Venus Williams also bounced back from her injury worries with a straight sets win over Australian No 1 Alicia Molik.
But there was no fairy tale return for another former world No. 1 Jennifer Capriati, who lost her comeback match against Greece’s Eleni Daniilidou.
Williams, the second seed, was the recipient of a first round bye and came away a 6-3, 6-4 winner in her second round tie against unseeded Molik. The 23-year-old Williams had withdrawn from last week’s event in Antwerp because of a strained lower right leg suffered in Tokyo three weeks ago. She had returned to competitive tennis at last month’s Australian Open following a six-month lay-off caused by an abdominal injury.
Afterward the former Wimbledon and US Open champion celebrated as though she had won another major title. “It was the second most exciting opening match of a tournament I have ever played,” Venus said.
Williams next meets rising Russian teenager Svetlana Kuznetsova, who later defeated Germany’s Anca Barna 6-4, 6-3, for a place in the semifinals. But Capriati, the third seed, who has been sidelined for three months with a back injury, was not so fortunate and lost her wind-affected match to Daniilidou 6-4, 7-6 (7 2).
The American had lost a little speed and was less sure of herself on the big points, but was nevertheless not far below her best against an opponent who looked to be building up well to the biggest moment of her career at the Olympics in her homeland in August.
Daniilidou next meets the Japanese fifth seed Ai Sugiyama in the quarterfinals, as Henin-Hardenne plays former Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez, and unseeded American Meghann Shaughnessy plays fourth-seeded Russian Anastasia Myskina.
Ferrero Crashes to Carraz Blitz
Top seed Juan-Carlos Ferrero crashed out of the 600,000-euro Marseille ATP tournament at the first hurdle here yesterday following an ace blitz from Frenchman Gregory Carraz.
The 28-year-old Carraz blasted down 27 aces before swatting aside the man known as ‘Mosquito’ 7-6 (7-2), 6-7 (3-7), 6-3 in their first round tie. Carraz, ranked 46th in the world, made just four doubles faults, saving five of the six break points he faced against the French Open champion and world No. 3 from Spain.
The Frenchman struggled with Ferrero’s serve in the second set, but gained the upper hand in the third, breaking for 1-3 before booking a second round tie with Robin Soderling, who beat fellow Swede Thomas Enqvist 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-1).
Third seed Paradorn Srichaphan crashed out in the opening round for the second straight week as he fell to unseeded Spaniard Alberto Martin 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Tuesday.
Wild card entrant and eighth seed Marat Safin defeated German qualifier Florian Mayer 6-3, 6-4 to win his first round match. Safin twisted his right ankle when leading 4-2 in the second set but pressed on to victory in just over an hour, banging down 14 aces without facing a single break point.
French favorite and seventh seed Arnaud Clement outlasted Goran Ivanisevic 6-2, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, but the Croatian former Wimbledon champion was encouraged with the latest outing of his comeback.
