BEIJING, 18 September 2005 — Top seed Rafael Nadal brushed aside fellow Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-4, 6-4 yesterday to set up a China Open final with Argentina’s Guillermo Coria.
The No. 2 seed Coria fought back from the jaws of defeat to beat Sweden’s Thomas Johansson 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 in the day’s first semifinal in Beijing. Nadal broke to take a 5-4 lead in the first set before closing out with an unreturnable serve to sixth seed Ferrero’s body.
The 19-year-old Nadal gained the decisive break in the second thanks to a wild forehand from Ferrero and secured victory on his second match point after another forehand error.
Nadal, bidding for his 10th title of the year, had won his previous three meetings with Ferrero — all on clay — but had never faced the former world number one on a hard court.
Coria was on the ropes in the ninth game of the second set but fought back to break to 5-4 when he chased down a Johansson drop shot to produce a superb angled winner. It proved to be the turning point. Last year’s French Open finalist raced through the third set as fourth seed Johansson wilted in the fierce heat and wrapped up victory in just under two hours.
Schiavone and Davenport in Bali Final
In Nusa Dua, Indonesia, Italy’s Francesca Schiavone and US top seed Lindsay Davenport won through yesterday to the final of the WTA Wismilak International in Bali.
Playing before Davenport destroyed China’s Na Li, Schiavone admitted she caught a “lucky” break to make the final after Patty Schnyder from Switzerland retired due to heatstroke with the score at 1-6, 6-4.
Fourth seeded Schiavone was below-par in the first set, but managed to find her form in the second as Schnyder began to show signs of fatigue. The game was tied at 4-4 in the second set when trainers came on to the court to check on world No. 28 Schnyder. Schiavone won the next two games to take the second set comfortably before the Swiss woman was forced to retire. Commenting on the prospect of a final today against Davenport, who defeated China’s Na Li 6-2, 6-2, Schiavone admitted that she had picked up a few pointers by just watching the world No. 2 perform.
Davenport, who displayed power and excellent control from the baseline to defeat Na Li, described Schiavone as a “very good player.”
France, Russia Level in Fed Cup
In Paris, Amelie Mauresmo leveled for hosts France after Elena Dementieva had given holders Russia the first point of the Fed Cup final here yesterday.
Mauresmo defeated 2004 French Open champion Anastasia Myskina 6-4, 6-2 in 1hr 30min after Dementieva earlier battled past exhausted US Open finalist Mary Pierce 7-6 (7 1), 2-6, 6-1 in 2hr 15min on the red clay of Roland Garros.
Now tied 1-1, victory will go down to the wire in today’s reverse singles and doubles where Mauresmo will play Dementieva and Pierce against Myskina. Mauresmo will then team up with Nathalie Dechy to play Vera Douchevina and Dinara Safina in the potentially crucial doubles.
“We really needed to level today. We’ll have to continue along the same path tomorrow,” warned Mauresmo. “But it was very cold out there with the wind swirling around the court.”
Russia are looking to defend the title they won for the first time last year in Moscow at the expense of holders France — then missing Mauresmo and Pierce.
But Myskina looked a shadow of the player who became the first Russian to win a Grand Slam event here 15 months ago.
She could find no answer to world No. 4 Mauresmo, looking an amateur as she hit 40 unforced errors against the Frenchwoman who achieved her seventh win in eight meetings.
Dementieva, meanwhile, admitted that she had been out to get her revenge on Pierce whom she accused of gamesmanship at the US Open semifinal. Playing with her right thigh strapped, world No. 6 Pierce struggled under cloudy skies which threatened rain.
