http://www.wtatour.com/newsroom/?contentid=269 February 25, 2006 Henin-Hardenne Captures Third Career Dubai Title DUBAI, U.A.E. - Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne continued her unbeaten run in Dubai, winning her third title in the Middle East with an impressive finals display Saturday against Russian Maria Sharapova. No.4-seeded Henin-Hardenne, having reached the finals of all three events she's contested in 2006 - winning Sydney and retiring during the Australian Open final with stomach pain - recovered from a 5-3 first-set deficit to defeat No.3-seeded Sharapova, 75 62, in one hour, 44 minutes. "I'm very happy with the ending," said Henin-Hardenne, also the Dubai champion in 2003 and 2004, having missed last year's event with a right knee injury. "It was a tough week for me, even though I won every match in two sets. It was hard with the rain too, trying to remain patient and still focus on the matches. This victory has given me a lot of confidence, for sure." Played before a standing-room only crowd, the final, between two former world No.1s (there were five former No.1s in the quarterfinals), was a high-quality affair, with Henin-Hardenne showing marginally more versatility as she broke Sharapova's booming serve twice in a row to take the first set. Games went with serve through the first four games of the second set before Henin-Hardenne again won four straight games to claim her 25th career Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles title. "There was a very high quality in the first set. Maria was playing very aggressively and I think she brought out the best in me. I had to raise my level if I wanted to stay with her. They key was patience in the long rallies, and being aggressive as soon as I got the right ball. "I fought very hard and I'm proud of the fact that I showed I'm a real competitor and stayed positive the whole time. This match was terrific for women's tennis, I think. The public was fantastic." It was an encouraging result for the 23-year-old Henin-Hardenne, who was making her first tournament appearance since her Australian Open retirement. "I was feeling very down after the Australian Open final, but overall my beginning of the year has been almost perfect when I think where I was a few months ago," added Henin-Hardenne, who improves to 4-1 lifetime against Sharapova. With the win, world No.5 Henin-Hardenne will switch places on the rankings with No.4 Sharapova and become the 14th woman to reach the $10-million barrier in career earnings. Runner-up Sharapova has become the 29th woman to pass the $5-million mark. "I'm disappointed with today, but Justine was simply better," noted Sharapova, who like Henin-Hardenne had to win a rain-delayed quarterfinal and a semifinal on Friday to reach the championship match. "I played very well until 5-3, didn't take my chances and I missed a few close calls. Overall I'm happy with my week though, I surpassed myself I think yesterday beating Hingis (in the quarterfinals) and Davenport (semifinals) on the same day and played well the whole time." For winning the title, Henin-Hardenne takes home $159,000, while runner-up Sharapova takes home $84,500. Losing quarterfinalist Amelie Mauresmo missed out on a chance to regain the world No.1 ranking from Kim Clijsters. The Frenchwoman, who would have returned to the top spot had she won the title, has another chance next week in Doha. Again, Australian Open champion Mauresmo has to win the title to become No.1. The doubles title was won by Kveta Peschke and Francesca Schiavone, who won their sixth and fourth career doubles titles respectively. The unseeded duo defeated fellow non-seeds Svetlana Kuznetsova and Nadia Petrova in the final, 36 76(1) 63, to collect their first title as a team. --

※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 59.117.6.218