Clay countrymen

Costa, Ferrero advance to French Open final

Albert Costa reached his first Grand Slam final. AP

PARIS (AP) -- Juan Carlos Ferrero blocked out Marat Safin's antics, uncorking shot after shot until he'd carved out a spot in the French Open final.

Albert Costa paid a lot more attention to Alex Corretja's talking, tics and tumbles. Corretja, after all, was far more than merely another semifinal opponent -- he'll be the best man at Costa's wedding in a week.

The 11th-seeded Ferrero and No. 20 Costa each advanced Friday to his first Grand Slam tournament final, putting a pair of Spaniards in the championship match at Roland Garros for the third time since 1994.

Not quite as historic as the French Open women's final Saturday, when sisters Venus and Serena Williams meet for the title, but certainly a point of pride for a country that loves tennis.

"It's a party, a Spanish party, in the final," Ferrero said. "So, for sure, we are going to enjoy the match."

He finally advanced past the French Open semifinals, where he lost to eventual champion Gustavo Kuerten in 2000 and 2001, by staying composed against the always-animated Safin en route to a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 victory.

Costa, never beyond the quarterfinals in 25 previous majors, beat his pal, Corretja, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. They chatted, exchanged smiles, and both ran up to the net to check on the other after final-set falls.

Against Ferrero, when Safin wasn't talking to his racket, he was thinking about throwing it. At least a dozen times, the 2000 U.S. Open champion cocked his arm, began a spiking motion, then held back.

Late in the third set, Safin did let go, throwing the racket three times -- once, 15 feet in the air underhanded, accompanied by a roar and drawing jeers from the crowd.

"I want to think I played great and won the match because of that," Ferrero said, "not because he lost his mind."

Indeed, Ferrero followed up his quarterfinal ouster of 1999 champion Andre Agassi by doing what he does so well: keeping the ball in play until an opening arises to flash a forehand winner.

He made just 44 unforced errors to Safin's 78.

Another mistake by Safin didn't make the boxscore: After his service winner closed a game to get him within 5-4 in the third set, the Russian collected two balls and stepped to the baseline, ready to unleash another serve. When he looked up, he saw Ferrero was where he should have been: at the changeover seats.

"I thought it was at 30-all," Safin said, smiling. "I was gone. I was too concentrated on the match."

It might have been tough for Costa and 1998 and 2001 runner-up Corretja to stay focused, given how close they are.

In the second game of the fourth set, the 18th-seeded Corretja slipped going to his right for a volley and fell, scraping his shoulder, arm and hand on the court, and cutting a knuckle on his right hand. Costa walked to the net, put his hands on it, and looked on with concern until Corretja stood.

Then, on the match's last point, Costa got his feet tangled as he moved to his right in pursuit of a Corretja groundstroke. Costa stumbled, dropped his racket, and looked up to see the ball drop wide. He fell on his back, arms spread apart, as the ball bounced then hit him.

"Oh, I felt a little bit stupid," Costa said. "But then I was completely happy."

When they met at the net, a clay-splattered Costa embraced Corretja and patted him on the back with a closed fist. As they went to grab their bags, Corretja tugged at Costa's shirt playfully, as if to say, "Hey, nice match. Now let's get a beer."

They practice together, both have homes in Barcelona and a nearby suburb, and they teamed to win a doubles bronze medal at the Sydney Olympics.

"You know that you're playing against a friend. You can't really forget," Costa said after improving to 6-7 against Corretja. "We're very much used to playing against the other. This is why we're able to take it in stride."

Costa -- who eliminated Kuerten in the round of 16 -- dictated points, looking for opportunities to move to the net and shorten rallies. Corretja appeared content to stay several feet behind the baseline and slug away.

Safin, meanwhile, is left to ponder another oh-so-close showing in a major.

He's the only player to reach the final four at each of the past three Grand Slam events, but he lost to Pete Sampras in the U.S. Open semifinals and to Thomas Johansson in the Australian Open final.

Getting "from this point to being a winner in a Grand Slam -- it's like from here to the moon," he said. "You have to be tough, you have to play great, you have to be confident on the court."

Notes: All of Costa's 11 career titles came on clay, while five of Ferrero's six have. ... They've split four head-to-head matches.

 

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