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Henin-Hardenne heart Fifth-seeded Belgian wins marathon to reach quartersPosted: Sunday January 19, 2003 1:11 AM
MELBOURNE, Jan 19 (Reuters) -- Fifth seed Justine Henin-Hardenne finally ended her winless skid against Lindsay Davenport, beating the former world No. 1 7-5, 5-7, 9-7 in a classic on Sunday to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. The 20-year-old Belgian needed four match points and two injury timeouts before finally sealing her first victory over Davenport in six attempts with a crosscourt return after three hours, 13 minutes at the Rod Laver Arena. Henin-Hardenne broke the ninth-seeded Davenport four times in the first set to take the initiative in what had been billed as a "grudge match" in Melbourne. The Belgian, who had accused Davenport of faking a leg injury during a semifinal defeat by the American in Zurich last year, raced into a 3-0 lead in the second as the unforced errors piled up for Davenport. But there was no indication of the drama to come, even when Henin-Hardenne squandered three break points for a 5-1 lead. Davenport, champion here in 2000, quickly capitalized on her good fortune, breaking back in the next game and then holding for 4-4. The three-time Grand Slam winner broke again for 6-5 but still had to save four break points for a tiebreak before evening the match on her second set point thanks to a backhand error from her opponent. Davenport, who missed the first half of 2002 with a knee injury, broke in the third game of the final set with a thumping forehand into the corner. Trailing 2-1, Henin-Hardenne called for the trainer to treat her right foot, but it had little effect as her game appeared to be disintegrating in the Melbourne sunshine. Davenport secured a double break for 4-1. But in a match of endless twists and turns and no fewer than 43 break points, Henin-Hardenne rattled off three successive games to level at 4-4 with some inspired tennis. The two players then traded breaks before Davenport found a big serve to stave off a match point down 7-6 in the deciding set. With the match ticking towards three hours, Henin-Hardenne called the trainer again after suddenly going down clutching her left thigh serving at 15-0 in the next game. However, the 2001 Wimbledon finalist served her eighth ace of the match on the first point after five minutes of treatment and held for 8-7 before calling the trainer again during the changeover. A wild forehand from an exhausted Davenport then gave Henin-Hardenne three match points. Davenport bravely averted the first two with a forehand pass and a booming ace but had nothing left in the tank when Henin-Hardenne swatted a crosscourt return past her on the next point. Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
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