Welcome to Fed Cup
Sanchez Vicario beats Schnyder, Hingis bests Martinez
Posted: Saturday September 19, 1998 02:54 PM
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Hingis beat Conchita Martinez, setting up a meeting against Sanchez Vicario AP |
GENEVA (CNN/SI) -- It's back to deuce for Switzerland and Spain.
Each country snared a singles match in Saturday's Fed Cup finals action, with Spain's Arantxa Sanchez Vicario beating Patty Schnyder, and Switzerland's Martina Hingis subduing Conchita Martinez.
It heralds a showdown in Sunday's reverse singles matches, when Sanchez Vicario plays Hingis, and Schnyder plays Martinez. Doubles will follow, with the Spanish veterans squaring off against the Swiss teens.
Relying on her experience and
trademark tenacity, Sanchez Vicario battled past Patty
Schnyder 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 to give Spain a 1-0 lead. Hingis, the world's No. 1 player, posted a solid 6-4, 6-4 win over Martinez, to offset it.
Schnyder started nervously in front of 10,000
cowbell-clanging supporters. She fought back to take the
second set, but Sanchez Vicario, the world's No. 4-ranked player, won in
style by taking the final six games.
Sanchez Vicario displayed the cool of a battle-hardened Fed Cup veteran
who has led Spain into the final seven of the last eight years,
winning four of them.
Sanchez Vicario broke Schnyder twice in the opening set to take a 5-1 lead AP | |
"It's important to win the first point, it's always a big
help to the player in the second match," said Sanchez Vicario
after the two-hour, 25-minute match. "The longer a match goes,
the better it is for me, but the key was that I decided to
concentrate more and attack in the third set."
Pounding away at the 19-year-old Swiss from the baseline,
Sanchez Vicario had looked ready to roll to an easy win,
breaking Schnyder twice in the opening set to take a 5-1 lead.
But after dropping her opening serve of the second and
falling behind 2-0, Schnyder finally began to settle down and
play up to her No. 9 ranking, breaking back at 2-1.
Basking in crowd support, Schnyder, the
winner of five tournaments this season, wrestled control of the
match away from Sanchez Vicario, getting the decisive break when
the French Open champion double-faulted at 5-3.
She took the second set and the momentum, breaking the Spaniard's opening serve in the third to move ahead 2-0. But Sanchez Vicario responded, sweeping the next six games to take the match.
"In the second I gave it all and with the crowd behind
me," said Schnyder, near tears. "I took the second, but in the
third I was just too tired.'
Top-ranked Martina Hingis meets Conchita Martinez in Saturday's second singles match.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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