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Perfect time to peak Mauresmo, Hewitt claim adidas International titles
Posted: Sunday January 16, 2000 12:12 AM
SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- If Amelie Mauresmo needed a confidence boost, her performance at the Sydney International is all she'll need. The sixth-seeded Mauresmo fought back from a break down Saturday to force a tiebreaker in the first set against defending champ Lindsay Davenport en route to a 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 victory. The win came a day after Mauresmo, ranked ninth in the world, beat top-ranked Martina Hingis. "It gives you a lot of confidence to get this momentum against the top players," Mauresmo said. "It feels great. Every match is better and better -- my shape also, I'm very happy with what I've done." The 20-year-old French right-hander continued her impressive run against higher-ranked players after eliminating compatriot Mary Pierce in the quarterfinals and Hingis in Friday's semifinal. Mauresmo, last year's Australian Open runner-up, had five aces -- the fifth giving her a championship point -- and drilled a series of strong backhands to overpower her American rival. Mauresmo and Davenport are 3-3 in head-to-heads, with Mauresmo adding this tournament to victories in last year's Australian Open semifinal and the Paris Indoors. "I'm very happy to come back to Australia after what happened here last year," said Mauresmo, beaten by Hingis in last year's International final. "I don't know, the way I play, I think I must like it here." In the men's final, Lleyton Hewitt won his second straight title with a 6-4, 6-0 thrashing of Jason Stoltenberg. After the opening two weeks of the season, the 18-year-old Australian holds the No. 1 spot in the revamped ranking system although he goes into the Australian Open as an unseeded player. Hewitt dominated Saturday's all-Australian final from the first game after breaking Stoltenberg's serve. At 4-4, he won the next eight games.
Hewitt couldn't repeat the success in the men's doubles final where he and Sandon Stolle lost 7-5, 6-4 to compatriots Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge, who were doubles winners at the Australian Hardcourt championships.
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