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Top-ranked performance Hingis downs Sanchez-Vicario to win Hamburg title
Posted: Sunday May 07, 2000 10:53 AM
HAMBURG, Germany (AP) -- Martina Hingis celebrated the recapture of the No. 1 ranking by winning her third title of the year Sunday, beating Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario 6-3, 6-3 in the final of the Betty Barclay Cup. "I am happy about the No. 1, but this victory in the final is more important to me," Hingis said after collecting the 29th title of her career. Just by making the final, the 19-year-old Swiss star had made sure of regaining the No. 1 ranking, which she lost in mid-April to Lindsay Davenport. The victory was worth $87,000 to Hingis, who also won the clay-court tournament in 1998, the last time she played here. Hamburg was also where she reached the final in her tournament debut, as a 14-year-old in 1995. More importantly, it reconfirmed Hingis' role as the favorite for the French Open, the second Grand Slam of the year which starts in three weeks. Only three times in the last 13 years the Hamburg final failed to produce at least one of the French Open finalists in the same season. Hingis, playing her first tournament on clay this year, dominated the final against Sanchez-Vicario, a three-time champion in Hamburg. Hingis hardly made any errors and kept the ball in play, forcing the 28-year-old Spaniard into long rallies that usually ended with Sanchez-Vicario making the mistake. The Swiss used her third match point to win after 78 minutes and raise her record against Sanchez-Vicario to 14-1. "I'll be back next year, I am not finished here yet," the Spaniard said. Hingis will spend her 137th week at No. 1 when the new rankings are released on Monday. She first hurdled into the top spot on March 31, 1997, as a 16-year-old.
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