Vardan

Final Set in Men’s Doubles Thursday, June 2, 2005 Bob and Mike Bryan will face Jonas Bjorkman and Max Mirnyi in the French Open men's doubles final Saturday, their third meeting of the year. The American twins won the first two. Seeded third, the Bryans advanced to the title match Thursday when Daniel Nestor (playing with Mark Knowles) had to retire because of a left wrist injury with the Americans leading 6-3 3-2. Bjorkman and Mirnyi, meanwhile, survived a stiff test from Olympic champions Nicolas Massu and Fernando Gonzalez, finally pulling out a 6-3 4-6 6-4 decision. In the Australian Open semi-finals, the Bryans won easily, 6-1 6-3. Things were a bit closer a few weeks ago, though, in Rome when the 2003 Roland Garros champs won 6-2 in the third set. The mixed doubles final is also in place. Second-seeded Martina Navratilova and Leander Paes will take on Daniela Hantuchova and Fabrice Santoro Friday. Both were straight sets winners Thursday. The women's semi-finals are to be contested Friday. Top seeds and three-time French Open winners Virginia Ruano Pascual and Paola Suarez meet Nadia Petrova and Meghann Shaughnessy (5), while Cara Black and Liezel Huber (2) face Corina Morariu and Patty Schnyder, the eight-seeds.

Henin petrifies Petrova and will face Pierce in final Thursday, June 2, 2005 Tournament favorite Justine Henin-Hardenne put on a clay court clinic and plastered Nadia Petrova 6-2, 6-3 Thursday to race into the final. In reaching her second final at Roland Garros, the Belgian beat down the taller Russian from every angle of the court, powering inside-out forehands, moving the Russian adeptly around with low slices and negating Petrova's big serve with hard returns. The only real chance that Petrova had to win the match was to play an ultra-aggressive brand of yellowball, but Henin was the more powerful player on the day and kept the Russian from dominating at the net. "I don't see anybody winning this tournament except Justine," Petrova said. "She played perfect." Henin will play 2000 Roland Garros champion Mary Pierce of France, who wiped out Elena Likhovtseva. Henin is on a 23-match winning steak on clay and has won six contests at Roland Garros against all styles of players. In the first three rounds, she outlasted a trio of Spanish retrievers. In the fourth round, she was the epitome of mental toughness in facing down two match points and Svetlana Kuznetsova. In the quarters, she tripped up charged-up world number two Maria Sharapova. On Friday, she was successful in every strategy she applied. "I was very determined, I was patient and I was aggressive when I needed to be," the Belgian said. "I did some mistakes, but I did a lot of winners, and I've been aggressive and patient when I had to. So I was in the good rhythm. I was feeling very good, very calm on the court. " Even though she's dealing with a back injury, the 22-year-old Henin looks as fast and powerful as ever. She's added a vicious new inside-out forehand to her amazing repertoire and for more than a few moments on Court Philippe Chatrier, she looked like Roger Federer stepping into the doubles alley and hammering shots across the court and close to the line. "We've worked pretty hard on that shot because everybody knows my backhand is beautiful, it's natural, but it doesn't give me a lot of points. I move better when I go for my inside-out forehand, so that makes me feeling better physically. I'm in better shape when I do this, so that's very good. I can run a lot. But I love to use this shot. It's probably the first match here at the French Open I used this shot." Henin and Pierce have played three times, with Belgian taking all three battles without dropping a set. They've played once on green clay in 2003, with Henin taking a 6-2, 6-3 decision in Charleston. As fast as she is and with as many weapons as she has, it will be tough for slower power player like Pierce to hit through Henin. "I grew up on clay and I can slide very good," Henin said. "I think these types of player, they don't find the solution because they're hitting the ball very hard all the time and I'm always on it, so it's not easy. But I've lost matches on clay court. I can lose also."

Davydenko-Puerta: tough to call Thursday, June 2, 2005 Mariano Puerta and Nicolay Davydenko (n°12) the two surprise packages of the 2005 French Open will dispute their first Grand Slam semi-final this Friday...A tough match to call. Nicolay Davydenko hit the Paris clay fresh from an impressive win at Sankt Pölten. And his form has stayed with him through ten days of testing opposition, most notably with victories in the second week over last year's semi-finalist Guillermo Coria and a quarter-final victory in five sets over Tommy Robredo who had earlier overturned compatriot Marat Safin. A final berth will be the birthday present he is wishing for the day after he turns 24. Mariano Puerta is disputing his first Grand Slam tournament since the 2003 US Open. After serving a 9th month suspension for using banned substances, he returned to the tour in July 2004 ranked 440th in the world. The Argentinian has climbed back steadily over the last year, winning on clay in Casablanca in April after losing out to Gaston Gaudio in the final in Buenos Aires in February. Here in Paris he has impressed with wins over in-form Ivan Ljubicic in the first round, compatriot Jose Acasuso in the last sixteen and Guillermo Canas in five hard fought sets in the quarters. Davydenko has shown he can trade shots and stay the distance on clay. Like compatriot Yevgueny Kafelnikov he takes the ball early and can hit forehand winners with alarming ease. He'll need to be firing on all cyclinders against Puerta who will certainly try to keep him on his back foot. Puerta, the chunky southpaw, will be relying on his terrifying forehand to wreak havoc down on the Russian. His heavy topspin drives, one-handed cross-court backhand and idiosyncratic scissor service will also keep Davydenko guessing. The two players have only crossed paths once; in Hamburg, last month on clay, when the Russian emerged victorious in two sets (7-5 6-3).

Pierce cruises into third final Thursday, June 2, 2005 As her 25th winner of the day gave Mary Pierce a 6-1 6-1 win over Elena Likhovtseva, she threw her arms in the air and smiled brightly, a subdued celebration from someone headed to her third French Open final. But as she sat in her chair and dropped her head into her lap, Pierce showed that she, too, cannot believe this improbable Roland Garros run. "It's a fantastic feeling, you know. I'm very happy, very excited. And, you know, what can I say? It's just fantastic," said Pierce. At 30 years-old and as the 21st-seed, few had much hope for Pierce this year, but after the amazingly easy 58-minute affair Thursday, she has her third chance at the Suzanne Lenglen trophy, five years after winning it and 11 since losing it to Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario. Pierce says she is not surprised to be back on the greatest clay court stage because she "worked very hard. You know, I believe in myself, and the few people that believe in me that I have in my life have really helped me a lot to get where I am. "And, you know, that's why I'm here today. Because I had something inside of me when I had my injuries that was telling me, 'You know, you're not done.'" It was a dominant performance from the Frenchwoman on Court Philippe Chatrier. Much like her dismissal of world number one Lindsay Davenport in the previous round, Pierce dictated the match with her first serve and array of winners, which today varied from powerful cross-court forehands to a backhand high-volley that she kissed over the net to earn match point. And much like Davenport, Likhovtseva never found an answer. She was simply overmatched in her first ever Grand Slam semi-final. Pierce posted 15 winners in the first set. Likhovtseva won just 15 points in the whole frame. "I felt great this morning, you know, practicing and stuff," the 29-year-old said. "I didn't care much about the crowd and about, you know, that Mary's French and is playing here at home. But she didn't give me any rhythm. Like I fell apart really." An inconsistent first serve allowed Pierce to feast on Likhovtseva's second, winning 75 percent of the points off it. When the Russian managed to find the service box, she did not run well or cover the court sufficiently. Too many points ended with her watching Pierce winners skip through open court. There will be few openings like that Saturday when Pierce faces Justine Henin-Hardenne, writing her own comeback story after last year's battle with injury and illness. "I think it's a beautiful story. I think it's a great thing, you know," Pierce said. "Look at what Justine has been through, you know. She's awesome." Without dropping a set, the Belgian has won all three of their previous encounters, the last of which came on a hard court at last summer's Olympics in Athens. "This is not hard courts; this is clay courts. So it will be a different match," a confident Pierce declared. "It's later now. I'm feeling a lot fitter and I'm playing better. "You know, it's definitely going to be a really tough match. It's going to be a really exciting match. It's going to be a lot of fun. I almost really couldn't ask for anything better, to be playing against Justine in the finals. It's going to be fantastic."

Aussie breakthrough Although he would be 18 before he was granted Russian citizenship, the now Monaco resident soon defended his adopted country's colours in the Davis Cup. After his 4th ATP tour win in Moscow in 2004 he was warmly congratulated by former president and tennis aficionado Boris Eltsine. A pro since 1999, Nikolay first caught the public eye when he took a set off Pat Rafter in the second round at the Australian Open. He also won his first ATP tour victory in Australia in 2003 in Adelaïde. In three years he has climbed out of Marat Safin's shodow from 85th to 12th in the world rankings. And he will surely climb even higher if he overcomes unseeded Mariano Puerto on Friday to reach the French Open final on what is his favourite surface.

Davydenko: the other Russian Thursday, June 2, 2005 The hard-hitting Russian in the semis at this year's French Open is not Marat Safin but lesser known compatriot Nikolay Davydenko. After wins over last year's finalist Guillermo Coria in the last sixteen and Tommy Robredo in the quarters, the world No 12 is on the threshold of his first Grand Slam final. The win over Coria confirmed the 24 year-olds impressive form this season: he followed a quarter final berth in the Australian Open with semi-final finishes in Barcelona and Hamburg before winning in Sankt Poelten. The shy native of Severodonezk in the Ukraine now looks to be a contender for the Masters Cup at season's end. "I'm playing well at the moment but I still have to go out and prove myself everyday. I can still do better, my game is far from perfect" he says. Born on 2 June 1981 in the Ukraine, at just 11 Nikolay left his parents Vladimir and Tatjana behind to live with his elder brother Edouard in Volgograd. At the time, Russia seemed to offer more opportunities for a would-be tennis pro he explains to the hoards of journalists who gathered after his quarter-final win. "I stayed 4 years in Russia. Edouard worked as a tennis coach for kids and we practiced together. He pushed me pretty hard. At 15 we left for Germany. A Russian who lived there convinced Edouard it would be better for me. In Europe I could play more tournaments than in Russia."

John Roberts, The Independent (United Kingdom): Federer Roger has more experience and is more mature, but Nadal has the advantage of playing on a surface that suits his style perfectly. A victory for Nadal would be good for tennis, as it would place him firmly in the circle of Federer's main rivals. He would go to the very top. Spain has had many champions since the Manolo Santana era, like Bruguera, Corretja, Moya, and Ferrero. All have elevated tennis in their country to new heights, and now Nadal is also at his zenith. Spain is crazy about him, he has charisma and he's a fighter. He's definitely got the "X factor", but for Federer, this is a great opportunity to make an impression at Roland-Garros and win the tournament. Roger is the superior player and my head says he will win, but my heart hopes it's Nadal.

Ulbaldo Scanagatta, La Nazione (Italy): Nadal This game sees the two most prestigious players come face to face. It's a final in all but name. If it's hot, that will favour Nadal as his topspin will kick up even more, his shots will be more lively, forcing Federer to play his backhand above the shoulder. Nadal is an incredible athlete and my money's on him, but the purist in me hopes that Federer wins.

Barry Flatman, Sunday Times (United Kingdom): Nadal It will be a great match that will still be talked about in several years time. I think Nadal will win it, as he's bursting with confidence and afraid of no one. Federer has a fantastic record in Grand Slam finals, but it's not a final, even if it ought to be. There is a tiny bit more doubt in Federer's mind. He has not yet lost a set so, in my opinion, the first set is going to be extremely important.

Rino Tommasi, Sky Italia (Italy): Federer The surface may suit Nadal better, but Federer has pure talent on his side. It's a shame this isn't the final. Nadal has the physique of a 23-24-year-old player, and he proved in the final against Coria in Rome that he has the mental toughness. However, Roger gets less tired on court, he expends less energy, and over five sets, that can be a decisive factor. Nadal is not as gifted and does not have the same variety of shots. Roger also has the better serve and is better at the net.

Philippe Bouin, L'Equipe (France): Federer The weather will be crucial. If it's hot, like during the Nadal - Gasquet match, the bounce will be high and it will be much tougher for Roger. But if it's cool, he will have more time to turn around his backhand. But Federer is capable of beating Nadal in any weather. He has exceptional variety in his game, possesses a full array of shots and knows how to use them. Nadal has a more limited armoury and what's more, he has had a highly emotional time over the last two months.

Chris Clarey, New York Times (United States): Federer I have faith in Roger's ability to learn and these days he analyses his opponents very effectively. With time and objectivity, he has overcome the "barriers" of clay and now has a clear idea of the way he needs to play on Friday. Roger had not yet drawn on his reserves of energy and he possesses a variety of unique shots that can break down Nadal's defences. It will be a close and spectacular match, but Grosjean caused the Spaniard problems by varying his attacks and no one does that better than Roger.