Tennis: Mauresmo reaches final at last

LONDON - Justine Henin-Hardenne and Amelie Mauresmo cleared the last treacherous hurdles overnight en route to a Wimbledon title showpiece that will have the tennis purists drooling.

The mercurial Mauresmo wobbled badly against 2004 champion Maria Sharapova before coming through 6-3 3-6 6-2 to end an excrutiating run of three semi-final defeats at Wimbledon.

Earlier on Centre Court Belgian dynamo Henin-Hardenne had too much firepower for compatriot Kim Clijsters, winning 6-4 7-6 to reach the final without the loss of a set over six rounds.

In a men's quarter-final held over from Wednesday because of rain, Rafael Nadal became the first Spanish man to reach the last four since Manuel Orantes in 1972 when he pummelled Finn Jarkko Nieminen 6-3 6-4 6-4.

A win over Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis on Friday and an expected victory for triple champion Roger Federer over 34-year-old Swede Jonas Bjorkman will give Wimbledon the most intriguing conclusion to the men's singles in years.

Like Nadal, Henin-Hardenne also arrived at the All England Club having steamrolled everybody at the French Open.

Now, five years after her first Wimbledon final ended in defeat by Venus Williams on the day that she mourned the death of her grandfather, the 24-year-old has the chance to complete her collection of all four grand slam titles.

"It's been five years and that was someone I love so much and I was very close to him, so I will have a lot of motivation on Saturday," said the French-speaking Belgian after continuing her grand slam domination of Clijsters.

She has won their last five clashes at the majors.

World number one Mauresmo led 6-3 3-1 before Sharapova reeled off five successive games to force a third set in their enthralling semi-final tussle.

Mauresmo recovered her rhythm in the decider, though, and she now has the chance to make the cynics eat their words.

A bout of sickness for Henin-Hardenne at this year's Australian Open final handed the Frenchwoman her first grand slam title on a plate but bizarrely raised doubts about her ability to handle big-match nerves.

"It was so tight in the second set, I was just thinking about getting to the final finally at the fourth attempt," said Mauresmo, who celebrated her 27th birthday on Wednesday watching France reach the World Cup final.

"I was relieved at the end because I was able in the third set to come back stronger and change the momentum. I finally get to play for the trophy and I will try to take my chances."

Fourth seed Sharapova has now lost five grand slam semi-finals since winning the 2004 Wimbledon title as a 17-year-old.

Nadal came to Wimbledon as second seed after a 60-match winning rampage on clay. Nobody really imagined the 20-year-old topspin powerhouse would stick around too long on grass.

Nieminen proved cannon-fodder, however, and the Spaniard is clearly relishing his extended stay in London, even finishing off the one-sided contest with a swooping volley.

"It's a surprise to be in the semi-finals," he said. "It's an unbelievable tournament for me. I'm gonna try my best for the next match, it's very important for me."

- REUTERS