Tennis: Stuttgart win gives Henin French Open boost

STUTTGART - Justine Henin beat Samantha Stosur 6-4 2-6 6-1 in the final of the Porsche Grand Prix today to capture her first title since coming out of retirement in January.

The former No 1's victory on clay will give her a boost three weeks before the start of the French Open.

"It means a lot to me on clay," Henin said.

Four of Henin's seven Grand Slam titles have come on the Roland Garros clay and seeing Roger Federer win the men's title there last year inspired her to end her retirement.

"It brought back the fire," she said at the victory ceremony, after taking a brief ride in the Porsche sports car that goes to the winner.

Henin was in her third final since resuming her career after a hiatus of 18 months. The Belgian player was runner-up in Brisbane and at the Australian Open.

Stosur, the seventh-seeded Australian, came into the final with an 11-match winning streak on clay. Henin also won in Stuttgart in 2007.

Henin had a lapse in the second set but otherwise controlled all the big points against Stosur, who was a semifinalist last year at the French Open and since then has compiled a 16-2 record on clay.

"It's very emotional to be back here because one year ago at this time I never expected to be back," Henin said.

"It's been a fantastic week, everything was just perfect."

A wild card entry, Henin will return to the top 20 when the latest rankings come out next week and go perhaps as high as No 18. Stosur is projected to move up two places to No 8.

"Getting to the final was really good, it's been a great week," Stosur said. "I enjoyed playing here.

"She just got very aggressive in the third set, she put me under a lot of pressure and broke my serve three straight times."

- AP