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Hingis wins again at the Australian Open
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-23 20:56
Martina Hingis took another step on the comeback trail Monday, beating
Samantha Stosur 6-1, 7-6 (8) to reach the Australian Open quarterfinals. Hingis,
in her first tournament since coming back from a three-year retirement,
converted on her fourth match point, showing the same savvy she used to win five
Grand Slam titles.
"I started off very well, I knew that I had to be right there from the start
— we both probably were very nervous," Hingis said. "I knew I couldn't give her
any momentum."
The 25-year-old Swiss star next faces her biggest challenge so far against
second-seeded Kim Clijsters, who has spent nearly all of her off-court time
getting worked on by trainers.
Clijsters showed no signs of the back and hip pain that has bothered her for
the last week as she beat 15th-seeded Francesca Schiavone of Italy for a 7-6
(5), 6-4.
Hingis blunted Stosur's strong ground strokes with an often-stunning blend of
perfectly placed baseline shots, crisp volleys and soft drops that had the
Australian dashing to the net for a pickup only to see the next shot lobbing
over her head.
Stosur, ranked 98th, seemed befuddled and almost on the verge of tears at
times in the first set, giving the partisan crowd little to cheer about as she
impatiently tried to hit winners.
In a sign of things to come, Hingis won the first point on a net court that
dribbled over for a winner. She ran off the last five games of the first set,
finishing it off in just 23 minutes.
But the second set was tougher, with Hingis getting the first break on a
running forehand crosscourt pass that left Stosur virtually flat-footed.
Both struggled with their serves, trading breaks four times in 12 games.
Hingis had chances to serve for the match at 5-4 and 6-5, but was broken both
times.
Stosur, feeding off the crowd's energy and finally showing the form that got
her through three matches, refused to wilt.
Stosur pulled ahead 5-2 in the tiebreaker. This time, it was Hingis' turn to
rally. She ran off four straight points to set up her first match point that
Stosur fended off with a 33-shot rally that ended when Hingis sent a forehand
that landed at her feet well wide.
Stosur saved two more match points before Hingis finally finished it off on
her fourth chance when Stosur netted a forehand.
"Toward the end, I just don't want to remember the other finals I played here
and lost in the second set," said Hingis, who blew four match points before
losing to Jennifer Capriati in the 2002 final here.
Clijsters overcame the stinging baseline power of Schiavone.
"I was a bit scared," Clijsters said of the nagging injuries that had her
questioning whether she would even show up in Melbourne Park this year.
"I've probably been in the physio room more in the last week than in my
life," she said. "Hopefully it'll pay off."
Clijsters had trouble with her serve, with four double-faults, and had 43
unforced errors that could be attributed to staying off the court on her
off-days.
"It's more important to rest than just be out there practicing," she said.
Fifth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko rallied from two sets and a break down to
reach the men's quarterfinals and snap Dominik Hrbaty's run of five-set wins
with a 4-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 victory.
After his 3 1/2-hour loss Monday, Hrbaty had spent a total of 13 hours and 57
minutes on court in four matches. The No. 12 seed from Slovakia was only the
fourth man to play four consecutive five-set matches at one Grand Slam
tournament.
American Robby Ginepri was the most recent, winning three times in
five-setters at last year's U.S. Open before losing the semifinal in five to
Andre Agassi.
No. 21 Nicolas Kiefer had a 7-6 (4), 6-3, 6-3 win over Juan Ignacio Chela,
who had ousted third-seeded Lleyton Hewitt in the second round.
Kiefer next plays No. 25 Sebastien Grosjean, a 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 winner over
fellow Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu.
WTA Championship winner Amelie Mauresmo cruised into the quarterfinals,
committing only two unforced errors in a 6-1, 6-1 victory over 16-year-old
Nicole Vaidisova.
Mauresmo next plays Switzerland's Patty Schnyder, who beat 2004 French Open
champion Anastasia Myskina 6-2, 6-1 in 55 minutes.
Myskina struggled with her groundstrokes and had 32 unforced errors against
only 13 for seventh-seeded Schnyder.
Mauresmo reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open for the fourth time
on her second match point when Vaidisova hit a forehand into the net.
While Vaidisova was seeded 16th and dictated the pace of the match, the young
Czech showed her inexperience on center court with 34 unforced errors to 14
winners and had her serve broken five times. Mauresmo won nearly twice as many
points, 51-27.
Top-ranked Roger Federer, the overwhelming favorite in the men's draw, was
playing Tommy Haas in the last match of the night.
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