Henin Rallies Past Petrova, Reaches First Miami Semi - 網球

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Henin Rallies Past Petrova, Reaches First Miami Semi

MIAMI, FL, USA - Miami has never been the greatest stop in the past for
Justine Henin, but all that has now changed. On a blistery Tuesday evening,
the current No.1 fought her way into the semifinals of the $3.45-million Sony
Ericsson Open for the first time in six tries, edging Nadia Petrova, 76(4)
76(4).

The quarterfinal duel between the top-seeded Henin and the No.6-seeded
Petrova was an impressive serving display; there were only two breaks 24
service games, coming in the fifth and sixth games of the second set. The
most crucial moments of the match came in the tie-breaks and it was Henin who
stepped up each time. She is now 10-2 against the Russian, who is currently
ranked No.7.

"It was a tough one," Henin stated. "I was brave, I was a fighter, and even
if it wasn't a very good first set, I played a good tie-break, and the level
improved. It was a better fight for sure. I had a lot of trouble on my return
but I served pretty good on the important points and could feel my game
better in the second set.

"To win against a top player gives me a lot of confidence."

Henin's best previous showings at the Sony Ericsson Open were quarterfinal
runs in 2003 and 2005, but now she is into the final four for the very first
time.

"I'm so happy to be in the semifinals for the first time," the Belgian
declared. "I just try to win match after match and just keep fighting. Miami
hasn't been very successful for me in the past. I'm so glad I'm still here on
Thursday."

Another fruit of Henin's labor here is her ever-extending 2007 win streak;
this win was her 12th in a row, eight of them coming in her Middle Eastern
sweep at Dubai and Doha and four coming here. Prior to Miami there was a tie
between Kim Clijsters, Jelena Jankovic and Anna Chakvetadze for longest
streak, with nine.

Chakvetadze, who put together that run by winning Hobart (5-0) and reaching
her first major quarterfinal in Melbourne (4-1), will be Henin's semifinal
opponent. On Tuesday, the No.9-seeded Russian battled back from a set and 3-1
down against No.15-seeded Chinese trailblazer Li Na to win in three sets, 46
75 62.

Henin and Chakvetadze have played just once before, with the Belgian winning
in two easy sets, 62 63, in the third round of Wimbledon last summer. But it
is a different Chakvetadze now; the Russian, who just turned 20 years old,
has had seven of her eight career Top 10 wins since that match, and also made
her debut in the Top 10 earlier this year, having been a much-lower No.34 at
Wimbledon.

The fourth round battle between Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams was also
up Tuesday, with Williams cruising to a 61 61 victory. Read more about it
here.

The second pair of quarterfinal matches will take the court on Wednesday.
No.14 seed Shahar Peer tries to stop the dream run of No.24-seeded Tathiana
Garbin in the feature afternoon match, while No.8 seed Nicole Vaidisova
fights No.13 seed Williams in the feature night match. The semifinals are
scheduled for Thursday.

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