Schiavone to meet Stosur in Open final
PARIS, France (AP) — Francesca Schiavone will play Samantha Stosur in tomorrow’s French Open final, the latest surprise in a week full of them at Roland Garros.
The 17th-seeded Schiavone became the first Italian woman to reach a major final when opponent Elena Dementieva unexpectedly retired from their semi-final with a left calf injury after losing the first set 7-6 (3) yesterday.
No 7 Stosur then became the first Australian woman in 30 years to reach a Grand Slam final by drubbing former No 1 Jelena Jankovic, 6-1, 6-2.
Both Schiavone and Stosur are first-time Grand Slam finalists.
“We’re both out here to enjoy it,” Stosur said. “We’re both going to be excited. It’s a great opportunity for both of us.”
Stosur won with the same big serve and booming forehand that helped her upset four-time French Open champion Justine Henin and 12-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams this week.
The two semi-finals lasted barely two hours between them, and the first match ended abruptly. After Dementieva lost the first set, she walked up to Schiavone, who was sitting in her changeover chair, and extended a hand in concession.
“For the moment, I don’t understand what’s going on,” Schiavone said.
The Italian then fell to her knees to kiss the court in a reprise of her quarter-final celebration, and rose with a clay-caked grin.
While Italians celebrated, Dementieva sobbed before heading for the exit. It’s the first time in the Open era that a woman retired in a semi-final or final at Roland Garros.
The second match was even shorter than the first, lasting only an hour. Stosur became the first Australian woman to reach a Grand Slam final since Wendy Turnbull, the runner-up at the 1980 Australian Open.
She began the semi-final swinging with the same confidence she showed in her earlier upsets, and after falling behind 2-0 in the second set, she swept the final six games. Stosur hit seven aces, lost only six points on her first serve and doubled the overmatched Jankovic in winners, 18-9.
In the men’s semi-finals today, four-time champion Rafael Nadal plays Jurgen Melzer of Austria, who never advanced beyond the third round in his previous 31 major tournaments. Another first-time Grand Slam semi-finalist, Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, faces last year’s runner-up, No 5 Robin Soderling.
