- 09 Sep 2006, 14:31
#570861
The only thing shining brighter than the sun upon Arthur Ashe Stadium today was the smile on 21-year-old Jelena Jankovic’s face.
For the first set and a half, at least.
After wiping the floor with Justine Henin-Hardenne to take the first set and go up in the second set 4-2, No. 19 Jankovic crashed hard, losing the next 10 games, and the match, to the No. 2 ranked Belgian; 4-6, 6-4, 6-0.
The scales tipped heavily for Jankovic early on as she capitalized on Henin-Hardenne’s slower pace by slamming down 24 winners. Her searing backhand left Henin-Hardenne sprinting corner to corner. Fatigued and frustrated, Henin-Hardenne double faulted 12 times.
Yet the mighty Belgian’s relentless attitude proved too much for the slightly inexperienced Jankovic, who was making her first major semifinal appearance against a powerhouse who has previously gone this far twelve times. The young Jankovic used up both of her challenges early on in the second set and to make matters worse, the agile Serb could not stay on her feet. Unlike a composed Henin-Hardenne, Jankovic repeatedly skidded across the court, and one instance culminated in a full split. Perhaps the humble Jankovic – who proudly laughed at herself post-fall – should consider gymnastics.
Truth be told, it was Jankovic – the aggressive Serb who unexpectedly ousted three Top 10 seeds – who deserved the win. It was Jankovic who out-hustled, out-served, and out-played. Physically, she topped the world ranked No. 2 and yet Jankovic crumbled mentally.
“My concentration went down because of the umpire,” noted Jankovic. “He didn’t know if the ball was in or not. Then I make the double-fault on the game point. I think that was a huge point for me. I could have been up 5-2 and would have been a different story.”
She continued. “And then all of a sudden I felt the wind started blowing so hard when it was in the end of the second set. I had a tough time. I didn’t even know where my balls were going. I was hitting as hard as I could and it was landing in the middle of the box. It was flying all over the place. It was difficult. The wind started blowing in the wrong time for me. I was really disappointed. I lost my concentration. I gave her that set.”
And even the victor agrees. “I was pretty nervous at the beginning of the match,” said Henin-Hardenne. “I wasn’t in the good rhythm. She was playing terrific at that time. She was just on fire. She played an unbelievable tournament.”
Henin-Hardenne’s quality of play picked up with the wind. Despite Jankovic holding the advantage four times in a row in the ninth game of the second set, Henin-Hardenne’s quick two points mocked Jankovic’s failure to close as she took the game and went up 5-4. With the victory, the head-to-head record is upped to 2-0 in Henin-Hardenne’s favor.
In her eighth consecutive US Open appearance, the 2003 Champion Henin-Hardenne advances to the US Open finals to face No. 3 Maria Sharapova. The 24-year-old can now also add to her resume that she has advanced to the final at every major in the 2006 season, including one title at Roland Garros.
“I always remember, as a little girl, dreams of becoming a professional tennis player, and now here I am,” said Henin-Hardenne. “I enjoy to be on the tour and to do what I love so much. It's a great feeling.”